Posts by Sean Smith39

It means having actual grit—that kind of iron will where you just get things done, regardless of whatever noise people are making in your ear.

Noah Garcia4 said:I’ll step in here, if I may :hand raise: 🙂🎉

The reality is that people aren't monoliths. People living with schizophrenia are individuals, which means they all carry their own unique versions of it.

The road to a diagnosis can look like anything; it might start with insomnia, a bout of depression, panic attacks, anxiety, general maladjustment, social isolation, or sudden behavioral shifts—you name it.

Once it becomes undeniable that a person's thoughts, speech, or actions have drifted away from shared reality, they eventually land in a psychiatrist's office, where they'll likely receive an initial diagnosis of psychosis. From there, the specific label you get depends entirely on which doctor you happen to see.

The real issue we're grappling with here 😍 is the aftermath of being labeled "psychotic." Generally, the prescription is medication. A lucky few find the right meds on the first try. In some cases, if you hit a year of remission, doctors might taper you off (that was my experience), but if the symptoms resurface after that, you're often marked as a chronic case, tethered to medication for life.😍

And once you're on those antipsychotics, good luck figuring out what they actually do to your system. Almost all of them trigger depression. So, you get the antipsychotic, then you need an antidepressant just to level things out. But again, like I said, a person with schizophrenia is still a human being. And if you've been hospitalized a few times—which, let's be honest, most of us have been through the wringer—it means
you have to accept that you are ill.
You have to maintain the discipline to take your meds and endure the side effects, though after a while, it gets blurry whether you're feeling a side effect or a symptom itself.
You have to navigate being around people who look at you like you're some kind of freak, yet you're expected to remain perfectly polite.
On top of all that, you're supposed to hold down a job, socialize, raise a family, and maintain friendships—basically doing everything "normal" people do, which is its own kind of absurdity.
Why? Because "normal" people can afford to be eccentric; they can claim their quirks give them character.
But for someone dealing with psychosis, a little bit of eccentricity is often seen as a total break from reality.

To put this in perspective for you, since you're asking, 😍: imagine walking into a hospital, getting heavily sedated, and then a few days later, you're walking around, talking, and hanging out with other patients before being discharged. You go home, and everyone expects you to suddenly be "fine." In reality, what they're thinking is that you're "crazy," and that's a label 99% of the people around you will cling to forever.

As for living in remission—when the symptoms subside—it’s exhausting. To put it bluntly, regular people are allowed to lose their minds occasionally, but a person with schizophrenia isn't given that luxury.

So there it is. Feel free to ask more.
Did you want me to back this up with medical data from Google, or were you specifically looking for this kind of subjective perspective? ☕
off topic : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqRW5...&feature=share 👍

I know my way around the internet, but I just wanted someone living with schizophrenia to tell me what it’s actually like—how it feels. And please, don't talk down to me. Just because I have "Canada" in my username doesn't mean I'm automatically Canadian, though even if I were, I still get what this is all about—at least as much as a sane person can. 😉 .

Larry Lewis said:And you went looking for the schizo-crowds just to make friends? Talk about twisted... okay, just kidding 🙂.

I feel like we've touched on this over a few pages now, but I wanted to be blunt with you—we don't exactly love discussing this stuff here—well, at least I don't.

Alright, my bad if I rubbed you the wrong way 🙂.

Larry Lewis said:Ever heard of Google? Honestly, just dig through the archives and read the previous posts.🙂

Look, I don't have an issue with reading—I actually love it—but I wanted to hear from you guys about what specific symptoms we're actually talking about here. 🙂 You can find all sorts of definitions online—honestly, I’d almost prefer an answer from someone who’s completely lost their grip on reality—if that’s even possible. I'm new here, so I'm looking to meet as many people as I can. 🙂 .

What are the actual symptoms of schizophrenia? Who usually gets hit by this—and is it more common in men or women? Thanks in advance for any info.