Posts by Noah Garcia4

Jessica Fowler4 said:So, I had this random thought pop into my head—it’s probably not super useful or anything, but it felt kind of interesting to me..

You know, when you’re just a kid, lying there in bed, unable to drift off... maybe you were watching Twilight Zone or some old spooky show, and the streetlights outside are casting this weird glow through the lace curtains. You start looking around... and pretty soon, you begin to notice faces in the patterns of the lace... even in the shadow the curtain casts on the dresser across from the window.. just these random faces.. that Twilight Zone episode was actually about how people see faces in patterns, and how those faces might come to life and things would go south... and that's exactly what happens to you, these little faces start appearing... the longer you stare, the more you feel like they're alive, like they're about to move, like they're evil, and like they're staring at you with malice... so you hide under the covers... the fear is just overwhelming... and you spend the whole night like that, or well, until you eventually pass out... trying to convince yourself that if the faces haven't done anything yet, they won't do anything, and somehow you calm down enough to fall asleep after a while...

What am I even trying to say? I guess paranoia and hallucinations are actually sort of built into all of us.. I think a lot of people can't quite wrap their heads around it, but they've actually experienced that process where the brain sees something that isn't really there... one example is exactly what I just described—that tendency to "notice" faces in all sorts of different patterns and textures... I don't know what I'm even gaining by posting this, but, yeah... I just had to get it out of my system 🙂

Anyway, regarding treatments, here's another article/study that looks at how NMDA receptors and glutamate play a role
http://www.psychointegrator.com/2008...nia-treatment/

And one more

http://apt.rcpsych.org/content/8/3/189.full

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurotransmitters

Plus some basic reading for the newcomers.😉

Look, I’m speaking strictly for myself here. I have NEVER actually seen or heard things that weren't physically there.
I spent a long time spinning elaborate webs of nonsense in my head—things that had zero connection to the truth, common sense, or reality.
Once the fog finally lifted, I realized the whole thing was pure bullshit. Yet, some of those thoughts from the peak of my illness still linger today; I honestly don't know how "healthy" I'd need to be before someone could convince me that I hadn't actually noticed something real.
It isn't a simple black-and-white issue, not by a long shot. But this pervasive assumption people hold—that anyone living with schizophrenia is completely detached from awareness—is just incredibly patronizing.

For crying out loud, just go ahead and potužiti to Žuža 😉 Honestly, how much more intense can these schizophrenic types get? 🍿

David Vaughn75 said:if that’s not going too far, I actually think it's kind of sexy😍

😍 isn't an exaggeration😍 when you consider how most average women in a small Midwestern town🤣😂

David Vaughn75 said:Honestly, you’re either just a difficult person by nature or you aren't—I don't think it has anything to do with having an illness. 🤷

I’ve always had a bit of a prickly disposition, and if I’m being honest, there’s a fair amount of malice baked into my nature. I have these sudden, sharp outbursts that can be pretty cutting, and when they happen, people tend to rush in with that patronizing "Oh, you're just going through something" or "It's just your temperament" kind of attitude. But it isn't some psychological ailment or a phase I need to get over; I truly meant every word of those outbursts exactly as they came out.
I can be quite lovely when I want to be—sweet as a homemade peach cobbler, at least when I’m actually awake. Though, admittedly, that charm tends to take a backseat once I drift off to sleep. And as for everything in between... well, let's just leave that to the imagination.

I’m genuinely asking if anyone out there can give me a realistic, unfiltered breakdown of what it’s actually like to live with someone struggling with schizophrenia. I want the unvarnished truth about how heavy that weight really is. 😛

David Vaughn75 said:Look, I'm not "difficult"... 🥳 except maybe when it comes to my actual weight.🤣

I'd say I'm more middleweight 🥳

But honestly, wouldn't someone want to potužiti about how exhausting it is to deal with a total schizo? 🥳

David Vaughn75 said:The guy beat schizophrenia, sure, but he's still stuck on the meds. 🙄

daaa...🙄
By the way, if anyone here actually has the guts—maybe you’re healthy and living with someone struggling with schizophrenia, or perhaps there's a family member in that boat—to speak up, tell us just how much of a mental grind it really is for everyone involved.🍿

It just crossed my mind that I might have unintentionally offended someone here with my previous post; I’ve been stuck in the headspace of this article for two days now, and I’m feeling a bit guilty about it.

http://www.nytimes.com/article/economic-trends-analysis/271679/

I mean, honestly, where is the silver lining in any of this? 🤔 🤷☕

I took a deep dive into Wikipedia, and honestly, it’s all a bit of a blur to me because I deal with a messy mix of schizophrenia and bipolar symptoms—essentially schizoaffective disorder—though there are days when it feels like pure schizophrenia.
In my experience, there isn't really a better way forward than forcing yourself into every possible activity you can find; staying busy is pretty much the only thing that actually helps.
The whole situation is incredibly convoluted since antipsychotics don't touch the negative symptoms, then you layer an antidepressant on top of that, and you're left with the realization that if you just sit around smoking, you aren't getting anywhere—it has to be constant motion.
And as for this idea that being someone with schizophrenia makes me some kind of societal outcast, I'm not sure if any antidepressant will ever fix that reality; they used to help, but lately, they haven't done a thing.

Thanks for the heads-up 👍 .
It’s definitely worth looking into. It is honestly fascinating how one specific medication can be a total lifesaver for one person struggling with schizophrenia, yet for someone else, that exact same prescription is either completely useless or even makes things worse. It’s much like how a certain engine might run flawlessly in a Ford but stalls out immediately if you try to drop it into a Chevy.

Jessica Fowler4 said:http://www.acnp.org/g4/gn401000116/ch114.html

Could you give me a quick rundown of what this research is actually getting at? I can see you have a pretty solid handle on brain chemistry, but honestly, I feel like I could read this thing ten times over and still miss the forest for the trees.☕

Cleaned up 🥳

So, what exactly did you say to her that made her totally freeze you out? 😕 I mean, obviously, it’s your business if you want to keep it quiet.
It just seems like there's this massive weight of expectation placed on your shoulders. 🤷☕

David Vaughn75 said:we really went overboard with the 🙂

🙂 let's stick to the topic at hand😵

David Vaughn75 said:you just let everyone else's opinion get under your skin too much

honestly, I gave up a long time ago on trying to make sense of how backwards this whole society is 🥳

🙂 Sure, I get that, but I don't think anyone outside of America has any more empathy for people struggling with mental health than we do; at least, that's my take on it.

And then there’s the way they write about the experience—reading these descriptions of how someone with schizophrenia feels when they're spiraling, it’s like they're describing life on a completely different planet. 😂😕

So, it's all about being in an alien, unfamiliar environment, right? Well, that's exactly how it works even during remission; a hallucination isn't just some isolated event disconnected from reality. 😂☕

David Vaughn75 said:Definitely the second one.

When everyone around you is in a foul mood, it drags you right down into the gutter with them.

I was just curious 😬 if it’s actually possible for us to have feelings at all 😈

you know, like that total emotional numbness you see in people with schizophrenia or whatever.🥳

David Vaughn75 said:Exactly. It’s like, sure, you can try to distance yourself, but when everyone around you is absolutely screwed, you're gonna feel the burn too.🙂

I can’t decide which scenario feels more bleak: whether there’s absolutely no hope left for us when you find yourself stuck in a room full of people acting like total clowns, or if the sheer weight of constant negativity from everyone around you just starts to erode your sanity. It’s a toss-up between being surrounded by pure, unadulterated stupidity and simply being drained by a relentless wave of pessimism.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/04/02/he...brain-research

Can someone please dig up some actual substance 🙂 🙂 instead of just scrolling through this

My apologies, I haven't been keeping up with the news 😉☕

David Vaughn75 said:Look, sure, a clean, organized life is supposed to be the "cure," but how is that even possible when you've got millions of people out of work and everyone else is drowning in massive mortgage debt just to keep a roof over their heads? It's a joke—nothing actually helps. 😢

Look, the state of society isn't really our responsibility, but when the economy hits the fan, we unfortunately end up being part of the wreckage too. 😬

Robin Lopez2 said:Fair point, you're right. But look, someone with high blood pressure takes medication, someone with diabetes uses insulin, and so on. We just got a bad hand dealt to us. The bottom line is being able to function normally. If it weren't for effective medicine, everyone would be stuck in an asylum forever.

Right, because clearly, we’d all just be chained to stone walls like people were 300 years ago. I get it.

🤦I keep running into people who claim they've "healed" themselves while still popping daily meds.

What can I say? Even my antidepressants barely touch the surface, yet this condition is chronic and stays with me for good. 🙂

Of course you realize the gravity of things once the fog finally lifts.
Once the hallucinations subside, you’re left staring at a reality that feels fundamentally altered.

From where I’m sitting, the trajectory looks like this: you lose your grip, end up in a psychiatric ward, crawl back home, and spend your days swallowing a mountain of pills until, eventually, you taper down and stabilize. Your perception settles, and the hallucinations stop.

But here’s the kicker—life is never going to feel quite the same again, regardless of how long you stay in remission.

At that point, you just have to accept that most people are going to carry certain prejudices against those they label as "crazy." Fair enough.

Then there's the medication cycle: you have to take an antipsychotic that often triggers depression, which then necessitates an antidepressant... It's a total circus. 🙂☕