Honestly, putting everything else aside for a moment—there really are certain individuals out there who just possess this rare, effortless quality. They manage to be incredibly simple and unpretentious, yet they carry such a complete, well-rounded personality that they leave a lasting, positive impression on everyone they meet!
Nicole Barrett76 said:Perhaps a middle ground could be found by tapering your dosage, or if that isn't feasible, perhaps you could temporarily pause the specific one you suspect is causing the most side effects.
I certainly won't claim to have all the answers here in America, but until you actually try it—how can you truly know?
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Is anyone else here taking an antidepressant alongside an acid reflux medication? Does the antidepressant maintain its effectiveness when taken in conjunction with a reducer for stomach acid?
Well, I did manage to scale back mine, though it wasn't some overnight transformation—it took plenty of time because I only reduced things as I felt ready to handle it. Eventually, I realized that sometimes there isn't even a real need to change anything; I was just telling myself I had to. To be honest, I don't really suffer from major side effects now—I went through that initial period of adjusting to the medication, and frankly, they've done more good than harm for me. The only thing is that I occasionally feel a bit sluggish, though even that is becoming less frequent. And even then, I can't definitively pin that on the medication itself—it's hard to tell if it's the pills or just my general state of being.
Harold Anderson3 said:It's been about 7.5 years for me, and I'm 29 now. I suppose if you look at it a certain way, maybe life would feel faster or a bit more upbeat without them, but honestly, staying grounded in reality feels much, much more important than just being a little more cheerful or high-energy. Plus, if you've recently gone through a psychotic episode, you're usually on a pretty heavy regimen right now that will gradually taper down over time, though completely stopping everything altogether... well, that's a tough one to call.
If you don't mind my asking, what’s the longest stretch you've gone without needing to be hospitalized? For me, it’s been about 5 years.
Laura Castillo6 said:People tend to overthink the diagnosis part. Honestly, if it’s just pneumonia or a bad cold, nobody gives it a second thought once they're feeling better. These days, the diagnoses that really stick with you—the ones that actually haunt people—are cancer. I personally know someone who managed to pull through that whole nightmare, and they don't talk about it much. With psychiatric labels, though, it feels like the diagnosis is mostly about how the people around you react; most folks just stare at you blankly, totally clueless. Everyone assumes that kind of stuff only happens to other people, thinking it'll never touch them, which is exactly why the stigma is so heavy. In the end, those same people often wind up in a psych ward themselves—maybe because of a bout of pneumonia, or even because of heart issues, like some of the folks I was on the ward with back in the day. About 30 or 40 years ago, if you slipped out of touch with reality, there was a good chance you'd never be brought back. But Dennis, somehow, everyone eventually finds their way back to reality.
That's true, but then again, people don't sit around ruminating on how they survived a common cold. Maybe we would all find things a little easier to handle if the situation passed completely. Or if we could just forget... oops... well, you can't exactly forget 🙂 but you certainly can accept it.
Harold Anderson3 said:I’ve been pretty consistent with my meds, though I actually ended up spending both Christmas and New Year's Day hospitalized over in Brooklyn. The whole trick with antipsychotics is finding that sweet spot in therapy where you slow down brain activity enough to stay out of psychosis, but not so much that you end up feeling totally sluggish and wiped out. To be honest, my three-week stay wasn't even triggered by a full-blown psychotic episode (though one was definitely looming in the background), it was mostly just about fine-tuning my prescription. I'm doing okay now. As far as a total recovery goes, they say about 20% of people with schizophrenia manage to go off their meds entirely; I know for a fact I'm not in that group, but only time will tell if you'll be one of those 5...
Yeah, I totally get where you're coming from. How long have you been living with the diagnosis? I find myself hesitating about the medication because, on one hand, I feel like I might actually function more normally without them—but then again, there's that undeniable need for them to stay stable.
Well, I just felt the need to share a little update with everyone! I’ve been in a stable period of remission for quite some time now—which, honestly, I am just incredibly thrilled about. Of course, I still find myself hoping for even better days ahead; maybe there will come a point where I can finally step away from the medication entirely—though, then again, perhaps I should just stay grateful for exactly where I am right now and stop asking for more. Ah... who knows, right? But anyway, I wanted to check in and see how the rest of you are doing with your F20 diagnoses?
Thanks so much for the reply! 🙂 I’m really glad to hear that—should I go ahead and bring along a fleece blanket? (That is, assuming nothing changes on my end)
My experience was roughly something like this: it all kicked off with these hallucinations—auditory, visual, even tactile ones. For an entire year, I literally wouldn't leave my room; I’d just lie there, and I ended up losing quite a bit of weight in the process... I didn't seek medical help right away, which was a massive mistake on my part. After being admitted to the hospital and starting treatment—which is moving along incredibly slowly, though thank God I am starting to feel a bit better—I'm hanging in there. I still struggle with some negative thoughts here and there, but I'm managing them. Just to give you an idea of how intense it got: there was a point where I wasn't even physically capable of writing.
As far as I'm concerned—I'll know for sure whether I'm heading over (though likely not solo!) tomorrow around 3:00 PM—so, would it be cutting it too close if I give you the final word then?
I’ll have to see how things shake out because I've got work piling up—but hey, I might just manage to pull something together if the mood strikes me! 🙂
Could you please remind me exactly where you guys are located and what time works best? I’d love a little extra breathing room to really mull things over before making a decision...