I wrote this while having mild visual and auditory hallucinations in the night during a bipolar episode. Every sound was amplified and distorted to something it was not, and every shadow brought fear. I could feel my skin crawling with things that were not there. It is unpleasant. Hopefully this sheds some light on the experience.

Hallucinations

Glimpses of shadows and flashes of light,
Figures of darkness pass through my sight.
Every scene is distorted, hard to know what is real.
My eyes play tricks, things become surreal.

I see something beside me, and then it is gone.
I know it’s not real, but the nightmares it spawns.
Other times, they don’t all quickly fade.
Sometimes they linger, and last, and they stay.

Noises come alive even though I’m all alone.
Suddenly I’m surrounded, a chill in my bones.
A thump in the night or an imaginary footstep.
This dream gets more real, my fears closely kept.

My skin feels like there are bugs crawling inside.
My arms are on fire, I’ve got nowhere to hide.
I jump with a start when I hear another tap.
If this doesn’t stop, I fear I will snap.

At least for now, I know they aren’t real,
No matter how convincing they feel.
Sometimes the truth is harder to define.
Reality can get skewed and hard to find.

(C) Stephanie Blomquist 2025