External hallucination
External hallucinations experienced during a delirious trip occur as solid hallucinations which display themselves seamlessly into the external environment as if they were actually happening. They are delirious in believability and therefore have a sense of psychological plot acceptance attributed to them which does not occur with psychedelics and dissociatives. This means that no matter how absurd or unlikely the content of the hallucination may be, it will be believed as a real event which is genuinely occurring in exactly the same way which we accept the absurd plots of our dreams.
Delirious hallucinatory states can be broken down into 3 basic levels:
- Erratic hallucinations - The second lowest level of hallucination generally consists of visual snow and static, movement in the peripheral vision, and/or ill defined, fleeting hallucinations which disappear once a person double takes. These often consist of black splotches and pronounced floaters.
- Partially defined hallucinations - At this level the hallucinations are visible within one's direct line of sight despite the fact that they are not fully defined in their appearance. This means that although visible, they do not look completely detailed and are often blurry or semi-translucent.
- Defined hallucinations - As the vividness and intensity increases, the trip eventually becomes comprised of completely realistic and static hallucinations. These are generally considered by those who have experienced them to be completely convincing in their appearance.
Although the hallucinations can be anything there are still common archetypes which generally occur under the influence of high dose delirious experiences. These hallucinations are generally (but not by any means limited to):
- Family, friends, strangers, and fictional characters usually behaving completely normally
- Inanimate objects, sometimes in believable locations but often floating in the air
- Animals and pets
- Spiders and various insects
- Shadow people
- Smoking phantom cigarettes, spliffs and bowls
- Drinking imaginary cups of water
- Literally anything your imagination can come up with
The more unfamiliar you are with your environment during states of delirium, the more you will hallucinate. Cluttered areas tend to produce hallucinations best. As far as lighting goes, either a dark or dim room is optimum. Darkness produces much more hallucinations and will result in more of a sinister feel, but the light present in a dim room will make you see less (though more detailed) hallucinations.
Variations
- Lucid vs. Delirious - Hallucinatory states can maintain a consistent level of awareness throughout them regarding the fact that none of these event are really happening and that the current situation is simply a result of drug-induced hallucination. In contrast to this, hallucinations can also become completely believable no matter how nonsensical they may be in exactly the same way that we do not have any problem accepting absurd and non-linear plots within our dreams.
- Interactive vs. Fixed – Hallucinatory states can either present themselves to you as completely separate in a manner that is similar to watching a video play out in your field of vision or they can be completely interactive. For example, conversing with autonomous entities or manually exploring landscapes in a fashion similar to a lucid dreaming is entirely possible.
- New experiences vs. Memory replays – In terms of their subject matter, hallucinations can either be entirely new experiences that are completely impossible to compare to anything previously experienced throughout sober living or they can follow themes of normal every day concepts and a replaying of specific of memories.
- Controllable vs. Autonomous – Imagery and hallucinations are often partially to fully controllable. This can be described as the content of their appearance always seeming to follow and fit the general topic and subject matter of your current thought stream. This allows you to visually manifest any concept which you can possibly imagine in front of your field of vision. In contrast, autonomous hallucinations are completely spontaneous in their subject matter and uncontrollable in every way.