4 ms·

Talking through a problem in my head is the most natural way to solve it for me. I've always wondered if that counts as hearing voices. Especially because somet

Talking through a problem in my head is the most natural way to solve it for me. I've always wondered if that counts as hearing voices. Especially because sometimes it's hard to shut off at night when I need to go to sleep.

yoodenvranx 9y ago
> Especially because sometimes it's hard to shut off at night when I need to go to sleep. I recently realized that listening to a "boring" podcast or youtube videos while trying to fall asleep will shut down all those voices and thoughts.
- sillysaurus3 9y ago
  It does. But now it's almost impossible to sleep without it. I'm not sure which is worse.
- probablybroken 9y ago
  Yes - I've used ASMR videos for the same purpose; Gently varying sounds seem to be enough to suppress the internal dialogue for me.
- BurningFrog 9y ago
  There is a window between "interesting enough that it keeps my attention" and "not interesting enough that I need to hear the whole thing" that works for me. It can't have a narrative arc that makes you want to hear the end, so mostly it's witty but aimless conversations, and newscasts type programs.
accountyaccount 9y ago
It doesn't "count" from a psychological perspective until it really starts impacting your life in negative (and measurable) ways. A common example might be "keeps you up at night" — which can happen to people from time to time, but the moment it starts damaging your relationships and ability to live comfortably it becomes something that might be a part of a clinical diagnosis (simply "hearing voices" isn't a problem on its own without other factors). If the public could learn one thing about psychology I think it should probably be that there's never "just one thing" when it comes to identifying problems. A single compulsion doesn't mean you have OCD, for example.
- bitJericho 9y ago
  Or you've made some pretty shitty decisions and need to fix your life! Sometimes the voices are trying to help!
  - accountyaccount 9y ago
    typically good voice: "this feels bad, get your shit together so you can avoid this in the future" typically bad voice: "this feels bad, maybe god will notice you if you start setting things on fire"
teilo 9y ago
No, it's not the same thing at all. There is a distinct difference between your own internal dialogue and hearing voices. When you are hashing out things with yourself, you perceive yourself as the source of the voices/thoughts. On the contrary, when you hear voices, they are like an intrusion. You do not perceive them as yourself, nor as your own thoughts, but as if someone else stepped into your head and said something that you were not contemplating, in a voice that sounds nothing like your own. A lot of people experience this phenomena when they are just on the verge of falling asleep. Now imagine that same thing happening when you are wide awake.
- daveguy 9y ago
  In my teens and early 20s I would hear friends calling my name when I was alone especially after a long period of social activity. I know it was just in my head, but it was still an odd sensation. I've never heard anything outside that, but it was definitely different than the inner monologue. I don't experience it before falling asleep, and rarely at all anymore. My daughter says hearing voices happens to her somewhat regularly on the verge of sleep. I am interested to try the "imagine a talking head as you are going to sleep" that someone else mentioned. I think this kind of conversation is fascinating. Personally think that neuroscientists exploring these phenomena and "edge cases" will help improve our understanding of intelligence, the mind, and brain function.
  - teilo 9y ago
    I have had a few cases where a voice has intruded when I was tired, but not about to fall asleep (in one case I was driving). In each case the voice was not talking to me at all, and it was just a snippet, less than a sentence, and then it's gone and does not recur. It is almost as if I am eavesdropping on a bit of random conversation. I have never experienced a visual hallucination (and I have never taken any drugs that could cause either).
mikestew 9y ago
I've always wondered if that counts as hearing voices. In my reading of Buddhist writings, the non-stop, live-streaming audio track is common enough (arguably universal) that this is addressed in those writings. So, no, I don’t think it counts if we all have it. :-) As far as going to sleep, meditation helps. Zen-style Buddhist meditation addresses “the voice” specifically: be apathetic to it, not trying to block or ignore it, just be with it. Of course the whole of Zen thought can’t be described in a sentence. Contact your local zendo for more information. :-) Personally, when I’ve been a “good” Zen student for a period of time, “the voice” can go away on occasion, usually during meditation. Now that is...different.
pierrebai 9y ago
You hear voices while you dream. In my dreams, other people talk without me controlling what they say, so obviously they have their own internal voice independent of mine, yet they all live in my mind. (People I know tend to act like I'd expect them to act. They're the embodiement of my perception of them in real life, but autonomous.) I've always found that strange that people could live in my head during dreaming. What's more, I sometimes dream of people doing creative things or creating stories. Yet those things obviously come from my own brain. I can't figure out how my brain does it. It's smarter than my conscious self.

yoodenvranx 9y ago

> Especially because sometimes it's hard to shut off at night when I need to go to sleep. I recently realized that listening to a "boring" podcast or youtube videos while trying to fall asleep will shut down all those voices and thoughts.

sillysaurus3 9y ago
It does. But now it's almost impossible to sleep without it. I'm not sure which is worse.
probablybroken 9y ago
Yes - I've used ASMR videos for the same purpose; Gently varying sounds seem to be enough to suppress the internal dialogue for me.
BurningFrog 9y ago
There is a window between "interesting enough that it keeps my attention" and "not interesting enough that I need to hear the whole thing" that works for me. It can't have a narrative arc that makes you want to hear the end, so mostly it's witty but aimless conversations, and newscasts type programs.

accountyaccount 9y ago

It doesn't "count" from a psychological perspective until it really starts impacting your life in negative (and measurable) ways. A common example might be "keeps you up at night" — which can happen to people from time to time, but the moment it starts damaging your relationships and ability to live comfortably it becomes something that might be a part of a clinical diagnosis (simply "hearing voices" isn't a problem on its own without other factors). If the public could learn one thing about psychology I think it should probably be that there's never "just one thing" when it comes to identifying problems. A single compulsion doesn't mean you have OCD, for example.

bitJericho 9y ago
Or you've made some pretty shitty decisions and need to fix your life! Sometimes the voices are trying to help!
- accountyaccount 9y ago
  typically good voice: "this feels bad, get your shit together so you can avoid this in the future" typically bad voice: "this feels bad, maybe god will notice you if you start setting things on fire"

teilo 9y ago

No, it's not the same thing at all. There is a distinct difference between your own internal dialogue and hearing voices. When you are hashing out things with yourself, you perceive yourself as the source of the voices/thoughts. On the contrary, when you hear voices, they are like an intrusion. You do not perceive them as yourself, nor as your own thoughts, but as if someone else stepped into your head and said something that you were not contemplating, in a voice that sounds nothing like your own. A lot of people experience this phenomena when they are just on the verge of falling asleep. Now imagine that same thing happening when you are wide awake.

daveguy 9y ago
In my teens and early 20s I would hear friends calling my name when I was alone especially after a long period of social activity. I know it was just in my head, but it was still an odd sensation. I've never heard anything outside that, but it was definitely different than the inner monologue. I don't experience it before falling asleep, and rarely at all anymore. My daughter says hearing voices happens to her somewhat regularly on the verge of sleep. I am interested to try the "imagine a talking head as you are going to sleep" that someone else mentioned. I think this kind of conversation is fascinating. Personally think that neuroscientists exploring these phenomena and "edge cases" will help improve our understanding of intelligence, the mind, and brain function.
- teilo 9y ago
  I have had a few cases where a voice has intruded when I was tired, but not about to fall asleep (in one case I was driving). In each case the voice was not talking to me at all, and it was just a snippet, less than a sentence, and then it's gone and does not recur. It is almost as if I am eavesdropping on a bit of random conversation. I have never experienced a visual hallucination (and I have never taken any drugs that could cause either).

mikestew 9y ago

I've always wondered if that counts as hearing voices. In my reading of Buddhist writings, the non-stop, live-streaming audio track is common enough (arguably universal) that this is addressed in those writings. So, no, I don’t think it counts if we all have it. :-) As far as going to sleep, meditation helps. Zen-style Buddhist meditation addresses “the voice” specifically: be apathetic to it, not trying to block or ignore it, just be with it. Of course the whole of Zen thought can’t be described in a sentence. Contact your local zendo for more information. :-) Personally, when I’ve been a “good” Zen student for a period of time, “the voice” can go away on occasion, usually during meditation. Now that is...different.

pierrebai 9y ago

You hear voices while you dream. In my dreams, other people talk without me controlling what they say, so obviously they have their own internal voice independent of mine, yet they all live in my mind. (People I know tend to act like I'd expect them to act. They're the embodiement of my perception of them in real life, but autonomous.) I've always found that strange that people could live in my head during dreaming. What's more, I sometimes dream of people doing creative things or creating stories. Yet those things obviously come from my own brain. I can't figure out how my brain does it. It's smarter than my conscious self.