The experience of psychosis is often misunderstood by those who have not experienced it firsthand. There is a common misconception that the psychotic individual is simply imagining things or “thinking” that they are seeing or hearing things that are not there. However, this is far from the reality of the situation.

The truth is that the psychotic individual does, in fact, see or hear things that are not there. This is not a matter of imagination or “thinking” that something is there when it is not. Rather, it is a matter of the brain receiving sense data that is not actually present in the external environment.

This experience is known as an hallucination, and it is a hallmark symptom of psychosis. Hallucinations can take many forms, including visual, auditory, tactile, and olfactory. They can be experienced as vivid, lifelike images or sounds that are perceived as real by the individual experiencing them.

It is important to note that the experience of an hallucination is not manufactured by the brain in the same way that imagination is. Imagination is a creative process that involves the conscious mind generating mental images or ideas. In contrast, hallucinations are experienced as if they are real and are perceived by the brain as actual sensory input.

This is why it is incorrect to say that the psychotic individual is only “thinking” that they are seeing or hearing something that is not there. From their perspective, they are perceiving something that is just as real and tangible as anything else in their environment. This perception is not something that they can simply turn off or ignore, but rather it is an integral part of their experience of the world around them.

Furthermore, the individual experiencing an hallucination may act in response to it in a way that seems logical to them, just as we act in response to our own sense data. This may involve interacting with the perceived object or responding to the perceived sound as if it were real.

In conclusion, it is important to understand that the experience of psychosis involves more than simply “thinking” that something is there when it is not. The hallucinations experienced by the psychotic individual are received by the brain as actual sensory input and are perceived as real and tangible. It is important to recognize and understand this experience in order to provide effective treatment and support for individuals experiencing psychosis.