Schizophrenia - General Discussion
in Psychology & Therapy ·
Harold Anderson3 said:Just a heads-up, though—medication isn't some magic shield that prevents every single setback. Antipsychotics come with their own set of side effects and challenges, too. The whole point of staying on a long-term regimen isn't necessarily to feel absolutely perfect every second, but rather to get you stable enough to actually navigate daily life. And honestly, that often includes dealing with the occasional brief psychotic episode every now and then.
I personally went through one major psychotic episode about seven and a half years ago, and it took me over a year to really bounce back from it (including six months spent in a hospital facility). Then, two years later, I had to stay in for two months due to depression, and most recently, I was in for three weeks because my medication wasn't sitting right with me—plus, work stress was piling up, I was struggling at college, and my relationship ended... so, I wouldn't even call this last stint a full-blown hospitalization so much as a quick adjustment to my meds since it was only three weeks.
If I can offer just one piece of advice, it’s this: please don't stop taking your medication or try to taper off the dosage on your own. Even if things eventually lead to a hospital visit, going through it while still being medicated is going to be much more manageable and less intense than trying to face it after quitting your treatment entirely.
You write well, clearly you've been through the wringer with this stuff. Anyway, I'm not about to change anything without talking to my doctor first because I take this seriously, even though I have some as-needed pills and I'm slowly realizing I don't always need them—sometimes I just have to convince myself they're necessary. But it's all starting to click for me, you know? Like, becoming more aware. You're looking at things pretty realistically.
Jeffrey Ramos4 said:Maybe try dialing back the emotional intensity and looking at this from a more grounded perspective. Generally speaking, when people lack experience in a certain area, they tend to get too caught up in themselves when they talk or write. They become so wrapped up in their own subjectivity that they fail to communicate rational facts or information to those around them. In psychiatric hospitals—especially on acute, locked wards—there are strict protocols for staff behavior for a reason. These rules exist specifically to ensure the safety of the patients themselves.
As for psychopharmacology, the reality is—unfortunately—that medication is often pushed too hard and prescribed far too easily without sufficient psychotherapy. But you can't just blame the psychiatrists; the entire system is flawed. Besides, most of us are hypocrites. If you look closely, plenty of people would just pop a Norman if they felt even a hint of mental discomfort, and many actually beg their doctors for a prescription. And that’s not even mentioning the crowd that abuses these drugs.
Regarding your mention of being 28... just imagine if you had to deal with all of this during your teenage years, or even worse, earlier while you were still practically a child. Imagine if you had been battling schizophrenia since early childhood.
Yeah, I think I read somewhere that we're pretty self-absorbed, but maybe that's not necessarily a bad thing because if you look at someone from the outside, they basically live in their own little world. Trying to force that world to be "objective" might be questionable, because if we draw the wrong conclusions, it's probably just because we're stuck in our own beliefs. We all have our own internal reality; it's just more intense for some people. I guess instead of trying to tear that world down, maybe it's better to just try and fix it where possible.
rich92 said:Basically, I checked myself into a psych ward because of stress and all the crap I was going through just to get some space, right? But I didn't even realize while I was there that they were treating me for something like schizophrenia—nobody even bothered to ask if what I said was actually happening or not. Anyway, after a few days on the locked ward, I had no clue what I was being given; I thought it was just something for stress, but then I got sexual dysfunction immediately on the second day, like my penis just won't get up anymore and there's no sperm, and it's been like that for 9 months now. I eventually got moved to an open ward, didn't talk to the doctor at all, then the next day a nurse shows up with an injection and again, I have no idea what it is, thinking it's more stress meds, but then a few days later I can't sleep at all and find out the drug is Xeplion, which apparently has a ton of side effects, and the best one is insomnia. I tell the doctor during a checkup that I can't sleep, even though nothing else is bothering me too much, and she says I'll get Leponex, and man, that Leponex really knocked me out the same night, but it's such a heavy hitter that once you're out, you couldn't wake you up if a tank drove past your bed, it just pins you to the mattress. But since then, I can't sleep without stuff like Ambien or Leponex. And honestly, everything just went downhill during my stay. When I got home, I thought about stopping the meds, thinking what's the harm, but my mom insisted, saying they told her I had to keep taking them, so I kept taking Leponex every night because I couldn't sleep otherwise, plus that poison Xeplion every month for like 6 months straight, and suddenly when I take the Leponex, I become super irritable and aggressive, my whole body just twists up, it's terrible. Life becomes hell, constant aggressive outbursts, and I start looking into the drugs I was given only to see I was being treated for schizophrenia, which means I should be having visions, hallucinations, hearing voices, and all that, but I never had any of that. Now I don't know if I need to be medicated or if this will just stop, because the way Xeplion and Leponex wrecked me, I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. Maybe poisoning me with two antipsychotics was overkill, I don't know, but things with my parents are a total disaster; I don't know how much longer they can deal with the aggression and me hitting stuff around the house, it's an emergency. I'm taking Ambien three times a day just to calm down somehow. Please, I need some professional advice, thanks in advance.
I kinda get where you're coming from, I was on Xeplion back when I ended up in the psych ward and the side effects were so nasty I told myself there's no way, I'm gonna deal with this illness on my own, and luckily it worked, I don't take any meds anymore. From your post, it sounds to me like you need chill pills, not those damn psychotropic drugs. Don't think I'm insulting you or whatever, but look, I smoke weed and there is seriously no better way, there just isssssssssttttttttt NO way, because there are zero symptoms!
Look, people, if you aren't planning on jumping off a building, don't go to a psychiatrist; they're just there to keep you alive and turn you into a vegetable!