Symptoms
On:

Conviction is the strength with which a belief is held. Insight includes the ability to recognise an experience as potentially related to illness or to consider explanations other than the most immediate one. These qualities…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Delusions can concern the body, relationships, identity or the control of thoughts. Somatic delusions involve fixed beliefs about bodily illness or alteration. Jealous delusions concern a partner’s supposed infidelity despite inadequate evidence. Erotomanic delusions involve…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Referential delusions involve believing that ordinary events carry a special meaning directed at oneself. A television presenter may seem to be speaking personally to the viewer, or a song, advertisement or stranger’s gesture may be…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Grandiose delusions involve beliefs about exceptional identity, importance, power, ability or relationships. A person may believe they possess extraordinary knowledge, have a special mission or maintain a close connection with a famous individual. The belief…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Persecutory delusions involve the conviction that someone intends to harm, monitor, deceive or unfairly target the person. The perceived threat may involve strangers, neighbours, organisations or people close to them. Ordinary events, such as a…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

The impact of hallucinations depends on their content, frequency, meaning and the person’s sense of control. A quiet but threatening voice may be more distressing than a loud neutral one. Fear, exhaustion and isolation can…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Scientists investigate hallucinations as changes in the processes that construct perception. The brain combines sensory input with expectations, memories and attention. One hypothesis proposes that expectations receive too much weight when external information is uncertain.…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Hallucinations can involve touch, smell, taste or bodily sensations as well as hearing and vision. Tactile hallucinations may feel like crawling, touching or pressure on the skin. Olfactory hallucinations involve smells without an external source…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Visual hallucinations involve seeing something without a matching external stimulus. They can be simple, such as flashes or shapes, or complex, such as people, animals or complete scenes. They differ from illusions, in which a…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Auditory hallucinations involve hearing sounds without an external source. Voices are a common form in schizophrenia, although people may also hear music, footsteps or other noises. A voice may seem to come from outside the…Continue Reading