Anderson Cooper Goes Through A Harrowing Mental Illness Experiment

In the wake of the shooting at Seattle Pacific University -- in which the suspect heard voices in his head telling him to kill people -- Anderson Cooper recently tried to take a walk in the shoes of someone with mental illness.

The CNN host took part in an experiment designed by clinical psychologist Pat Deegan, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teenager. Cooper put on earphones, and heard voices talking to him as he took a number of simple tests and walked around New York City.

He said that he found himself having difficulty concentrating, and feeling "completely isolated" from other people because of the voices. He appeared to find the experiment increasingly hard to handle.

"I mean, it's eye-opening because it kind of really shows you what it's -- what other people must be going through who deal with this on a regular basis," he said, adding, "But also, like I cannot wait to take these headphones off because it's -- it's really depressing... It makes you feel very, very negative. Yes. It's very creepy. I want it to stop."

Watch Cooper's experiment in the clip above.