Hearing Voices Interview

Here is a radio interview on Madness Radio with Jacqui Dillon, who heard voices since childhood after growing up with child sexual abuse:

Madness Radio: Hearing Voices Network, Jacqui Dillon

Jacqui was told by psychiatrists that the child sexual abuse she experienced was a part of her "delusion" in 1993. She later found help from someone who believed what happened to her. She said, also, that some psychiatrists will accept that child sexual abuse has occurred, but say that "that is in your past, now deal with your mental illness."

She later talks about anger. She says that anger is "protective and sets a boundary."

She, along with others, "questions the idea that hearing voices is an illness." She considers medicine to "silence people." She said, "I don't think of voices as symptoms."

Compassion, acceptance, learning to live with the voices, and learning "distraction techniques" can help people who hear voices. She also suggests, later, asking the voices direct questions.

Dillon also mentions that "there are a lot of places in the world where schizophrenia does not exist." She is working to "abolish the schizophrenia label." Academics, clinicians, activists, carers, families, and friends are working to abolish the label because it is not scientific. You can learn more about this at Campaign to Abolish the Schizophrenia Label.

This past week:

• medication: 5 mg Aripiprazole a.m., 10 mg Aripiprazole before sleep
  
• sleep: average 12 hrs
• exercise: walked every day but two, situps and pushups
• diet: made certain to eat breakfast every day, began to count calories
• weight: 158 lbs.
• mood: ok all mornings upon rising