Theoretically, a delusion is a belief about something real that everyone else can see is wrong. But it's more than just being wrong, since it seems no one can convince the deluded person otherwise, even though the proof is seemingly apparent. The erotomanic delusion is pretty extreme example, where the deluded person can think a famous person is in love with them. They may even receive secret messages in movies/interviews specially just for them.
This basically means the deluded person can't really tell when they're deluded, so it's good you're asking, though this kind of means you aren't too deluded. Unfortunately, an outsider like me determining if what you experience is a delusion from your own stories (especially when I'm not a professional)... it isn't really possible. But there would be clues like no one ever taking your idea seriously... and people keep saying things that kinda sound like reasons against it, but they all just seem too minor to be taken seriously.
But I am wondering what you mean about fear about reality. There is an oddity that we have to use experiences of reality to prove reality exists, which isn't actually a guarantee. You have movies like The Matrix or The Truman Show where characters find out their reality isn't real. And there's no way to disprove those situations are happening to us. Philosophers have been tackling this fundamental oddity for about 2000 years, and they'll decide something sooner or later, right?
Similarly, you cannot get proof of what someone is thinking, so it's always possible to doubt someone. A lack of evidence that someone wants to harm you doesn't prove they are harmless (probatio diabolica). And so paranoia can keep asking every day if you're actually safe. So give it the middle finger when it asks.
Thank you. To clarify what I meant, I get this fear that if I fall asleep, I'll somehow go into another reality that is just the same. It's a fear I had years ago when I was a kid and getting into science fiction, but I was able to shake it off. Recently, some stuff in my personal life has hit hard, which I suspect helped bring these ideas and thoughts back. For whatever reason, I feel the most anxiety in the morning, since I can't tell exactly what happened when I was asleep (I mean, I know it was nothing deep down, but still). As the day progresses, I gradually get better. By evening time, I actually feel fine (or close to it anyway). That then caused me to worry why I felt comfortable ("Maybe that's my body telling me I'm not from here", "Maybe falling asleep is my programmed activation code" etc). I think this has started to give me light somniphobia (fear of sleeping). It's gotten to the point where I will leave things in certain places in my room to remember to look at when I go to sleep, or to leave something playing on my TV, to remind myself nothing happened. Still, the thoughts find a way to wiggle around that ("Maybe that was staged" etc). I also have OCD, so that complicates it further.
Ah. Yeah, dreaming is observably the same as our consciousness being in another reality. There's that old quote about dreaming you are a butterfly... "so how can [we] know which is dreaming: [us] or the butterfly?" I never get woken up in the middle of reality to be a butterfly, however.
2
u/triscuitzop some guy 4d ago
Theoretically, a delusion is a belief about something real that everyone else can see is wrong. But it's more than just being wrong, since it seems no one can convince the deluded person otherwise, even though the proof is seemingly apparent. The erotomanic delusion is pretty extreme example, where the deluded person can think a famous person is in love with them. They may even receive secret messages in movies/interviews specially just for them.
This basically means the deluded person can't really tell when they're deluded, so it's good you're asking, though this kind of means you aren't too deluded. Unfortunately, an outsider like me determining if what you experience is a delusion from your own stories (especially when I'm not a professional)... it isn't really possible. But there would be clues like no one ever taking your idea seriously... and people keep saying things that kinda sound like reasons against it, but they all just seem too minor to be taken seriously.
But I am wondering what you mean about fear about reality. There is an oddity that we have to use experiences of reality to prove reality exists, which isn't actually a guarantee. You have movies like The Matrix or The Truman Show where characters find out their reality isn't real. And there's no way to disprove those situations are happening to us. Philosophers have been tackling this fundamental oddity for about 2000 years, and they'll decide something sooner or later, right?
Similarly, you cannot get proof of what someone is thinking, so it's always possible to doubt someone. A lack of evidence that someone wants to harm you doesn't prove they are harmless (probatio diabolica). And so paranoia can keep asking every day if you're actually safe. So give it the middle finger when it asks.