How to Be Insane for a Day

Be Insane for a Day

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Ever wonder what it's like to be schizophrenic, just for a day? Lots of mental health professionals certainly have. And now there's technology out there that can simulate the experience through a "virtual hallucination."

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Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

MINDSTORM Virtual Hallucination Theater
Custom designed polarized glasses

Step1

First you'll have to find a MINDSTORM theater. The company behind the technology, Janssen, will sometimes set one up at mental health conferences. They're also currently developing a portable version.

Step2

Choose from one of two currently available scenarios that involve different "virtual hallucinations." One takes you on a ride on a bus whose riders appear and disappear while some disturbingly aggressive birds claw at the windows. The other takes you to a pharmacist who seems to be trying to poison you.

Step3

Take a seat in the theater, put on the special glasses, sit back and wait to begin.

Step4

Stay for as many showings as you can tolerate.

Step5

Leave the theater feeling severely disoriented and probably a little overwhelmed or exhausted.

Step6

Wake up the next day (hopefully after a peaceful night of sleep) with new empathy for people suffering from mental illness.

Tips & Warnings

For a real weird trip, take some Valerian Root beforehand and see if you can manage to fall asleep during a marathon hallucination, further blurring the line between real and virtual.
A 2D video/audio-only program is also available as a DVD.
MINDSTORM is not intended for use with patients with mental illness.

Resources

Photo/Video Credit

Janssen, L.P.

Comments

Blackbear said

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on 2/4/2008 It seems to me that if someone is going through the trouble of putting themelves through something like this just to feel crazy then...........well you figure it out.

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