Which is worse: hallucinations or delusions?

Delusions are beliefs that one holds on to firmly despite being contradicted in some way. Believing someone is talking about you, even when others tell you that is not happening. A hallucination is a sensory experience of something that does not actually exist. Seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, something that is not there.

I was asked which I thought was worse: delusions or hallucinations.

Delusions.

I am sure this differs among those who have experienced both. And I understand why someone would say hallucinations. It really comes down to exactly what that person experienced. For me it’s delusions.

Can hallucinations be scary? Of course. Seeing, hearing, smelling, feeling something that is not really there is a huge deal especially to someone who has never experienced this before. You wonder why it is happening and when it is going to stop. Will it go away on its own or should I get some medical help. Am I crazy?

For me hallucinations were scary at first, but honestly not that bad. I guess I already felt “crazy’ so throwing this in didn’t surprise me. I was concerned yes. The little noises I started to hear, I knew they weren’t normal or good. However I didn’t feel they were a big deal and even worth mentioning. I never told anyone for a long time, and when I did I didn’t make a big deal about it. The two times I heard actual voices took me a while before I realized they were hallucinations. And I was not scared. I was annoyed. The reason why I didn’t realize at first what they were was that I was delusional. I did not realize they were hallucinations. To me they were completely normal. Thinking that there were mice talking about me, or people warning me that others were plotting against me, they were completely real in my mind.

To me delusions are not just worse, they are not just scary, they are terrifying. While I was experiencing this I didn’t realize that I was. I was gone. Completely checked out of reality. What is terrifying is when I “woke up”. What just happened? I barely remembered anything. I lost control, that much I knew. Would it happen again? It’s terrifying.

I did a quick look on Google to see if I could find someone who was answering the same question. I couldn’t find anything on my first go. I might do some more in depth research because I am really curious on what others think.