Posts by bluejackal2

Joseph Bailey41 said:Cute. Do you actually speak Russian? 😬

I actually studied Russian back in elementary and high school, then switched things up and focused on English once I got to college. 😁

Joseph Bailey41 said:If they had just added a little honey and walnuts too... 🙂

Anyway, who were you supposed to be during that psychotic break? Odin? 🍿

The first time it’s just your typical manic episode like anyone else, but the second time around, suddenly you’re some deep-cover CIA operative. 😬

Joseph Bailey41 said:I don't really drink much Lavender myself; I'll just toss in a sprig while it's in season and leave it at that. It's probably not great for boys going through puberty since it acts a bit like estrogen, but otherwise, I don't think it's toxic. Most of the time I'm sticking to peppermint or lemon balm (usually fresh), and this year I've been using a lot of basil too. I haven't actually had any tea in days, though—my kitchen is currently a mess because I've been busy making batches of tomato sauce. 🙂

Apparently, men are drawn to the scent of cinnamon, and if you want to look younger, you should go with grapefruit... or so research suggests. 😁

Honestly, that’s exactly why grandmas used to spend all afternoon baking apple pies with tons of cinnamon—those women knew exactly what they were doing.

If I’m not allowed to comment on someone else's posts, then they shouldn't be able to comment on mine either; otherwise, this whole new rule just doesn't make any sense.

Joshua James9 said:I’ve got this weird issue—I honestly couldn't care less about anyone else's opinion. Look, plenty of people will tell me that's actually a superpower (and in certain situations, it totally is), but things get messy when I'm actually interacting with people. Like, if I'm grabbing coffee with someone and they start rambling about some topic, I literally don't give a damn what they think. I just nod along and listen superficially so they don't get offended. I don't even have the energy to defend my own stance because, frankly, why bother? It hurts my brain to wonder if the person I'm talking to is going to change their mind or not—it feels like a complete waste of time. I’ve basically become like a piece of furniture at coffee shops, not because I'm quiet or don't have anything to say, but because I just can't be bothered to explain myself or get sucked into the debate. Lately, I've been avoiding hanging out altogether because of this. I realize how much of a paradox it is to claim I don't care about opinions while opening up a thread on a forum to see what everyone thinks... but hey, this is a forum. It's different.

Are you drinking alcohol when you go out to those social hangouts?

Matthew Castillo5 said:The two aren't mutually exclusive at all. A priest handles your spiritual struggles, while a psychiatrist or therapist deals with the mental ones.

But what kind of stuff actually falls under "spiritual problems"? Like, what does that even look like in practice?

Joseph Bailey41 said:Were you taking any anxiolytics, like Xanax, alongside your AP? Getting off those things is a total nightmare. 😲

Man, I went through the ringer getting off Xanax—both the regular stuff and the extended release. It all started when I reached the point where I was actually terrified to leave my house. But honestly? The transition from Moditen to Rispolept was even more of a total disaster. It wasn't even that the Rispolept felt bad once I started it; it was just the sheer hell of stopping the Moditen, though thankfully that eventually leveled out after a while. Right now, I’m just sticking to Risset, and if things ever get really overwhelming, I just have some Xanax on hand that a buddy gave me since he had some extra.

Joseph Bailey41 said:Thanks. I just went and did a quick Google search—honestly, I’m surprised it didn't occur to me sooner—and here is what I found:

https://www.verywellmind.com/relatio...mptoms-2797525

https://www.psychiatryadvisor.com/sc...rticle/759866/

That feels like the missing link I've been looking for. 👍

I'm really glad I pushed on this topic, because I honestly used to think PTSD and psychosis didn't really overlap, but looking at this link, I recognized these experiences in myself:

Quote: most Common Symptoms of Psychosis with PTSD
The most common positive symptoms in the study above were:

1. Believing that other people were spying on or following them (27.5 percent)

2. Believing that they could hear what someone else was thinking (12.4 percent)

3. Being bothered by strange smells that no one else could smell (10.3 percent)

4. Believing that their behaviors and thoughts were being controlled by some power or force (10 percent)

I'll just give you my own example regarding those non-existent smells: I’m driving down the highway and someone zooms past me, so I start analyzing their license plate and realize they must be a spy, which makes me floor it to chase them down faster than I ever have before. Once I hit those high speeds, I start smelling something like electrical wiring burning; the harder I step on the gas, the stronger the stench gets, and when I let off, it fades. To me, that was the sign that I shouldn't have been tailing the spy, so I backed off and the smell vanished instantly—it made me realize my car was specially designed to look out for me and that it was incredibly intelligent.