[kittyloki]

My doc says it is pretty rare for bipolar people to hear voices or see things that aren't real. I'm on risperdal for it but it only fixes me to about 75%. I was wondering if anyone else out there hears voices and has bipolar.

It probably is somewhat rare in that it is a sign that something still isn't quite stable with you quite yet. The doc will work on tweaking meds to eliminate that aspect. It's great that the risperdal is getting there though. Sometimes these symptoms take so much time to get under control.

[1963.Susan]

i've heard noises, but not voices, and only once (so far!).

[spiritual_emergency]

My understanding is that if you hear voices only when you're manic or depressed, you have bipolar disorder with psychotic features. If you hear voices outside of a "mood episode" the (controversial) diagnosis is schizoaffective.

Medication may help but for some people, it doesn't or it doesn't help them entirely. Here's some resources that may be helpful to those who hear voices.

- Intervoice: The International Community for Hearing Voices

- Redefining Hearing Voices

- Hearing Voices (Auditory Hallucinations)

[Navygrrl]

I hear voices, although it's more unintelligble whispering. When I was a teenager, I used to hear a male voice saying my name. I don't know really how this affects my diagnosis, as I just started up with a therapist today who is still doing intake on me. I've read, though, that some bipolar people do hear voices.

[BNLsMOM]

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I have heard some recently. It was garbled mumbling with one intelligible phrase. Also, Ithough I heard my husband say, "Hey." in my ear but when I turned he wasn't there. I also once heard "sh sh sh" when I was trying to go to sleep. I think this all happened while I was becoming and was manic.

When I was a kid, I heard my grandfather calling my name, but he wasn't there. I ran downstairs to my parents' bedroom and crawled into bed with them and then I heard him calling my sister's name.

Who knows what it really is, but while I was manic, it was very real and I tried to connect so that I could hear better. This was just a week or two ago.

[lonegael]

I have also heard things, much more clearl when it was right as I was going into oor was in an episode. Seen things also at the same times. I have heard different things about it; nowadays I believe that it is kind of accepted that we bipolars cn also see and hear things outside of episodes, but if the rest of our thinking is not disturbed and we can recognize the sounds and sights aren't real, then it's not considered schizoaffective. It's been many years since all one needed for a schizophrenia label was to hear or see things, thank God considering how society has dealt with people who fall into that category. Huggs!

[artsy.blonde]

i hear voices..there are 3 of them that talk to me. They tell me all kinds of odd stuff like dont trust people who drive black cars, that cnn talks to me thru the tv, that there are spirits that are coming to get me and that i should cover my windows with tinfoil to prevent them from coming to kill me.

anyway, i was dignosed with bi-polar but was recently that was changed to Schizoaffetive Disorder. so, mabye u should talk with your dr about that?

No anti-pyschotic works for me. ive been on them all and i now talk Clozaril aka clozapine. its a heavy duty drug that they only give u when nothing else works.

[leah0306]

I too have heard voices,wispered conversations, and havent ever really understood it. Have read that it does happen to some of us with bp, but my new therapist was like i might be schizoaffective? So confusing, and this was said during intake, without her reading my 8 year file from previous pdr. UGGH...

[Typo]

I have heard voices and had hallucinations, I"m not sure if that relates to the bipolar or if it had to do with the extreme amount of stress I was under.