Seeing, hearing or believing things others don’t

You might be seeing or hearing things others don’t, hearing a voice when no one’s there, or feeling sure of something that people around you think isn’t true. These experiences can happen for many reasons, some of them physical. A GPGP (general practitioner) For most people, where getting help starts. A GP can write a Mental Health Treatment Plan, prescribe medication and refer you on, and some are trained to deliver a small number of structured therapy sessions themselves. More in the jargon decoder Close can help find the cause, so see one soon. With experiences like these, getting help early can be important. This page covers why they can happen, what a GP does, where to get help early, and where talking therapy fits in.

If you need help now

If what’s happening frightens you, don’t wait for an appointment. Your state or territory’s mental health line is open at any hour. If something you hear tells you to hurt yourself or someone else, get help now. A hospital emergency department can see you at any time.

You should also get help straight away if the experiences are getting worse quickly, or if you feel very agitated or suddenly confused (healthdirect, on when to get help). In an emergency, call 000.

Why it happens

Seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting or smelling something that isn’t there can feel completely real at the time. These experiences can happen just as you’re falling asleep or waking up, during very strong emotions such as stress or grief, or with a high fever or an infection. Alcohol and drugs, including cannabis and speed, can bring them on, and so can stopping alcohol or drugs (healthdirect, on causes and treatment). So can some medications, especially for older people, and some health conditions, including some that affect the brain or eyesight. A GP can check for the physical causes, which is one reason to start there.

In a survey of more than 31,000 adults in 18 countries, about 6 in every 100 said they’d had an experience like this at least once in their life (McGrath and colleagues, 2015). Seeing or hearing things was much more common than believing things others don’t, and for many people it happened once, or only a few times. That tells you these experiences aren’t rare. It doesn’t tell you what’s behind yours, and a GP can help you find out.

When these experiences are strong or frequent enough that it’s hard to tell what’s real, doctors and services call it psychosis. It describes what’s happening, not why, and it has many possible causes.

Seeing a GP

See a GP soon, even if the experiences have stopped. A doctor may ask about what’s been happening, and about your health and family history. They may do a physical check, and sometimes arrange blood tests or a brain scan. A doctor may also ask to speak to someone close to you, and may refer you to a psychologistPsychologist Someone trained to assess mental health problems and treat them with therapy. It takes at least six years of study and supervised practice, and they're registered with Ahpra, the national regulator. Psychologists can't prescribe medication. More in the jargon decoder Close or a psychiatristPsychiatrist A medical doctor who has specialised in mental health. Psychiatrists can diagnose, prescribe and do therapy, though many spend most of their time on medication and diagnosis rather than weekly sessions. More in the jargon decoder Close.

You don’t need to describe it perfectly. “I’ve been seeing and hearing things other people don’t, and I want to find out why” is enough to start. If you’re worried about what happens after you tell a GP, you can ask them how it works before you say anything else. If you’re under 18, can I see someone without my parents knowing? goes through when a professional might have to tell someone.

For advice about services near you, there’s Medicare Mental HealthMedicare Mental Health A free mental health service funded by the Australian Government. You can phone for advice and help finding support, or walk into one of its centres without an appointment or a referral. More in the jargon decoder Close. Free, with no appointment and no referralReferral A letter from a GP, psychiatrist or paediatrician that you need for the Medicare rebate. You can see a psychologist without one if you pay the full fee. More in the jargon decoder Close needed. Phone 1800 595 212 from 8.30am to 5pm on weekdays, or walk into a centre.

Getting help early

People do best when these experiences are found and treated early. The longer they go without help, the slower recovery can be.

Early intervention services are teams set up for people having these experiences for the first time. They bring medication, talking therapy, family support and help with study or work together in one place. A review of 10 trials compared these services with usual care (Correll and colleagues, 2018). People seen by the services did better on every measure the review looked at. That included staying in treatment, how they were feeling, and getting on with study or work. The differences were small to moderate, and the trials followed people for up to two years.

headspaceheadspace A national youth mental health service for anyone aged 12 to 25, with centres around Australia and support online and by phone. It's free or close to it, you don't need a referral or a parent, and you can book it yourself. More in the jargon decoder Close Early Psychosis is a free service for young people who are having these experiences for the first time, or who may be at risk of them. It runs at 16 headspace centres across Australia. Its teams include peer workers and family workers, and they help with getting back to study or work. Families get information and support too.

More generally, headspace offers free or low-cost support for people aged 12 to 25, and you don’t need a referral. headspace and services for 12 to 25s covers how to get an appointment and what it costs.

State and territory governments run public mental health services, including community teams. Seeing a psychiatrist through a public service usually costs nothing, though there’s often a wait. A GP, or your state or territory’s mental health line, can help you find support where you live.

Where talking therapy fits in

Talking therapy is usually combined with other kinds of help, such as medication, learning about what’s happening, and support for you and your family. That help is often given by a team of health workers, such as a psychiatrist, a psychologist and a mental health nurse. It aims to ease the experiences and help you live a full life. The talking therapies used include supportive psychotherapy, cognitive behavioural therapyCognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) A structured, practical form of talking therapy. It's built on a simple idea: what you think affects how you feel, and both affect what you do. More in the jargon decoder Close (CBT), family therapy and peer support groups.

Guidelines written for Australia and New Zealand in 2026 recommend offering CBT to people whose experiences are part of a longer-term condition (Suetani and colleagues, 2026). Guidelines in the UK recommend it for everyone being treated for these experiences, along with family sessions for families who live with the person or are closely involved (UK guidelines, 2014). The UK guidelines also say talking therapy tends to work better alongside medication, and that someone who would rather not take medication can still be offered therapy, with closer check-ins.

CBT for these experiences, sometimes called CBT for psychosis, usually runs for at least 16 sessions. It helps you understand how your thoughts, feelings and actions connect with what you’re experiencing. A review of 53 trials found CBT made the experiences themselves less severe than usual care or no added therapy did (Bighelli and colleagues, 2018). The difference was small to moderate on average. Everyone in those trials was also taking medication, and the researchers’ confidence in their findings ranged from moderate to very low. Another review found the benefit was smaller still in the trials where the people measuring the results didn’t know who’d had the therapy (Jauhar and colleagues, 2014). Researchers still disagree about how big the benefit is.

If you see a psychologist or other therapist, ask whether they’ve worked with people who have these experiences. Tell any therapist about these experiences, because they can change which approaches are suitable.

Medication

The medications usually used for these experiences are called antipsychotics. Only a doctor can prescribe them, and whether to take them is something you and your doctor decide together. Therapy and medication covers who can prescribe medication, and why to talk to your doctor before changing anything.

Paying for help

Several of the places to start cost nothing: headspace Early Psychosis, public mental health services, MedicareMedicare Australia's public health insurance scheme. For mental health, it gives rebates on sessions with psychologists and some other professionals, usually through a Mental Health Treatment Plan. More in the jargon decoder Close Mental Health, and a GP who bulk-bills.

There are several ways to pay for therapy:

• Full fee. Seeing a private psychologist, counsellorCounsellor Someone trained to help people talk through and work on difficulties. The title isn't protected in Australia, so it's worth checking a counsellor's training and registration. Medicare doesn't give a rebate for counsellors. More in the jargon decoder Close or psychotherapistPsychotherapist Someone trained in therapy, often for longer-standing patterns. Like counsellor, the title isn't protected in Australia, and Medicare doesn't give a rebate for psychotherapists. More in the jargon decoder Close directly. Medicare doesn’t cover counsellors or psychotherapists.
• Workplace programs. Many employers pay for a few sessions for their staff.
• Community services. Non-profit organisations and local community health centres provide low-cost care.
• headspace. headspace offers free or low-cost support for people aged 12 to 25.
• Groups. Group therapyGroup therapy A trained professional, sometimes two, working with several people at once. It's a way of running therapy, and many approaches work in groups. More in the jargon decoder Close programs, which usually cost less per session.
• A Mental Health Treatment PlanMental Health Treatment Plan A document your GP writes with you. It makes you eligible for a Medicare rebate on up to ten individual sessions a calendar year: six, then a review with your GP, then the remaining four. The plan itself isn't therapy. More in the jargon decoder Close. Your GP assesses whether a plan suits you. A plan gives you a Medicare rebateRebate The amount Medicare pays back towards a session. It comes back to you after you've paid, so what you pay yourself is the fee minus the rebate. More in the jargon decoder Close on up to ten sessions a calendar year.

Free and low-cost options has more on each of these.

If you’re under 18

If you’re under 18, Kids Helpline is there to talk to any time, and a GP or headspace can help you find someone to see.

If you’re worried about someone else

If you’re reading this because of someone else, when someone’s saying things that don’t make sense is written for you.

If you’ve had thoughts of hurting yourself, or of suicide, the numbers below are there any time.

Kids Helpline is on 1800 55 1800, any time, for anyone aged 5 to 25. Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and, if you’re 15 or over, the Suicide Call Back Service is on 1300 659 467. In an emergency, call 000. Crisis and emergency support has the full list.

Where next

Whichever kind of help you have, how well you get on with the people giving it matters a great deal. Why who you see matters more than what they do explains why.