Schizophrenia - General Discussion
in Psychology & Therapy ·
My aunt struggles with a mental health condition, which I believe might be schizophrenia, though we don't have an official diagnosis since she hasn't seen a doctor in years. She’s mostly lucid most of the time, but her paranoia is really intense; she’s gone as far as accusing our whole family, the neighbors, and even her coworkers of conspiring against her.
Ever since my grandfather passed away last summer, things have taken a turn for the worse, and those hysterical episodes happen much more frequently now. She refuses to take any medication and just does whatever she feels like doing. My mom actually tried to force her to see a psychiatrist for a little while, but after a few sessions, it all fell apart—mostly because my grandparents just couldn't wrap their heads around the idea that this was a real illness and insisted she was just being difficult.
She’s fifty now and has been dealing with this since she was young. She hasn't been on any kind of treatment plan for years, so her mental state has definitely declined. Honestly, if you just saw her passing by, you wouldn't suspect a thing, but anyone who spends more than a few days with her quickly notices how paranoid she is and how skewed her perception of reality has become.
I honestly can't tell if she's having visual hallucinations or hearing voices, because whenever I try to bring up her health, she just lashes out with accusations and harsh words.
I truly wish there was something I could do to help her, but I'm feeling pretty lost on how to approach it.
On top of that, because of her condition and the fact that other family members have dealt with mental health issues, I've always been extra careful about keeping an eye on my own mental well-being.
So, I have to admit I got pretty scared when I realized that I sometimes see things that aren't actually there. For instance, I'll see a picture hanging on a wall where nothing exists, and I have to look at it two or three times—or even reach out and touch the wall—just to convince myself it isn't real. And I promise I'm not seeing this because I'm exhausted, drinking, on medication, or using any kind of drugs 😲 or anything like that.
It only happens occasionally, not very often, and it's strictly limited to objects. I've never once seen a person who wasn't there or heard any voices.
Has anyone else ever gone through something similar?
I'm planning to schedule an appointment with a psychiatrist in the next few days.
Ever since my grandfather passed away last summer, things have taken a turn for the worse, and those hysterical episodes happen much more frequently now. She refuses to take any medication and just does whatever she feels like doing. My mom actually tried to force her to see a psychiatrist for a little while, but after a few sessions, it all fell apart—mostly because my grandparents just couldn't wrap their heads around the idea that this was a real illness and insisted she was just being difficult.
She’s fifty now and has been dealing with this since she was young. She hasn't been on any kind of treatment plan for years, so her mental state has definitely declined. Honestly, if you just saw her passing by, you wouldn't suspect a thing, but anyone who spends more than a few days with her quickly notices how paranoid she is and how skewed her perception of reality has become.
I honestly can't tell if she's having visual hallucinations or hearing voices, because whenever I try to bring up her health, she just lashes out with accusations and harsh words.
I truly wish there was something I could do to help her, but I'm feeling pretty lost on how to approach it.
On top of that, because of her condition and the fact that other family members have dealt with mental health issues, I've always been extra careful about keeping an eye on my own mental well-being.
So, I have to admit I got pretty scared when I realized that I sometimes see things that aren't actually there. For instance, I'll see a picture hanging on a wall where nothing exists, and I have to look at it two or three times—or even reach out and touch the wall—just to convince myself it isn't real. And I promise I'm not seeing this because I'm exhausted, drinking, on medication, or using any kind of drugs 😲 or anything like that.
It only happens occasionally, not very often, and it's strictly limited to objects. I've never once seen a person who wasn't there or heard any voices.
Has anyone else ever gone through something similar?
I'm planning to schedule an appointment with a psychiatrist in the next few days.