Posts by David Vaughn75

Larry Lewis said:So, I just finished my psych eval—you know, those little tests they make you take—and the woman tells me there aren’t any psychotic elements present, but apparently, I’ve got some anxiety issues going on. Everything else? Perfectly fine, according to her.

I have to admit—and I say this with zero shame—I was practically tripping over myself to get out of there. I was rushing through those questions as fast as humanly possible because, frankly, I can't stand being poked and prodded by someone trying to "evaluate" my soul. It’s invasive, isn't it?

Lately, I've been trying to find ways to actually feel better—doing the work, seeking the balance—but honestly, it’s hit or miss. Some days are okay, other days they're just... not. That’s pretty much been the whole story of my last few days.

I’m not happy about it, and damn it, it sucks.🙂🤔

Honestly, I’ve spent way more time wrestling with anxiety than I ever did with psychosis—it's a different kind of beast entirely.

Look, anxiety? That’s almost the "easy" route compared to full-blown psychosis—at least with anxiety, you actually have a fighting chance to fight back. But this hellscape you're living through right now? That's a different beast entirely. It’s pure, unadulterated torment, and honestly, most people don't give a damn. They just look the other way while you're burning alive. 🙄

Noah Garcia4 said:It seems like everyone has completely vanished...
I was hoping for a little self-deprecating humor to liven things up, but apparently, that's asking too much. 😁

😍Seriously, is this place actually dead, or am I just talking to myself?🥳 ☕

You're just being neurotic😵 ☕

Gary Foster4 said:Hey everyone!
First off, I just finished reading all 198 pages of this thread, and honestly, props to you guys for sticking together through all this. You’re incredible.

But now, I really need some help...
It’s about a close friend of mine.
He’s 23, and this whole thing started about a year ago with his first "episodes." He hears voices, claiming he’s finally realized his true self—that he’s a descendant of Pharaohs, or Scarface, a vampire, or even the god of the universe. After those hallucinations kicked in, the aggression followed. He actually tried to strangle his sister, kicked his mom in the head, and... well, he flashed her something pretty graphic because she told him to stop being such an idiot. They called the police, and his mom reported him for using weed. They took him in, held him overnight, and then sent him to court, where he was ordered into "treatment" at a local psychiatric facility in Chicago. But after two interviews and a psych eval—and despite his mother begging them to just hospitalize him—absolutely nothing happens. The psychiatrist basically brushed it off, saying he’s just "a little eccentric" and that it’s too early to make any official diagnoses. It’s getting worse by the day. He spends most of his time locked in his room, "talking" to people who aren't there, asking them questions, and laughing hysterically at things only he can hear. When he does go outside, he’s a total loose cannon; he’ll start ripping trees out of the ground in public parks or telling random strangers they need to be killed.
What I’m desperately asking you all is: how do we force the authorities to actually hospitalize him and get him on medication? Should we try to provoke a reaction so we can call the cops again?

Look, the police don't decide who gets committed—that's entirely up to the psychiatrist. The cops are just there to provide backup and keep things from turning violent. You need to get to a specialist immediately and lay out the full, unvarnated truth of everything that’s happened. If he snaps and acts out again, don't hesitate—call 911 immediately.

I’ve still got three agonizing weeks stuck in the middle of nowhere, Chicago—instead of being out on the water, soaking up the sun, and actually catching some decent bass 👎

Hey, where the hell did you guys disappear to?? 🙂

Eric Mitchell55 said:Well, looking back, I was basically just talking to myself most of the time. I was being pretty self-destructive and having some really dark, suicidal thoughts during those episodes, so I honestly don't blame them for keeping me under observation. It also doesn't help that they probably overheard me talking to the voices about how I wanted to escape from the psych ward, so I can't say I'm surprised by how they handled things. 🤷
The poor elderly lady who was sharing my room with me is being accused of stalking me and wanting to kill me in my sleep. It’s honestly such a ridiculous situation, especially considering she can barely make it from her bedroom to the kitchen without having to hold onto the wall just to stay upright.
It’s honestly pretty wild how much our brains can just warp our perception of reality. It's one of those things that really makes you stop and think about how much we take for granted.

Have you ever thought about applying for disability? Or are you aiming to get back into the workforce and actually hold down a job?

Eric Mitchell55 said:I don't know, I've heard some people get weekend passes from the Kukuljevic clinic or over in Indianapolis, but I never got those. My dad was at the Oakland facility maybe 15 times, if not more, and he was always allowed to head home for the weekends. Guess I was just a tougher case to crack, haha. 👋

Look, hallucinations are a massive deal, no question about it—but even on my ward, there were plenty of folks hearing voices who still got their weekends off. 🤷

Eric Mitchell55 said:They never actually let me go home on the weekends.
In fact, they kept me stuck in the inpatient ward for quite a long stretch.

So, is it actually true that the state hospital in Chicago is basically the only decent psych facility left in America?

Eric Mitchell55 said:Every single time I've been admitted—and I’ve been through inpatient care six times now—it’s been during some pretty decent weather. The only exception was this last time right after New Year's; it was nothing but endless rain, ice, and snow, and all I could do was stare at it through those heavy psychiatric bars 😳

So, what was the weekend situation like?

I used to get three days off every single weekend, so honestly, it wasn't half bad.

Eric Mitchell55 said:She lowered my dose of Haldol... said something about how if I start hearing voices or if things get weird, they'll just bring me straight back to the ER.
Easy for her to say.
I'm really hoping this works out, because I seriously can't handle spending a third summer in a row stuck in a hospital bed. 😍

Get lost. 😍

I’ve always tried to dodge the summer heat whenever possible... the first time I managed it, I showed up right at the start of spring and then headed straight from the hospital to the coast.😍 Last time, I actually pulled off a clean escape from that miserable snow and slush—waited until things finally thawed out before I checked myself out of the facility.😍

Joining the EU basically just hands us a golden ticket to come up with even more insane conspiracy theories 😬

Noah Garcia4 said:Well, I see you managed to phrase that quite elegantly to ensure we aren't painting everyone dealing with mental health struggles with the same broad, crazy brush. Kudos to you. It looks like you left quite an impression, too, considering there hasn't been a single reply posted underneath. 🙂

honestly, they should just throw all us crazies into a camp and call it a day 🤣 🤣

Wait, you're actually asking me to write based on just a username? You gotta give me some actual meat to work with here! I can't exactly pull a whole manifesto out of thin air—as much as I’d love to vent about the state of the world today—without knowing what we're even talking about. Lay it on me. What's the topic? Some nonsense happening on the news? A rant about how everything used to be better back in the day? Or maybe some deep dive into why modern life feels like one giant, exhausting glitch? Give me the raw details, even if they're messy, and I'll turn it into something worth reading. I'm ready when you are. kaže:
Honestly, women have always been the smarter ones—not just when it comes to love, but across the board if you actually take a second to look at things. It’s pretty obvious. Every single dictator in history has been a man, which really makes me wonder... what kind of women were they dating? What was going on behind closed doors with those guys?🙂

Let’s be real—history books love to pretend everything was built by guys in powdered wigs, but if you actually look at the scoreboard, women were some of the most powerhouse rulers we've ever seen. I’m talking about the absolute heavyweights like Elizabeth I, Maria Theresa, Catherine the Great, and Queen Victoria. Those women didn't just sit on thrones; they ran the show. Meanwhile, most of those hyper-masculine dictatorships? They usually fold faster than a cheap lawn chair once things get messy. It’s like they build these massive, ego-driven empires that look intimidating on paper, but the second someone applies a little pressure, the whole thing collapses like a house of cards. Real power isn't always about how loud you can yell or how many tanks you have—it's about staying standing when the dust settles. 😬

Kevin Nguyen3 said:Well, 10 mg daily is pretty much the standard dose.
Your doctor decided you needed 20 mg. But what does "messed up" actually mean in your situation?
20 mg is essentially the ceiling; you shouldn't be staying at that level for very long. I'd assume they'll try to transition you back to 10 mg eventually, mostly because Zyprexa can carry quite a few side effects. I was on it for a while myself and had a hard time with it—restless legs, itching, rashes... though, to be fair, I was taking other medications at the time, so I can't say for certain which ones were causing the trouble.

Yeah, that feeling where people are reading my mind came rushing back. It didn't last forever, but then the panic attacks started hitting—and man, they were intense. For me, Zyprexa actually works okay, it's just that I end up eating everything in sight because of it, and sometimes my eyes just roll back in my head.

How long am I gonna have to wait before they drop my dosage back down?

I’ve been on 10 mg of Zyprexa for about five years now—but then I totally blew it last December and ended up jumping up to 20 mg. Things are actually feeling pretty solid right now, so my question is: how long do I need to sit here waiting for them to move me back down to the 10 mg mark? Or is that even a thing that'll happen at all?🙄

What are you grinning at all of a sudden? 😁

Lawrence Hill6 said:Does frequent masturbation lead to schizophrenia at a young age—specifically, if it happens 28 or 34 times...
is that linked to schizophrenia?

Nah, it doesn't.

Schizophrenia is when you straight-up can't tell what's real from what's fiction.

Noah Garcia4 said:You make a valid point.☕

And what happens when I'm not being smart? ☕ 😬 🤣

Noah Garcia4 said:How is anyone supposed to experience genuine laughter or tears while they're navigating that cocktail of psychiatric meds? It’s a Catch-22: if you're too high, you end up on an antipsychotic, but if you're too low or completely numb, they throw an antidepressant at you. How can anyone actually track which specific medication is responsible for their emotional baseline being totally wiped out? It makes zero sense. 😕🤷☕

I guess it really comes down to whether your mood swings are actually part of the illness itself. Like, if you're in the middle of a manic episode and doing some seriously reckless stuff, then yeah, it makes sense they'd give you a stabilizer to bring you down—and vice versa. Personally, back when I was staying at the psych ward, I’d just be sitting there grinning like a total moron, and they didn't even bother messing with my meds because they could tell I wasn't actually hurting anyone.

Noah Garcia4 said:You wrote this: The most important thing for any person struggling with mental health, regardless of their diagnosis, is to focus on improving their quality of life. If you don't have a job, find one; if you don't have a partner, find one; if people are mistreating you at home or at work, walk away.

I’m not entirely sure what you intended to convey, though I know exactly what you typed.
Were you perhaps trying to suggest that someone dealing with mental health issues should prioritize their quality of life just as much as anyone else would?

This specific part:If you don't have a job, find one; if you don't have a partner, find one; if people are mistreating you at home or at work, walk away. is nothing more than common sense.

Which of those actual challenges have you actually navigated?

And is that really how life works—in such stark black and white terms? You don't have a job, so you find one; you don't have a partner, so you find one. You've simplified the complexities of existence to the point where it sounds like saying, "if you run out of milk, just drive to the grocery store and buy some."

Regarding this part: For instance, a husband being abusive toward his wife. That probably applies to me. 🙄

As for this part: Or perhaps a boss at work treats you like property. That's a massive oversimplification; technically, you're an employee, not a slave, since slaves weren't getting a paycheck.
Then again, if you expect your manager to be kind and respectful to you, you generally have to offer that same courtesy in return, don't you? ☕

Look, let's be real for a second—most people aren't actually out there grinding to build a life they actually enjoy. They aren't working on their own quality of life at all. Instead, they’re just performing this endless, exhausting act to meet whatever expectations the people around them throw their way. It’s like they’ve completely checked out of their own lives just to play the part everyone else expects them to play. They end up totally neglecting their own needs and gut feelings just to chase some hollow version of happiness for other people. Honestly, it's kind of depressing to watch.

And then they actually start hitting the booze and smoking weed thinking it’s some kind of magic cure for all their problems—as if a bottle of Jack or a joint is gonna fix a broken life. ☕