Question
Asked by Bob Stockus
Imaginary Conversations
If I hold verbal conversations with myself and other imaginary characters within my mind,is that a symptom of schizoprenia? And if it is so,is it related to the symptom of "hearing voices"?
Answer
Hi Robert,
This reminds me of something I read somewhere about a woman who talked to herself and wondered if that was OK even if she had SZ. If you are hearing voices that are imaginary characters in your mind, then talking to the voices could possibly be a coping skill or part of the SZ.
There are some professionals who would say it's related to your illness, I'm sure. Myself, if it were me, I would shy away from talking out loud to myself. But that is just me. I sometimes talk out loud the words I'm writing down in my journal as I'm writing them. As I type this answer, I'm reading aloud what I'm typing.
As long as what you're doing doesn't interfere with your ability to function and be active in the world, I feel that's all that matters. Again, you have to know that there are professionals who would say what you're doing is related to the SZ. And definitely if you did this in public, eyebrows would raise.
Regards,
Christina