QUESTION 1: WHAT DID YOU EXPERIENCE DURING THE HEARING DISTRESSING VOICES SIMULATION?
Theme Selected Indicator Statements
Negative Voices Frustrating Me I experienced people actually talking to me, but it was degrading, disheartening
voices that discourage me from doing daily tasks.
I felt frustrated when fi lling out the paper because I had to keep stopping and
thinking about what I was writing.
It was creepy, scary, and annoying. It suddenly appears and tries to humiliate the
listener. Both male and female voices, some small, some loud.
Voices that are negative and demeaning…a woman yelling at me telling me not to
do things. Then random voices…a man telling me I stink.
Having Diffi culty Concentrating I found it very diffi cult to concentrate. I could not focus or answer questions easily.
When asked, I couldn’t remember the day.
It was extremely hard to focus and nearly impossible to complete the puzzles.
A sense of disorganization.
I was surprised at how negative the voices were. It made concentrating very
diffi cult.
I felt like what I was saying did not make sense, and I felt stupid if I didn’t hear
something or did not know what they said.
I couldn’t answer any of the questions the doctor asked me.
Feeling Overwhelmed I felt overwhelmed when being asked certain questions while hearing the voices at
the same time.
I felt I did not have control of what I was saying. I could not think appropriately.
A lot of voices saying random things and words that didn’t really make sense and
music playing. It made me feel overwhelmed and like I couldn’t control my brain.
Experiencing Annoying Voices I was super annoyed and irritated the whole time. I couldn’t concentrate or think.
Horrible.
[Voices] laughing at times, annoyance.
Enduring Physical and Psychological
Symptoms
A big headache.
Extreme anxiety, light-headedness.
My heart started to race. It was upsetting to listen to.
I felt anxiety because I could not concentrate fully on what I needed to do.
Confusion, anxiety, and fear.
Stress.
I couldn’t hear anything the doctor was saying to me.
Voices telling me I wasn’t good enough, along with other comments.
Self-confi dence with the rude voices was an impossible goal.