Hearing voices

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How can other people help?

If someone you care about hears voices you might find it hard to understand what they are experiencing. You might not know how to help. But there are lots of positive things you can do to support them.

• Accept that their experience of the voices is real. Everyone will have a unique experience of hearing voices and will think about their voices in different ways. You can help by accepting their experience as real - even if you find it hard to understand.
• Try not to make judgments about what hearing voices means for them. Some people don't talk about their voices because they are worried their friends and family won't understand or will assume they are seriously ill.
• Learn their triggers. Learn more about whether there are particular situations or experiences that trigger their voices.
• Remember they are still the same person. Hearing voices doesn't change who they are.

"My family and friends didn't judge me which I think made it a lot easier for me to deal with."

• Ask them what would help. Avoid making assumptions about what they find difficult. Different people want different support at different times. Sometimes the best thing to do can be to ask them what, if anything, you can do to help.
• Reassure them that they are not alone. Lots of people who hear voices don't realise that other people do too. It can also help to reassure them that hearing voices does not necessarily mean that they are ill. There are lots of reasons why people hear voices.
• Encourage them to talk about their experience. They may want to talk to you or to a doctor, support worker or other people who hear voices.

"Eventually I did confide in one of my closes friends. He told me without any drama that it was a fairly normal reaction to a highly stressful situation."

• Learn more about the experience of hearing voices and help challenge stigma. Our pages why do I hear voices and what it's like to live with voices might be a good place to start.
• Help them seek treatment and support if they want it. See our page on how to support someone to seek help for more information. But remember that not everyone who hears voices will want, or need, to seek treatment or support.
• Take care of yourself. Your mental health is important too and looking after someone else could put a strain on your wellbeing. You can find out more about looking after yourself in our pages on coping while supporting someone else, managing stress and maintaining your wellbeing.

This information was published in October 2018. We will revise it in 2021.

References are available on request: email our info team.

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