Hi everyone,

I am not schizophrenic or psychotic myself, so can not speak from experience, but I did have a long and serious manic episode once, so I did go through an altered state of consciousness. I am very interested in the mechanisms of psychosis and I read this forum and publications on the topic a lot.

As far as I understand, people do not get committed for having dreams and visions. Many people hear voices daily and still never get committed or diagnosed with psychotic disorders. In my understanding the key to differentiation between healthy and pathological is level of functioning. If a person can go about their life without much disruption from visions, voices and premonitions, he will not be given any diagnosis and most likely won't seek treatment at all.

But if those visions overwhelm you to the point of not being able to lead functional life, then they need to be addressed by professional.

Again, just my understanding of the matter, I do not claim to be an expert on the topic.