What does being psychic and being psychotic have in common? Both involve seeing and hearing phenomena that no one else is experiencing. So how do you know when you have a serious mental health problem vs. simply being psychic? Goodness knows I had absolutely no clue what was happening to me when I was shockingly introduced to the World of My Psychic Abilities at the age of 13.
I write about this today because I grew up with a grandma who eventually suffered severe psychosis. It scared the crap out of me, and I swore up one side and down the other that I would do anything and everything to never be like her. There were barely any meds available to manage the condition, and she wouldn’t have taken them anyway.
As my intuition slowly but surely evolved on its merry own time in my teens and 20’s, I never worried that I was like grandma. I didn’t think I was receiving omens from a knickknack by the front door, I had no voice telling me to kill people, and my premonitions showed up randomly. I didn’t have periods of time where it was nonstop, then it quit, like grandma’s psychosis did. She was extremely paranoid and pissed when she was psychotic, and I never, ever felt anything remotely similar. I write this today due to the sheer volume of people who have over the years shared with me they were scared they were developing a severe mental illness.
My social work job was evaluating people seeking psychiatric services at a mental health hospital. I interviewed them, diagnosed their symptoms, then assigned appropriate level of treatment and connected them with the necessary service.
Being psychic myself helped me feel a lot more confident about discerning the difference between psychosis and psychic ability. I shudder to think about how many people have been slapped on antipsychotic meds when they didn’t need them at all.
Also, If someone has no experience with psychosis at all, it can be highly alarming to suddenly begin sensing spirits, have premonitions, or randomly know information without having a tangible way of receiving it.
So today I share this information in hopes that someone out there in the ethers might see this and feel comforted that what they are sensing is entirely within the range of average human experience. There are a bajillion psychic people out there—in my opinion, it’s an entirely common situation that humans are intuitive/psychic. It is how we are wired.
To ensure that the information I share is correct, I briefly discussed this topic with my own counselor. My memory grows rather flabby as I near 60, and I figured getting some backup here would be swell.
Heather shared that as a licensed mental health counselor, one factor she considers is the person’s belief systems and religious background. Being upset about being cursed, talking with deceased ancestors, etc. are perfectly normal in some societies and countries. If this is how you have been raised to think, then it is expected that you might believe that.
Other considerations include:
Are command voices (voices telling someone to hurt self or others) present? Then it is likely psychosis unless an entity is attached to the person.
Is the person paranoid, thinking the FBI is following them, someone is breaking into their home and nicking the back of their dishes, or scratching their car? This points toward psychosis.
Are the experiences causing acute distress for both the person and those around them (if they are sharing what is happening)? This one can be present with both psychosis and being psychic.
People with psychosis often hear audible voices with their physical ears or feel an actual physical touch on their skin. With psychic ability, voices are typically noticed more internally, like it is actually “in their head.” I routinely feel spirits touching me, but it registers as very faint and barely discernible. It isn’t like when I scratch my leg. This being said, it doesn’t mean that actually hearing a voice with your physical ears automatically makes you psychotic. All these criteria, and a lot more, should be used during an evaluation.
The final difference Heather mentioned is that in many mental disorders, psychosis presents in cycles. It is present 24-7 for periods of time, like days or weeks. Psychic information varies in the length of time it is present, depending on the person’s level of psychic development and so many other factors.
If you feel you are perhaps experiencing psychosis, you can go to your nearest emergency room for a psychiatric evaluation. If your abilities are developing, find a qualified, experienced psychic who knows their stuff to help you. Being psychic is a fabulous way of living that can decrease stress and increase joy and security, if you know how to work with it. Otherwise, it can be like a bull on cocaine in a china shop.
I do mentor individuals in psychic development, and I have been offering readings professionally since 2005. Feel free to email/call/text me for more info! 317-440-8783 or annie@laughingsoul.org.
Laughing Soul 