Brain Surgery Recovery – Hallucinations

(Written from the view of the patient)

Hallucinations Experienced By Patients

After brain surgery many patients experience some or a lot of hallucinations. When we speak of hallucinations, it can be described as sensory experiences. These experiences appear real but are created in the patient’s mind.

A couple of examples are:

  • Hearing voices that no one else can hear. These voices can be those of friends, family members, strangers, nursing staff, and the like. You can even hear an entire conversation or even think you are having an actual conversation with someone who is not there. The voices can be neutral, kind, angry or rude.
  • The person may also hear someone walking in the hallways, or hearing repeated sounds.
  • Seeing images and people who are not real. You could see things such as animals walking around; people you may know or haven’t seen in a long time; imagine being in a completely different room, environment or time.
  • They can experience an entire event or situation that can cause stress, paranoia, and worries.
  • Experiencing vertigo. Your spatial awareness of your body, feeling touch or movement in your body.
  • You might hallucinate the touch of someone’s hand on your body.
  • At times the person may feel that bugs or flees are crawling on their skin.
  • The person could be infatuated about time.

Regarding brain surgery and post-op recovery Hallucinations are generally caused by:

  • Medications.
  • Seizures.
  • Epilepsy.
  • Brain cancer.

There are a couple of things family or friends can do to assist their loved one if they can see the person is hallucinating:

  • Stay with the person and do not leave them unattended until they are properly assisted.
  • At times, in severe cases the person may experience fear and paranoia that can lead to dangerous actions or behavior. It has been known then that medical staff would then need to use soft restraints to protect staff and the patient from hurting themselves and others.
  • The person may need a personal care taker who has experience with brain patients.
  • On a daily bases the person needs to be assured that they will be okay.
  • The person needs to be informed about their actual situation so they can better understand what is happening to them.
  • Always try and be honest with the person while they are having an hallucination – make them aware of what is real and what is not.
  • Explain to them the logical reality. Many times the hallucinations are very illogical, and so the person needs to be made aware of this fact.
  • Assure them of where they are and what day it is and what they are doing there.
  • Give them coping strategies, particularly for when they’re feeling scared or paranoid.
  • Make sure the person gets enough sleep.
  • Do not appear as being afraid or shocked about their hallucinations.

Patient who have brain cancer, may experience long-term effects of hallucinations. In these cases doctors will suggested medication treatments, counselling and other treatment plans.

When the person is left untreated, or un-counselled, the person can end up with server depression and may even think they are untreatable because there is something wrong with them – when this is not true. Assure the patient that they will come right and that everything is fine.

Most of the time brain surgery patients are not well informed before surgery of these post-op challenges such as medication-induced hallucinations. Information is power – it can save a lot of people from unnecessary stress and anxiety.