How many of you schizo-affective people hear voices?

I met a really ignorant psychiatrist once for one appointment who said that I wasn’t schizophrenic because she didn’t think I heard voices…even though I have before. But I said “I know, I’m schizo-affective” and she said “No you’re bi-polar, but you did drugs so that made you fall under the schizo-affective category, because that’s what schizo-affective means”. But I sure as hell am not bi-polar. I’ve been unreal/disconnected my whole life, I’ve had paranoia, intense delusions, psychosis, internal stimuli that I respond to, grandiosity, disorganized thinking, etc…, etc… No one on this board has ever argued with my diagnosis so I don’t feel the need to prove myself. But anyways, I’ve heard voices on a couple occasions, one time in particular it was REALLY REALLY bad, like worse than any description I’ve ever heard. But that was just a one time thing. To those with schizo-affective, how often/do you hear voices? And to those with schizophrenia, do all of you hear voices?

I’m asking this because this psychiatrist made it seem like “hearing voices” was the only symptom that mattered for SZ, while schizoaffective was just bi-polar+ street drugs (ignorant I know). She was mean and annoying so I don’t value her opinion but I’m curious nonetheless.

Also I don’t like to get hung up on diagnoses but I still don’t get how schizo-affective is automatically less severe than schizophrenia when I have bi-polar and schizophrenia??? Not trying to compare myself to anybody, we’re all different. But I feel there’s some schizophrenics who have more struggles than me, and some that have less. It’s contingent. And defining it by severity is the wrong approach.

I haven’t helped myself with my substance abuse but my schizo-affective is pretty severe.

If they said “Schizo-affective people respond better to medication” i may believe it, because I respond very well to medications.

Okay sorry for this long rant. peace.

I’m diagnosed schizoaffective bipolar and I hear voices daily even when I’m medicated. This is during manic and during normal states as well. Though when I’m on medication they are subdued quite a bit.

From what my pdoc has told me, schizoaffective disorder is the same symptoms of schizophrenia with the added mood element. You can google the specific DSM-V criteria for it if you wish. If I remember correctly the difference between bipolar w/ psychotic features and schizoaffective is that the psychosis stays even when the mood element is absent.

You also don’t have to hear voices to be diagnosed schizoaffective OR schizophrenic. You just need to fill a minimum of the other criteria.

I hope this helps!

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Thanks it indeed helps a lot. :blush:

I ■■■■ you not, last night I could’ve sworn I heard someone yell “mortal kombat” from the theme song mortal kombat 2 times. I new it was probably a noise that I “percieved as mortal kombat” but i wouldve bet money someone was yelling mortal kombat. Logically looking at debunking it, no one would yell that at a mcdonalds.

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I am diagnosed with SZA bipolar type and I usually don’t hear voices, but have in the past, especially when I was on Abilify.

I guess Auditory Hallucinations are more common with Schizophrenia.

I have been told I was shizo-affective with suffering from delusional thinking but the doctors I see are paid by the community and I think that they are in training somewhat, at least most of them, but under a main doctors oversight. Well anyway I have heard a voice or two in the past … way past… but they where very real and quite disturbing to hear for the first time and my instinct was not to respond to them for I felt that they would hone in to where I was and would then keep talking to me so I kept silent as a lamb but the girls voice I heard, that only said “Hello” in a inquisitive fashion, made me speak out much later and say “HI”, but she was long gone by then and I was kicking myself in the butt afterwards for not talking to her when she spoke that only time . I told one of the doctors that I think we are crazy because we hear voices and not that we hear voices because we are crazy. This makes sense to me after hearing them for myself for the first time. They were that disturbing to me!

I’m pretty sure i’m schizoaffective.

I’m either bipolar or szaffective . I’ve heard voices a lot over the past 4 years. I hear them rarely now though.

What makes me think I’m sz affective is negative symptoms that are just not really consistent in bipolar.

Im sza and only heard voices twice, first a woman then a man.
My first encounter with a pdoc was the oposite, i first got a paranoid sz dx then sza by a different pdoc. I had severe denial up until I found this forum and started reading everyones stories. I fit with sza so Im told

I have sz and don’t hear voices. My hallucinations are mostly visual.

[quote=“turningthepage, post:1, topic:33297”]
I still don’t get how schizo-affective is automatically less severe than schizophrenia when I have bi-polar and schizophrenia[/quote]

You are right that severity depends on the person, not the dx, but schizoaffective is seen as less severe because it is in-between bipolar and sz. And statistically this is true since people with sza have better prognosis. But in reality it is more complex of course.

I’ve been Dx’d SZ and SZa, the two pdocs never agreed with each other, and then a 3rd dx’d DID, a 4th dxd something else but by then I didn’t care.

I hear 2 voices most every day-more so at night, but not before sleep.
Other voices come up at certain times, like the 4’oclock witching hour, and sundown.

This pretty much sums it up for me as well

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I’m schizoaffective and I hear voices

Sorry but I find this funny. I hear ■■■■ all day.

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i’m not diagnosed with either but still heard voices for nearly 15 years. i’ve been psychotic a few times but my main dx is auditory hallucinations and d.i.d.

I’m diagnosed schizoaffective depressive type. I would constantly hear a radio playing in my head, but couldn’t understand what the people were saying. It sounded like being in a crowded bar with many voices and music that you can’t make out. Ive only understood several times. My hallucinations were mostly visual: walls breathing, the floor rippling, objects growing and shrinking back to size, patterns swirling…I had paranoid delusions too.
My latuda has mostly taken care of all that.

My diagnosis is schizoeffective. So is that sz w bipolar or some other disorder?

I was taking a walk on my street once and saw this hispanic guy once & I just knew he wasn’t real. He smiled at me. Ironic. If you’re a male and you’re any color other than white I think you’re cute.

I’m schizoaffective with PTSD. I hear voices almost all day long. Have for years. I’ve been medicated and un-medicated either way still hear voices and see gremlins and shadow people.

I’ve heard stuff on weed from the radio; sounded like demons. I’ve heard noises under extreme anxiety like a cellphone ringing. I had a period in my life where I would hear very minor stuff while trying to fall asleep. I’ve heard classical music ( had this before I got sick). That’s it. I don’t consider myself being afflicted with such a condition.

Some people in the health sector are really on their high horse about diagnosis. I was misdiagnosed “bipolar”. I know I had a version of schizophrenia - which I believe needs to be divided into multiple schizophrenias, but bipolar - just no.

My mood is fine, it’s the pain in my nervous system and some visual hallucinating that I’m dealing with.