ask dr-robert

Doctor,

I hope to get a response to the following. I am very concerned about a good friend of mine that claims he has "awakened". He truly believes that he is a robot from another world. He has told us that he feels bad because they had to kill the humans on his home planet that created him because they were destroying the planet. This is not a joke. He is an extremely nice and outgoing guy that acts very normal most of the time. Of course there are a lot more strange things that he says and does that I wont go into now. He claims to feel peoples aura and seems to be attached to the spirit world sensing other beings and whatnot. Even though he has never exuded any violent behavior he makes me a bit nervous. I feel that if he believes these things that he could mentally break down and do harm to others. What should my friends and I do? Please respond. I am very concerned about him and those close to him. I would be willing to talk to you on the phone about this. . . it would be a lot easier than e-mailing. I seriously need a professional opinion on this!

Thank You,

Jonathan



Hello, Jonathan--

Sometimes it is difficult to draw a boundary between unusual sensitivity--such as being able to sense "auras" for example--and beliefs which are frankly delusional, but in this case, judging from what you have written, I would say that your good friend is quite likely suffering from some kind of delusional mental illness. Since these kinds of delusions may very well mark the onset of schizophrenia, a disease which has the potential quickly to deteriorate into complete loss of contact with others or with any shared reality, you are correct in being concerned that your friend might do harm to others, or possibly to himself. I have written more about this in my reply to a question about a young woman who is hearing voices in her head.

As for speaking with me by telephone: I offer this "ask the psychologist" page as a free service for visitors to my website, but I do charge a normal professional fee for telephone consultations as well as for extended consultations via email. If you would like to consult me by telephone, please write back, and we can arrange an appointment. However, I do not think that it is you who needs the consultation. Based on what you have written, your friend should be seen and evaluated by a psychologist or psychiatrist as soon as possible, and I urge you and your other friends to try to get this help for him.

Thank you for writing, and be well.