Wondering about hallucinations?

I have a question.

I don't KNOW that I have a disorder which lends itself to hallucinations of any kind. BUT I do have PTSD, DID, and BPD.

I have noticed in times of stress, usually severe, that things tend to warp, or look shiny on the surface, or even ripple. Things just don't look normal and my eyesight seems to be - off. I guess. Its hard to explain.

I also have alot of situations where I see things out of the corner of my eye but there is nothing there. Or, I will see things that look like tiny flies zipping around when really there is nothing there.

Now my question is, am I experiencing some type of psychosis, or could this all be attributed to dissociation? Has anyone experienced anything like this?

I am currently waiting to see a new psych doc so I am just looking for some opinion in the mean time.

I get that too. I assume that it could be one of two things. Either A, my glasses need to be adjusted, or B, I'm having visual distortions. I still haven't decided which it is.

I also experience similar visuals as you described (among others). My diagnosis is pretty close to yours, Rainbowzz, and I have chalked these visual oddities up to mild hallucinations brought on either by stressful situations, emotional duress, or even some medications. I would think they would be nothing to worry about unless they turn into a full-blown, all-out losing touch with reality sort of psychosis. Just my humble opinion anyhow.

Hi Rainbowz,

The distorted, shiny looking effect can be part of dissociation. I don't know about the rest.

Hugs,

Jan

imnot too sure... im not sure but... schizo affective???

I have had similar hallucinations before, mainly seeing shadows out of the corner of my eyes.

But to throw a new idea out there -- maybe those ripples and other movements are actually sounds, not hallucinations. Synesthesia. Seeing sound, feeling sound, hearing colours, tasting shapes... one sensation provokes another. I see sound in colours and shapes, and at first I just assumed that they were hallucinations, like the flies.^^ But if they are in shapes or colours, maybe try experimenting with some sounds, or other senses that might provoke them.

"syn·es·the·sia also syn·aes·the·sia (sĭn'ĭs-thē'zhə) pronunciation
n.

1. A condition in which one type of stimulation evokes the sensation of another, as when the hearing of a sound produces the visualization of a color.
2. A sensation felt in one part of the body as a result of stimulus applied to another, as in referred pain.
3. The description of one kind of sense impression by using words that normally describe another. [from answers.com]"

I know exactly what you are talking about. I have schizoaffective disorder: bipolar type, bpd, ocd, ptsd, I dissociate a little,and panic. The change in perception is def a weird feeling, huh? but that's all it is nothing to worry about; the fly thing well I got my eyes checked out and the doc just said to keep an eye on it for changes but theyre floaters or swimmers; nothing to do with your psych stuff.

It was controversial but eventually the DSM critieria for borderline personality disorder was altered to include the criterion of 'brief psychotic episodes during times of stress'. it sounds to me that your experiences would fall under that symptom. i get this stuff too. mostly when i've had a lack of sleep and / or when i'm particularly stressed out. while it is considered a 'brief psychotic' kind of a thing it is supposed to be different from psychosis in that it is shorter lived and reality testing tends to remain intact (or if it doesn't the episodes tend not to last more than a couple hours to a couple days).

the flashback experiences of PTSD can also resemble hallucinations etc.

i don't think it is synasthesia - that is a very technical notion, typically. i guess there is a general understanding of it which includes hallucinatory experiences but a clinical diagnosis of it is a very different matter. Varieties of stroop tasks are used for diagnosis, see, for example:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synesth...e_verification