Posts by fadedlynx96

It feels to me like we haven't actually settled on what defines a winner's mindset yet.

In sports? What does victory even entail? Simply outperforming everyone else? Snagging an Olympic gold medal?

In business? Before bringing up Steve Jobs—a fascinating figure whom many dismiss as just another mediocre jerk both professionally and personally—if you happen to be reading this on an iPhone, you might find it difficult to grasp the irony of that statement.

Socially or within a family? Is it having ten kids, or perhaps being a CEO or the owner of a thriving corporation?

Carl Rivera43 said:To me, winning isn't some kind of sprint. It's a marathon.

It’s really about that mix of pure grit and actual desire—making sure there's a real purpose behind the win.

There is a massive difference between a quick fix and that deep satisfaction you get from actually grinding for something.

Think about it. You see musicians or pro athletes writing their memoirs, and they always talk about those endless, sleepless nights.

Sometimes, you just find this weirdly better focus once the clock hits midnight.

But man, you have to stay persistent. And honestly? That's such a huge, complicated topic to dive into.

Why is staying the course easy for some people, but an absolute struggle for others?

I find this entire premise fundamentally flawed; a marathon is, by definition, a race.

I fail to see how this relates to politics, though I suppose it doesn't matter as long as people have something to drone on about.

All these self-proclaimed experts on this forum who claim to be against Tamiflu seem to be the exact same people getting their flu shots and popping Tamiflu regularly, which gives them all the practical insight they need.

Or perhaps they are all world-class physicians conducting deep research into Tamiflu and influenza, possessing an absolute understanding of how both function.

Tamiflu was essentially the single standard for managing the flu according to the guidelines set by leading global health organizations.

If new evidence eventually proves those recommendations were flawed, the protocols will simply shift to match the new data. That is how science operates, regardless of Joe Biden or whatever his administration is up to.

ruggedgardener2 said:I don't know what to tell you—it’s just one of those things where you look at the facts and realize how much noise there is out there. I was sitting around the other day, just thinking about how people react to these kinds of shifts, and honestly, most of it is just pure distraction. You see these arguments flying back and forth online, people getting worked up over nothing, while the actual substance gets buried under a mountain of nonsense. It’s frustrating, really—like trying to have a serious conversation in the middle of a crowded stadium. You try to make a point, you lay out the logic, and someone just starts screaming about something completely unrelated. It happens constantly. Anyway, that's just my two cents on why everything feels so chaotic lately.

fadedlynx96 I can't even begin to process this—it’s just one thing after another lately. I was sitting there, minding my own business, and then I see this... honestly, it’s enough to make you lose your mind. You think you've seen everything, right? Wrong. It’s always something else, another layer of nonsense that we’re all expected to just swallow without a second thought. I remember back when things actually made sense—well, "sense" is a strong word—but at least there was some kind of logic to the chaos. Now? It feels like we're just spinning our wheels in the mud while everyone else pretends everything is fine. It’s exhausting, truly. You try to stay level-headed, you really do, but then something like this pops up and suddenly you're questioning if anyone is actually home behind the eyes of these people running the show. It's just ridiculous. Self-driving cars aren't some futuristic dream we're waiting on—they've actually been hitting the streets for over a year now. They’re already fully legal in California, and honestly, there are probably a few other states where they're cleared to roll. It drives better than any car most people are behind the wheel of—and I mean, it’s not even a close contest. Honestly, compared to the average driver out there? It's in a completely different league. They aren't even that much more expensive than your run-of-the-mill cars. They’re just... I don't know, a little weird—mostly because you're staring at an empty driver's seat where a person should be.

Wait, is that actually one of those Google cars rolling by, or am I seeing things?

Yeah, the Google car was the pioneer, though now every major automaker is scrambling to catch up. The tech itself is already proven and operational, so the real question isn't whether it works, but whether people actually trust themselves enough to sit in a driverless seat right this second.

ruggedgardener2 said:And now he's moving on to self-driving cars.

Nobody actually knows what's coming. 🙂

Self-driving vehicles have been out there for over a year now, and they're perfectly legal in California, along with a few other places.

And honestly, they handle much better than any human driver ever could—it isn't even close.

They aren't even significantly more expensive than standard cars, though I suppose it feels a bit eerie seeing the driver's seat completely empty.

Michelle Evans said:It really comes down to a doctor's assessment...

Before you sign up for driving school, you have to pass a medical exam with an occupational health physician. They issue the certificate confirming you're mentally and physically fit to drive. That certification is based on documentation from your primary care doctor, who has to list any existing medical conditions...
(link)
You'll also need to bring along reports from any specialists treating those specific conditions.

Under the standard federal guidelines for driver health screenings, certain psychological, psychiatric, or neurological conditions can result in being labeled "unfit" or "temporarily unfit" to operate a vehicle. (See Article 13)
(link)

That is a solid answer.

My usual approach was simply to say nothing at all and avoid making it an issue, which always resulted in passing without incident.

I am not suggesting this is the superior method, but if you happen to forget your specific condition or its symptoms when questioned—perhaps because memory loss is itself a symptom or a side effect of medication—then everything remains technically fine, does it not?

I know from experience that I have forgotten vital information, so forgetting a diagnosis is entirely plausible.

As for the psychometric testing, I believe anyone can pass those written assessments, provided they aren't facing a direct interview with a psychiatrist, which is a much more difficult hurdle.

If I claim to be perfectly normal, I know nobody will believe me, so I won't bother saying it; however, I truly am normal, and I hold driver's licenses in several different states, including America.

Kevin Nguyen3 said:That's great.😁
Nothing makes me happier than hearing someone feels better than what a clinical diagnosis would suggest.😉
Since this PDF focuses on mental states and various disorders, it naturally includes people living with Sch.
There really isn't much else to be said.☕

If I keep insisting that I’m perfectly normal, eventually I might actually start believing my own lies. 😁

Not that I ever actually took Sch, though to be honest, I couldn't care less one way or the other today.

Eric Gray2 said:First off, please don't get all worked up about it. Second—you're actually off-topic here; we have the PŽK subforum specifically for questions like that 🙂

But look, to give you a quick breakdown: psychology is really a science focused on how people experience things and behave—so some of the stuff we talk about here would actually be considered off-topic if we moved it over to the Health section. Sure, some topics definitely touch on pathology or mental disorders—which, granted, falls under psychiatry, a branch of medicine—but generally speaking, the Health section focuses on physical issues, whereas this space is dedicated to mental health matters 😉

If there’s anything else you're curious about or if you want to dive deeper into this, feel free to start a thread over here

My apologies. Given that we are discussing schizophrenia, I don't feel any real need to offer an exhaustive explanation.

I noticed a distinct disconnect between health topics and psychiatry in a specific instance, which I found rather distasteful, so I resorted to using capital letters to make my point.

I offer my apologies once more.

Kevin Nguyen3 said:No. You completely missed the context of what was written here.
The user @lakot previously mentioned having a brother struggling with an illness and was seeking advice.
My response was directed toward that specific post.
Do you honestly think I would ever equate Sch and Bipolar?

Furthermore, you failed to grasp the subsequent part regarding seizure activity—specifically the brief loss of consciousness related to maintaining alertness, emotional regulation, perception, and so on.
I was recounting a specific incident at the doctor's office, which you have somehow linked to... well, I don't even know what.
So... are you even aware of the paranoia currently consuming you? Your Bipolar disorder used to be classified as manic depression. In your specific case, it is an affective disorder without psychosis.
Therefore, I am acutely aware that your current state of euphoria could pivot into a depressive episode in a very short amount of time.
But it won't, will it?...😍

It isn't a matter of opinion; I know you understand the distinction just as well as most people on this board does, despite the overlapping medication profiles for both conditions.

I was simply commenting on a memory of Sch patients hanging out together, finding common ground in the fact that they aren't bipolar, since there's this running joke that we're functional while the bipolar group represents lost causes. It works the same way for the bipolar crowd, where we're the stable ones and the Sch patients are seen as hopeless.

If you start treating both groups as identical, you strip away whatever hope either side has left. It might not be strictly logical, but when you're dealing with patients living with Sch and bipolar, expecting pure rationality is a stretch.

My diagnosis is Bipolar I—pure mania, no depression. I constantly ask my doctor if I'm slipping into a depressive state, but he always insists that, by definition, it's impossible for me.

And I wouldn't describe myself as euphoric or manic; I'm mostly just normal.

I fail to see why this entire forum doesn't just pivot toward actual health or medical expertise.

Arthur Scott5 said:Yes, I did ask for it, and now we’ll just have to see how things unfold. I’m hoping for the best. I’ve been there for two weeks now, and for the most part, everything seems to be settling down quite nicely. Still, I suppose those lingering thoughts about microchipping and a few other matters haven't entirely vanished from my mind, though I am hopeful that those concerns will eventually stabilize as well. I really do appreciate you all being there for me. 😁

What medication were you prescribed and what was the diagnosis? Just asking for my own sake, and I'm sure others here are curious too.

My diagnosis is Bipolar I. I'm currently on Lithium, fish oil, and Abilify. I usually take the Abilify when I actually feel up to it. Honestly, it doesn't bother me one bit that the drug is used for Sch, bipolar, or depression.

Kevin Nguyen3 said:Since you're my fellow traveler on this journey, I managed to scrape together a little bit of time...😉
In your specific situation, does it even matter if his diagnosis is bipolar disorder or schizophrenia? Does it?
I once knew a patient where the doctor was trying to walk him through all the nitty-gritty details regarding his illness and such.
At one point, the doctor calls him by his name.
The man didn't even blink an eye. Not even a flicker!
The doctor had to call him four separate times before the man finally muttered "pardon" after several minutes had passed?
All his functions were completely shot—his perception (he was just staring blankly at a wall covered in pictures), his spatial orientation—but one thing remained: consciousness.
He was essentially in an unconscious state. Let's call it a milder variation of an absence seizure, shall we?
This is exactly what happens with a psychotic patient like yourself.
The internet? It isn't some coincidence. He lost his grip on reality, and his entire perception of the world is totally distorted, with or without the web.
As for everything else, you might be better off just forgetting about it. I don't know how much older you are than him, or how old he actually is, but indirect help is really just a matter of—well, letting go.
Maybe you don't see it that way yet, but that is the reality of it.
The contracts were signed while he was conscious and acting responsibly. You aren't going to achieve anything here. Nothing!
It is all psychosis and the consequences of that condition—or rather, those episodes.
Whether they admit it to us or not, the parents carry the responsibility for everything happening right now or whatever happened in the past. Sadly, that is just how it is.
A younger son, ill, perhaps a bit spoiled—whether out of a lack of understanding or simply out of love—but a misguided approach creates massive problems later on.
My warm advice to you? Send him back to his parents and you stay close to your own family. Stick to your kin.
While you are still healthy.🙄

Don't go equating bipolar disorder with schizophrenia. In my experience, most people living with bipolar are just relieved they don't have schizophrenia, much like most people with schizophrenia feel a sense of relief that they aren't dealing with bipolar. I can't quite put my finger on why, but for me, the latter has always felt significantly more grueling, though I suppose there’s a certain hollow comfort in telling yourself the alternative isn't quite as devastating. You see it in the hospital wards all the time, where patients claim having schizophrenia is actually fine, simply because they've convinced themselves it isn't something worse. It's almost as if they treat schizophrenia like a common cold—something easily managed or brushed off—and I am fairly certain I heard the head psychiatrist at the clinic say something to that exact effect, a sentiment several witnesses apparently confirmed, though nobody tends to believe me anyway.

I recall that when staff at the hospital would call out different names, it was usually the nurses or technicians doing the calling, whereas I don't quite remember the doctors using anything beyond my actual first and last name. The rest of the crew seemed to find plenty of amusement in it, though perhaps I gave them enough ammunition to start playing around with various nicknames. Eventually, once the whole thing became tiresome, I simply stopped responding—which actually happened toward the end of my stay. My only real issue with the joking was the realization that the doctor might eventually weaponize it against me, since I had essentially come up with most of those ridiculous titles and nicknames myself just to join in on the fun.

Nicole Barrett76 said:Suppose an individual experiencing their first psychotic episode is brought into a psychiatric ward against their will and refuses to cooperate. In such a scenario, would the medical staff "merely" conduct a psychiatric evaluation before admitting them, or would they also insist on a full physical examination? After all, how can one be certain if the symptoms are purely psychological or if the patient is simply under the influence of narcotics?

It happens constantly, this cycle where they bring in some psychotic individual who lacks any prior history of mental illness, often through involuntary commitment when the person isn't cooperating, only to run them through a battery of tests. Who’s to say the patient isn't simply performing? I spent my entire life feigning insanity just to see if everyone would buy into the act, yet now that I am putting on the performance of being perfectly sane, absolutely no one believes me. It all comes down to perception, though truth remains an elusive thing—not that I can help myself from making such a joke.

My psychotherapist actually told me that posting on this forum was off-limits, so naturally, I’m following orders to the letter. At least I'm staying consistent with my medication, or at least the specific pills I feel like taking, which is enough to maintain the illusion that I am perfectly normal, despite how often I find myself having to insist upon it.

The forum is easily my biggest headache.

wearyowl29 said:I’ve got a fascinating little story for you all. A good friend of mine has a niece who is—well, let’s just say she fits that whole striking, model-esque vibe. Tall, blonde, gorgeous... the whole nine yards.
Men throw themselves at her constantly. Some have actual class, others are total creeps, but they all share this same ridiculous, over-the-top pickup line energy: "I wouldn't mind having you in my passenger seat on a long drive!"

She tells us all about it, how she shuts these guys down because she's completely devoted to her partner, yet she still finds herself getting hit on by women quite often too.
But here’s the kicker: she struggles to make anything serious stick. It’s not that she’s looking for trouble—she’s actually incredibly independent and knows exactly how to hold her own against any creep—but she just can't stand the jealousy from the men she dates. She’s grown up to be such a self-sufficient person, and honestly, she has zero interest in cheating.
Because of that, whether her relationships last a few months or several years, they always hit a dead end. They eventually implode because of that constant, suffocating jealousy. None of her partners can handle it long-term, especially since her career requires her to travel and move around freely.
During one of our chats, she told me she’s been reflecting on her life lately. She feels like nature gave her this incredible beauty but then played a bit of a prank on her by making her so intensely self-aware and fiercely independent. She joked that she basically turned out to be the female prototype of a typical American man, and apparently, her partners just can't stomach that level of autonomy.
In other words, she carries this very masculine energy that men find difficult to deal with over the long haul, and
while people can find common ground with her easily, that same magnetic pull attracts women too (there's definitely an erotic charge there).
There are plenty more details—some of it gets a bit more intimate—but the whole situation is just so interesting that I had to share it with you guys.

She has never been with a real man; she has only ever dated boys.

As for the comment about the cockpit, it fits perfectly into a discussion regarding the most idiotic pickup lines ever conceived. The issue isn't the metaphor of flying to the moon, but rather the stupidity of telling a woman you want to sleep with her within the first two or three sentences of meeting her.

nimblebison26 said:For Canada (since that's my home), but traditionally, my heart has always belonged to Mexico and Japan. Still, this SP might find themselves rooting for the USA, we'll see...

The Mariachi, you’ve pretty much mirrored my own thoughts here.

I'll be pulling for the USA and Mexico (assuming they actually qualify), along with Canada (if they manage to make the cut).

None of those four teams realistically stand a chance at winning the Championship, but I suppose I could be wrong.

David Vaughn75 said:So you were dealing with acute psychosis back then, huh?

Psychiatrists love handing out fancy labels, but usually, they just slap "acute psychosis" on your file the first time you walk through the door—even when they haven't got a clue what's actually going on. Then, if the psychosis flares up again down the road, they just pivot and write down F20.0 (paranoid schizophrenia) and call it a day.

Yeah, I’m fairly certain that was the standard practice twenty years ago as well.

Today marks exactly twenty years. Since the day of the week back then was a Friday, both September 6th and September 13th qualify as potential anniversaries.

Following the logic used two decades ago, if a second psychotic episode occurs after a twenty-year gap, they are treated as entirely separate incidents, which wouldn't be enough to meet the diagnostic criteria for Sch (though I'm not sure if that medical standard still holds up today).

Regardless, I am celebrating, whether there is a profound reason for it or not, though I've caught a cold so I won't be toasting with wine—one shouldn't drink wine when they are under the weather.

Even if I were perfectly healthy, I could tell by looking at that wine. One of my choices was a Tokaji, specifically a 5 Puttonyos, which was actually my first pick. I pulled a bottle off the shelf and saw it was from 1993; it didn't matter to me one bit, even if my own name had been printed on the label.

Years ago, an occurrence like that would have felt like a sign that the universe was conspiring against me, just waiting for its moment, but now it is merely a coincidence. It was just spoiled wine, nothing more, since most wines can't actually sit for twenty years. In the end, I returned all four or five bottles I had bought and kept only the dessert wines.

And I am completely fine, regardless of the bipolar diagnosis or the lithium. It isn't some grand struggle, and I handle it just fine.

Robin Lopez2 said:Then why don't you?

There is a slim, almost negligible chance they might actually pivot my diagnosis and treatment plan toward something else, though living with lithium and bipolar disorder is something I’ve come to accept without much fuss.

In reality, the likelihood of a diagnostic shift is actually quite massive because I have never once managed to convince a single psychiatrist that I am perfectly fine; they always land on some label and prescribe whatever medication they deem necessary.

Technically, I could simply decide that I am healthy and require nothing at all, but I am not that naive, and after twenty years of navigating this system—not just twenty years of pills and doctors—I have learned that it is generally wiser to follow their lead.

Lithium itself isn't the issue, as the side effects can be managed reasonably well, and it doesn't carry the same risks of skipping doses or overdoing it that you see with other substances, whether we are talking about narcotics or antipsychotics.

That’s right. Lithium and fish oil. My latest diagnosis was bipolar disorder, though I posted a similar version of this on the specific bipolar thread with some extra details added.

I’ve been on lithium for about five years at most. Looking back over the last twenty, there were stretches of fifteen years where I wasn't taking anything at all. Honestly, I wouldn't even be touching the lithium if my ex-wife hadn't forced my hand.

It would be easy enough to just walk into another psychiatrist's office and convince them that I'm perfectly fine and don't need any medication. Even my current girlfriend—not the one who left me—agrees with that assessment. But somehow, I've realized that having a bipolar diagnosis provides a convenient way to justify just about anything. When my girlfriend tells me I'm acting irrational, I simply tell her that she's probably seeing something in the diagnosis or that I must have missed my dose today.

Still, I remain convinced that I don't have bipolar disorder and that I don't need the lithium.

David Vaughn75 said:So you were dealing with acute psychosis back then, huh?

Psychiatrists love handing out fancy labels, but usually, they just slap "acute psychosis" on your file the first time you walk through the door—even when they haven't got a clue what's actually going on. Then, if the psychosis flares up again down the road, they just pivot and write down F20.0 (paranoid schizophrenia) and call it a day.

They cycled through diagnoses between various forms of psychosis and IBM several times, eventually landing on hebephrenic psychosis before other doctors reframed it as hebephrenic IBM. Since the medical nomenclature keeps shifting, it's hard to pin down what the final diagnosis actually was, especially since even the specialists in Washington, D.C. couldn't reach a consensus on whether it was hebephrenic IBM or just hebephrenic psychosis.

Then there’s the whole laundry list of other issues—OCD, anxiety, panic disorders, ambivalence, and probably more—but I was told not to dwell on them because the primary diagnosis outweighs everything else combined.

So, I’m here to brag, though it’s more about offering a bit of hope to anyone who feels like their entire universe just collapsed, much like mine did exactly twenty years ago.

We are approaching the twenty-year mark since my initial diagnosis from the School—various types of Sch. Based on the medical literature from that era, which is now completely obsolete and largely discredited, if a similar episode doesn't recur within twenty years, then everything is fine and that first episode wasn't actually Sch.

So, I’m just counting down the days, waiting for this final stretch to pass so I can confirm I am perfectly sane. Well, perhaps I'm not entirely sane, but I am certainly far from having my world fall apart.

In these past twenty years, I have achieved all my dreams and actually accomplished more than I ever dared to imagine. I know the next twenty years will be incredible because I intend to make them so, and no one is going to stop me—absolutely no one. The only catch is that I am no longer twenty-one; I am forty-one now. My best twenty years are behind me, so I suppose I’ll have to work much harder to ensure the next two decades turn out exactly how I want them to.

I am going to celebrate this milestone with some ice wine. It isn't wine served with ice, but rather wine made from frozen grapes; it is incredibly potent and sweet, perfect for an occasion like this. It isn't red, and I won't tell everyone else to go grab a glass... actually, forget that, grab a glass and drink up, because I truly don't give a damn about any of those 295 diagnoses.

Truth be told, my situation today is quite similar to how things were twenty years ago. A girl broke my heart and left me in a state of total despair (there is even a specific thread for that kind of thing on Reddit). The only difference is that I learned from that old heartbreak that you should always have another girl in the wings, because grieving is much easier when someone is there to comfort you. So, at least today I have someone to hold me while I mourn the one who left and broke my heart.

And in the end, absolutely nothing from my diagnosis came true—Sch Hebefrenija (295.x—I can't recall if x equals 1 or 5 or what).

Therefore, I am raising a glass of ice wine to everyone currently facing a Sch diagnosis and believing it is the end of the road. It isn't; anything is possible.

I have two kids, a nine-year-old daughter and a seven-year-old son, both of whom seem perfectly fine, though my daughter did give me one genuine scare a while back, if I recall correctly mentioning that here.

My diagnosis is bipolar disorder, which carries a much stronger hereditary link than schizophrenia, and since I haven't had a schizophrenia diagnosis confirmed for quite some time, it’s pretty clear that the bipolar diagnosis essentially rules it out.

The issue isn't really about my own condition, but rather the rest of my family; I won't claim to be the most stable person in the room, but others in my lineage are difficult cases who refuse to seek treatment, whereas at least I am managing mine.

We will eventually sit the children down to explain everything, likely sooner rather than later, though I expect that conversation to happen maybe three or four years from now. My intention is to teach them how to recognize the warning signs so they can take action themselves, providing them with more practical insight than any random search on Google could ever offer.

Noah Garcia4 said:🤣

I just found out that sex is considered such a taboo subject among people in their 30s, and while I suppose that individual might have a point, it leads me to wonder if schizophrenia is also treated with that same level of social avoidance 🤣☕

I'm not entirely following this post; is this guy your boyfriend, a potential boyfriend, or what exactly?

If he isn't talking about sex, does that mean you won't talk about schizo issues either?

It’s all pretty unclear to me, but I really should get to sleep.

What’s everyone’s experience been like with Allergan? I’m particularly interested in hearing from those who have been doing this for several years now.

Right now, I’m using Allergan for my entire forehead, getting a fresh dose every three months, and everything seems to be going fine so far.

My only real uncertainty is whether that part of my face will eventually end up permanently frozen, or if I’ll just be stuck needing these injections indefinitely.

The doctor didn't give me a straight answer, opting instead for that vague "we'll see how it goes" approach.

There is an obvious advantage to having a permanent freeze since you wouldn't need further injections, but then again, if you use it in multiple areas, your face risks looking completely paralyzed—dead, really.

I wonder if people typically use Allergan as a temporary fix while they save up for a more significant procedure, or if it’s something one can realistically continue using forever.