The Symbolization Of Anomalous Experiences

Anomalous experiences are those experiences that come out of the ordinary and that, on many occasions, are difficult to interpret logically. They are generally errors of perception or hallucinatory phenomena. The brain often fails to process sensory input.

Likewise, beyond analyzing the causes of these phenomena, we will try to analyze how they are processed and given meaning. This is a process that will depend on cultural factors, personality and beliefs. So then, seeing a shadow or a face where there is nothing can have very different connotations depending on the subject.

What are anomalous experiences?

Anomalous experiences are considered as deviations with respect to common and everyday experiences within the model of reality in which the subject develops. They can be interpreted either negatively or positively, and cannot be reduced to mere pathological events.

Thomas Rabeyron, from the department of psychology at the University of Nantes, lists the main anomalous experiences :

• Unusual perceptual interaction with the environment. Feeling, smelling, or seeing something strange or unusual.
• Vision and appearance of an unusual and quasi-hallucinatory presence. These experiences range from seeing a shadow to a more detailed shape.
• Out of body experiences. They are sensory desynchronization phenomena, where the body is seen from the perspective of a third party.

• Near death experiences. Coma or accident experiences, where subjects can have a revealing vision or experience.
• Communication with the deceased. Subjects who say they feel the presence or have communicated with deceased persons.
• Mystical experiences. Like astral travel or connections with gods and strange beings.
• Abductions of aliens. One of the forms with a very large cultural component. They are experiences that are internalized as contact with beings from another world.

Anomalous Experiences Study Model

It is important to clarify that these experiences have been classified according to the patients’ reports. Therefore, the objective of the scientific approach to these experiences is not the subjective analysis of their veracity, but of the psychological and organic mechanisms that participate in their formation. These phenomena are much more common than is believed among the general population and their study is currently carried out by the following disciplines:

• Neurosciences. The advancement of neurosciences allows the understanding of the neurological processes associated with these phenomena, such as sensory processing areas and their alteration by external factors.
• Psychology. It focuses on finding the psychological variables associated with the phenomenon and consequently, creating approach models.

Living with the taboo

Most of the subjects with anomalous experiences avoid consulting a professional to remain outside the psychiatric circuit. Then, the interpretation of these experiences is linked to the associated beliefs of the subject, ignoring the true organic cause of the event. Much research establishes that hallucinations are common in the general population and that they occur due to a misclassification of the brain.

Emotional and environmental conditions

Environmental and emotional factors will positively or negatively affect hallucinatory experiences. Both the personal history of the subject and their living conditions will be crucial when giving meaning. Dynamic psychology states that these processes are caused by poor integration of emotional experiences. Thus then, subjects would tend to externalize thoughts and ideas that do not fit into an internal system.

Is hallucinating to be crazy?

Hallucinations are commonly associated with loss of judgment. Although these can appear in subjects with psychotic personality traits, they also occur in subjects with other personality traits. A clear example is sleep paralysis, this phenomenon is distributed among a large part of the population and its appearance has been correlated with experiences of trauma.

Cultural analysis

Regarding the specific case of sleep paralysis, the abnormal experience could be a way to confront the trauma. On the other hand, within the therapeutic models, the knowledge of the organic causes of the phenomenon is a fundamental part of the treatment.

Unfortunately, many subjects turn to colloquial and cultural explanations, as well as “alternative” queries. All this in order to avoid the psychiatric system and the estimation, which usually worsens the symptoms.

Associated personality factors

The personality is configured from a very early age, so an experience of trauma can cause the subject to take refuge in fantasy as a defense mechanism. Likewise, there are many personal characteristics in subjects who experience these phenomena, among them we can highlight :

• Psychic permeability.  They are individuals who are often inundated by alien situations. The development of so-called empathy pathologies is common.
• High degree of fantasy.  This characteristic is reflected in subjects who avoid rational explanations and tend to take refuge in an imaginary plane.
• Hypersensitivity and suggestion.  Any event in the environment or outside is strongly impregnated in the consciousness, and can easily be transformed into ruminant thought.
• Openness to experience.  Characteristic present in subjects open to experiencing phenomena known as mystical.

The symbolization process

Defense mechanisms come into play here. These become present when an idea or event is unbearable for the conscience. Thus, people tend to give a fictitious meaning, repress the fact or externalize it. Finally, according to Rabeyron, this process occurs in two phases:

• Primary symbolization. It refers to the interpretation and transformation of experiences at a non-verbal level.
• Secondary symbolization. At this second level, the subject develops a verbal description of the experience. Therefore, what a person relates of an anomalous experience is telling us a lot about their internal processing.

Conclusion: close to science, far from taboo

We can then summarize that the interpretation that a person makes of an anomalous experience will directly influence his life and a possible pathological development. The advancement of science makes it possible for biological and psychological explanations to gain ground with respect to mystical and paranormal explanations. Currently, it has been shown that these phenomena are possible to induce artificially.

Finally, many health professionals do not know what to do in these cases. They need tools to address such experiences without directly resorting to medication or psychiatric referral.