INTERVOICE has always considered the importance of accepting peoples’ own explanations for their voice experiences as paramount. Many people believe their voices to have spiritual or other significance. In this section we explore a range of alternative explanations for the experience of voice hearing and other ways that people have found to cope with them.
Research has shown that there are many people who hear voices, some of whom cope with their voices well without psychiatric intervention, it has also been found that there are many people who hear voices who can cope with their voices and regard them as a positive part of their lives. Neither is it the case that voices have always been regarded as a negative experience.
Throughout history and even today there are people who hear voices who find their voices inspirational and comforting. These are facts that on the face of it are hard to square with the extremely negative way that the experience is regarded by psychiatry.
The researchers, practitioners and involved voice hearers involved in INTERVOICE believe it is mistaken to regard voice hearing as part of a psychopathic disease syndrome. Rather, they consider it to be more akin to a variation in human experience – if you like, a faculty or differentiation – something like homosexuality, that it is definitely not open to cure.
As my voices are comforting I wonder if they are the holy spirit. Word association games where they say a meaningless word that causes me to picture something, that picture being the communication is my favorite. The perfect communication, unlike human where the meaning of words have to be the same for both people, has almost spoiled me as to the ease, wonderful ease of communicating with the voices or spirits. They have peace, sense of humor(joy) and are motivated by love. That is why I call them spirits. They feel much better than they appear to feel, they are flying high.
A good neuroscientist can show using PET and fMRi how unconscious neural activity becomes conscious realization. Genetic design or genetic mutation is regressive or progressive and maybe through social and political oppression like witch hunts and civil conflict our auditory capacity has been managed.
We who express hearing voices betray something extraordinary to our peers.
My aim would be to lend more time to understanding the neuroscience for neuropsychological explanation following the popular neuroscience of Damasio and Ramachandran.
Peter, I’m not sure what you mean by all of that. I do believe that it is Spiritual in Nature, but does not necessarily mean we should listen to it. If it is negative, then I would say it is no use to us.
I’m a voice hearer, I have been since the age of 3, I have 2 labels I’m also bipolar as well as labled the big label. I don’t use my labels, if I was a jam jar they would have dropped of by now. I was labled at 17 because Dr. Malcolm thought I was in the box of pschiz. Well I’ve come full circle and now work as a community mental health suport worker I don’t label my clients just look at their unique experience.
I met Sue Clarkson from Keighley West Yoekshire many years ago she helped me change my life forever!!! I understand I’ve needed mental health units but the Hearing voices network helped me find me!! myself!! I’ll always hear voices thats for sure! I am my own best friend take the tablets when I get the signs earlier than ever cos I need to help myself!!!!!!!!
Hi! My English isn’t good sorry. My hobby is parapsycholgy, I’m interesting parapsychology about 10 yrs. I hear voices 5 yrs and I belive that sometimes is just telepathy:). For example: I wanted have tatoo and I went to tatoo salon and I met my old friend-I didn’t see him about 7 yrs. He started his job and I start tell him about my lost job in abroad. I told him that people call me there mental, psychical etc. Suddenly he stopped tatoo me and I “heard” his thought: ” I don’t want listen about yours problem…” What do you think about it?? Telepathy happend to me about 20 times in 5yrs:)