Читать книгу Welcome to the Jungle - Hilary T. Smith - Страница 37

Delusions are tricky, because there is such a fine line in our society between which beliefs are considered acceptable and which are considered insane. For example, millions of people hold the same “perfectly normal” religious beliefs that would be considered bizarre and outlandish if they were held by a single person. The DSM-IV defines a delusion as “a false belief based on incorrect inference about external reality that is firmly sustained despite what almost everybody else believes and despite what constitutes incontrovertible and obvious proof or evidence to the contrary. The belief is not one ordinarily accepted by other members of the person's culture or subculture.” A good example of a delusion is the belief that you're being help captive by kidnappers, when really the “kidnappers” are your stoner roommates who wouldn't even notice if you left the house. If you're delusional, it can be hard to believe friends who tell you your delusions are false. You might believe they're lying, thereby interpreting their comments in a way that confirms your version of reality.