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Quote by Oliver Sacks

“Gertie C. had had a half-controlled hallucinosis for decades before she started on L-dopa - bucolic hallucinations of lying in a sunlit meadow or floating in a creek near her childhood home. This changed when she was given L-dopa, and her hallucinations assumed a social and sometimes sexual character. When she told me about this, she added, anxiously - You surely wouldn’t forbid a friendly hallucination to a frustrated old lady like me! I replied that if her hallucinations had a pleasant and controllable character, they seemed rather a good idea under the circumstances. After this, the paranoid quality dropped away, and her hallucinatory encounters became purely amicable and amorous. She developed a humor and tact and control, never allowing herself a hallucination before eight in the evening and keeping its duration to thirty to forty minutes at most. If her relatives stayed too late, she would explain firmly but pleasantly that she was expecting a gentleman visitor from out of town in a few minutes’ time, and she felt he might take it amiss if he was kept waiting outside. She now receives love, attention, and invisible presents from a hallucinatory gentleman who visits faithfully each evening.”

Quote by Oliver Sacks

Work

Hallucinations

In this book, the author delves into the fascinating world of hallucinations, examining the diverse experiences people have with these phenomena. The book covers the scientific understanding of hallucinations, their occurrence in different contexts, and the psychological and neurological factors that contribute to their manifestation. more

Author

Oliver Sacks
Oliver Sacks

Oliver Sacks was a renowned neurologist known for his profound insights into the human brain and nervous system. His work delved into the relationship between brain diseases and human behavior, revealing the fascinating world of neuroscience to readers. more

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