Schizophrenia - General Discussion

Robin Lopez2 said:What do you mean you don't get it? You can be hit by both drugs and schizophrenia at once.

If being 56 makes me immature, fine. But regarding the psychosis, I've been in stable remission for about 7 years now.

I must say, I find myself somewhat perplexed—truly at a loss, really—as to how you can possibly claim to be such a lightning bolt of intellect when you’ve been sitting in remission for seven years now. It’s a bit of a mathematical conundrum, isn't it? One would think that after seven years of quietude—seven long, dormant years!—that spark might have dimmed just a touch, much like those old neon signs you see flickering over some dusty roadside diner in Nebraska. But no, here you are, still insisting on this sudden burst of brilliance. It defies all logic.

So, I’m immature—fine. Let's just say that if being "mature" means conforming to every tedious, soul-crushing social expectation laid out by the powers that be, then I guess I’ve failed the test. Honestly? I'll take it. There is something profoundly exhausting about the constant pressure to act some kind of polished, buttoned-up version of oneself—you know, like those corporate drones over at Goldman Sachs who wouldn't know a spontaneous thought if it hit them in the face. I’ve spent far too many years trying to play the game, trying to fit into that rigid little box society builds for us, and frankly, it’s left me feeling more drained than a long-haul trucker on a cross-country run through the Mojave. If my refusal to grow up in the way they demand makes me "immature," then fine—call me what you want. I'd rather keep my wits and my sense of self than become another hollowed-out shell of a person just to satisfy some arbitrary standard of adulthood. It’s all quite ridiculous, really.

Most people out there seem to think we’re just a bunch of lunatics—completely unhinged, really—so I suppose, every once in a while, I find myself compelled to strike back.
Countering—well, that’s usually my territory, my own business entirely—but I suppose I can afford to step out of my lane and meddle just this once.

Larry Lewis said:I must say, I find myself somewhat perplexed—truly at a loss, really—as to how you can possibly claim to be such a lightning bolt of intellect when you’ve been sitting in remission for seven years now. It’s a bit of a mathematical conundrum, isn't it? One would think that after seven years of quietude—seven long, dormant years!—that spark might have dimmed just a touch, much like those old neon signs you see flickering over some dusty roadside diner in Nebraska. But no, here you are, still insisting on this sudden burst of brilliance. It defies all logic.

So, I’m immature—fine. Let's just say that if being "mature" means conforming to every tedious, soul-crushing social expectation laid out by the powers that be, then I guess I’ve failed the test. Honestly? I'll take it. There is something profoundly exhausting about the constant pressure to act some kind of polished, buttoned-up version of oneself—you know, like those corporate drones over at Goldman Sachs who wouldn't know a spontaneous thought if it hit them in the face. I’ve spent far too many years trying to play the game, trying to fit into that rigid little box society builds for us, and frankly, it’s left me feeling more drained than a long-haul trucker on a cross-country run through the Mojave. If my refusal to grow up in the way they demand makes me "immature," then fine—call me what you want. I'd rather keep my wits and my sense of self than become another hollowed-out shell of a person just to satisfy some arbitrary standard of adulthood. It’s all quite ridiculous, really.

Most people out there seem to think we’re just a bunch of lunatics—completely unhinged, really—so I suppose, every once in a while, I find myself compelled to strike back.
Countering—well, that’s usually my territory, my own business entirely—but I suppose I can afford to step out of my lane and meddle just this once.

A genius is a genius, once and for all.😉

Robin Lopez2 said:A genius is a genius, once and for all.😉

Quite the bit of wisdom for a fifty-six-year-old... 👍

Laura Castillo6 said:Sounds like you're just scared🙂.

Total coward🙂.

What's the worry? Afraid she's gonna hit you with some kind of double diagnosis?

As for that energy talk—look, people might roll their eyes, but I actually had this woman send "healing vibes" my way over the phone once. Fast forward twenty-four hours and I ended up in a psych ward with a formal diagnosis. Pretty wild how things work out, right?😁.

I spent a year stuck in bed, sleeping 15-20 hours a day, just bouncing from doctor to doctor.
Curiosity killed the cat.

A few girls sent me so much "positive energy" my brain actually short-circuited 😉

Hey there!

I was wondering if anyone might be able to help me out—really, any kind of advice would be so appreciated right now.
Basically, I’m reaching out because of a family member—my mom—and she hasn't been doing well for quite some time. I just can't seem to find a way to get through to her.

At first, she went through this really deep depressive phase, which I guess was triggered by menopause. It was just work, home, work, home... except at home, she’d mostly just sleep and eat. She stopped communicating with anyone and didn't show any interest in talking to us. During that stretch, she put on quite a bit of weight. Back when I was away at college, I’d come home for the weekends only to find total chaos. That depressive state lasted a while, and even though I begged my dad to step up or asked my brothers to help, nothing really seemed to change.

After a while, I finished my degree and moved back home, and things finally seemed to be settling down—until, out of nowhere, her behavior took a complete turn. Suddenly, she was full of euphoria—going out constantly, shopping, meeting friends for coffee, being somewhere every single day. It was such a shock, going from someone who stayed in bed for days and barely cared about hygiene to someone who was never home.

Then came the point where she started attacking me over things that honestly made zero sense. It started with stories that might have had a grain of truth, but eventually, it turned into stuff that was completely disconnected from reality. Her friends all drifted away because she would overwhelm them with these nonsensical outbursts. Even the extended family—mostly her sister and brother—noticed that something was seriously wrong. This led to her either walking for miles with her MP3 player glued to her ears, or cooking dinner with the music blasting, or pacing the balcony, or even sleeping with the headphones on.

In her mind, she thinks everyone is watching her and talking about her—and I quote, "all over the US"—that people are posting shameful things about her online. She even woke up my little brother at 2:00 AM just to make him turn on his computer so she could hunt for what people were saying about her. If you actually ask her *who* is writing these things, she can't even give you an answer.

The whole situation is becoming unbearable for me. Every attempt I make to suggest seeing a doctor, or telling her she isn't okay and needs to talk to someone, just hits a brick wall. And it's not just me; no one in the immediate or extended family can get through. Every word I say gets twisted or misinterpreted by her.

Hoping I could somehow break this stalemate, I went to see a private psychologist and shared all the details. His take was that she was suffering from severe depression fueled by life dissatisfaction. A few months have passed since that visit, and recently, another private psychologist told me that this looks more like schizophrenic psychosis and that we need to get her medical help urgently.

Her condition comes in waves—one day she's fine, two days she's not, then maybe two good days, then a bad one, then maybe a week of being okay before sliding back again.

I should probably mention that my grandmother—her mother—has dealt with similar issues and has been on medication for years.

So, I'm really looking for some guidance. How do you reach someone who is in this kind of state? Any advice at all would mean the world. Thanks so much.

Kyle Rodriguez said:Hey there!

I was wondering if anyone might be able to help me out—really, any kind of advice would be so appreciated right now.
Basically, I’m reaching out because of a family member—my mom—and she hasn't been doing well for quite some time. I just can't seem to find a way to get through to her.

At first, she went through this really deep depressive phase, which I guess was triggered by menopause. It was just work, home, work, home... except at home, she’d mostly just sleep and eat. She stopped communicating with anyone and didn't show any interest in talking to us. During that stretch, she put on quite a bit of weight. Back when I was away at college, I’d come home for the weekends only to find total chaos. That depressive state lasted a while, and even though I begged my dad to step up or asked my brothers to help, nothing really seemed to change.

After a while, I finished my degree and moved back home, and things finally seemed to be settling down—until, out of nowhere, her behavior took a complete turn. Suddenly, she was full of euphoria—going out constantly, shopping, meeting friends for coffee, being somewhere every single day. It was such a shock, going from someone who stayed in bed for days and barely cared about hygiene to someone who was never home.

Then came the point where she started attacking me over things that honestly made zero sense. It started with stories that might have had a grain of truth, but eventually, it turned into stuff that was completely disconnected from reality. Her friends all drifted away because she would overwhelm them with these nonsensical outbursts. Even the extended family—mostly her sister and brother—noticed that something was seriously wrong. This led to her either walking for miles with her MP3 player glued to her ears, or cooking dinner with the music blasting, or pacing the balcony, or even sleeping with the headphones on.

In her mind, she thinks everyone is watching her and talking about her—and I quote, "all over the US"—that people are posting shameful things about her online. She even woke up my little brother at 2:00 AM just to make him turn on his computer so she could hunt for what people were saying about her. If you actually ask her *who* is writing these things, she can't even give you an answer.

The whole situation is becoming unbearable for me. Every attempt I make to suggest seeing a doctor, or telling her she isn't okay and needs to talk to someone, just hits a brick wall. And it's not just me; no one in the immediate or extended family can get through. Every word I say gets twisted or misinterpreted by her.

Hoping I could somehow break this stalemate, I went to see a private psychologist and shared all the details. His take was that she was suffering from severe depression fueled by life dissatisfaction. A few months have passed since that visit, and recently, another private psychologist told me that this looks more like schizophrenic psychosis and that we need to get her medical help urgently.

Her condition comes in waves—one day she's fine, two days she's not, then maybe two good days, then a bad one, then maybe a week of being okay before sliding back again.

I should probably mention that my grandmother—her mother—has dealt with similar issues and has been on medication for years.

So, I'm really looking for some guidance. How do you reach someone who is in this kind of state? Any advice at all would mean the world. Thanks so much.

My therapist would call that a roller coaster. Get her some professional help!

How? There is absolutely no way she'll just go on her own... she refuses to even listen.
I have been pleading with her to go for such a long time now, but she just won't budge. I've tried being gentle about it—trying to reason with her through calm conversation—but that didn't work at all. And when the soft approach failed, things started escalating into shouting matches because, honestly, I just don't know how to handle the whole situation anymore. Everyone in the house has tried sitting her down to explain that nobody wants anything bad to happen to her—we really just want to help—but it’s been completely useless... her response is always the exact same: "You're all just trying to lock me up in a psych ward!" She insists she isn't crazy, and she tells us all that one day, we'll see that she was right about everything.

Kyle Rodriguez said:How? There is absolutely no way she'll just go on her own... she refuses to even listen.
I have been pleading with her to go for such a long time now, but she just won't budge. I've tried being gentle about it—trying to reason with her through calm conversation—but that didn't work at all. And when the soft approach failed, things started escalating into shouting matches because, honestly, I just don't know how to handle the whole situation anymore. Everyone in the house has tried sitting her down to explain that nobody wants anything bad to happen to her—we really just want to help—but it’s been completely useless... her response is always the exact same: "You're all just trying to lock me up in a psych ward!" She insists she isn't crazy, and she tells us all that one day, we'll see that she was right about everything.

In my opinion, the only real option left is to call 911 and convince the responders that
your mother is a danger to herself. We had to pull that exact move once with my late aunt
and it actually worked—even though she wasn't physically hurting herself or anyone else, she was just in a really dark place.
The catch, of course, is that it helps if she has a history of being hospitalized before.

Kyle Rodriguez said:How? There is absolutely no way she'll just go on her own... she refuses to even listen.
I have been pleading with her to go for such a long time now, but she just won't budge. I've tried being gentle about it—trying to reason with her through calm conversation—but that didn't work at all. And when the soft approach failed, things started escalating into shouting matches because, honestly, I just don't know how to handle the whole situation anymore. Everyone in the house has tried sitting her down to explain that nobody wants anything bad to happen to her—we really just want to help—but it’s been completely useless... her response is always the exact same: "You're all just trying to lock me up in a psych ward!" She insists she isn't crazy, and she tells us all that one day, we'll see that she was right about everything.

The second she messes up, call 911. Just do it.
Look, I was exactly where she is—totally closed off to the idea of psychiatric help—but honestly? I’m glad I ended up in the hospital, because that stay is the reason I'm doing okay now. The longer you let a psychosis run wild without treatment, the more it wrecks your brain. Without meds, things don't just "get better" on their own; they spiral. Period.

Don't carry any guilt about helping her get admitted if she fights it. You aren't acting against her, you're acting for her.

Think about it this way—if you have an addict, do you give them heroin just to make them happy in the moment, or do you try to actually save their life?

David Vaughn75 said:The second she messes up, call 911. Just do it.
Look, I was exactly where she is—totally closed off to the idea of psychiatric help—but honestly? I’m glad I ended up in the hospital, because that stay is the reason I'm doing okay now. The longer you let a psychosis run wild without treatment, the more it wrecks your brain. Without meds, things don't just "get better" on their own; they spiral. Period.

Don't carry any guilt about helping her get admitted if she fights it. You aren't acting against her, you're acting for her.

Think about it this way—if you have an addict, do you give them heroin just to make them happy in the moment, or do you try to actually save their life?

Teddy, you hit the nail on the head with everything you said, but why on earth should they wait for her to actually cause real damage? Instead,
they could just smash an old TV or something similar and call emergency services, claiming
it was her mother who did it. Sorry for quoting you, but since her mom's
psychosis is actively wrecking her brain at this very moment, things are only going to get worse.

I even bolded that part just so it sinks in—because it really is that serious.

Larry Lewis said:Teddy, you hit the nail on the head with everything you said, but why on earth should they wait for her to actually cause real damage? Instead,
they could just smash an old TV or something similar and call emergency services, claiming
it was her mother who did it. Sorry for quoting you, but since her mom's
psychosis is actively wrecking her brain at this very moment, things are only going to get worse.

I even bolded that part just so it sinks in—because it really is that serious.

But damn, I guess we shouldn't play dirty.

Though, honestly, she doesn't even need to break anything—just making a massive scene would be enough to get flagged for disturbing the peace.

David Vaughn75 said:But damn, I guess we shouldn't play dirty.

Though, honestly, she doesn't even need to break anything—just making a massive scene would be enough to get flagged for disturbing the peace.

Now, I find myself quite perplexed—truly, deeply baffled—as to how you could possibly characterize my suggestion as "dirty play." If we are going to discuss ethics, let us at least be consistent about them! It’s all very tiresome, really—this constant tendency to jump to conclusions without actually parsing the logic of what was said. I recall a similar situation back when I was working in Chicago—years ago, mind you—where a colleague tried to claim I was undermining the department just because I pointed out a blatant error in the quarterly projections. It wasn't sabotage; it was simply... accuracy. And yet, I was treated like a pariah for a week. So, please, don't pull that same dramatic stunt with me. If my proposal follows the established rules of the game, then calling it "dirty" is nothing more than a desperate attempt to deflect from the actual merits of the idea.
It’s all about expediting the process—making it just a little bit easier, a little more seamless, to get that poor woman admitted to the hospital.

Honestly, the sheer lack of decorum in this neighborhood lately is just... it’s exhausting. You can't even sit on your own porch without being blasted by people tearing through the streets—just constant engines revving and sirens blaring like they're in some frantic action movie. And don't even get me started on the verbal abuse; I’ve seen people leaning out of their car windows just to hurl insults at passersby. It’s absolutely disgraceful—truly, a complete breakdown of basic civility.
Passersby...? Where on earth do you live? You must be living in Beverly Hills, dear Medo. 😉

Larry Lewis I can't even begin to tell you how much I hate seeing this kind of nonsense pop up on my feed—it’s like everyone suddenly decided to lose their minds at once. Honestly, I’ve been around long enough to see these trends come and go, but this one? It’s just exhausting. You see people acting like they’ve discovered some groundbreaking truth when, in reality, they’re just recycling the same tired tropes we’ve been hearing since the nineties. It makes me want to throw my phone into the nearest Hudson River and just walk away from the whole mess. Anyway, here's what that guy was rambling about:
Now you’re really losing me—how on earth are you calling my suggestion "dirty play"? Give me a break.
It’s just gonna be way easier to get that poor woman admitted to the hospital if they play it this way—just a quick, painless way to get her through the door and processed.

Look, if you play it that way, all you're doing is basically poking the bear—you’re just gonna end up making her absolutely livid at you instead of actually focusing on getting her the help she needs. It’s counterproductive as hell.

Man, you wouldn't believe the absolute circus going on in my neighborhood right now—just constant chaos, sirens blaring everywhere, and people acting like total maniacs. It’s getting ridiculous; I’ve even had people leaning out of their cars just to hurl insults at anyone walking by. Honestly, the whole vibe is just completely trashed lately.
Passersby... seriously, where do you even live? You're living in Beverly Hills, aren't you, Medo? 😉

Look, proving any of this stuff is a total nightmare—it’s almost impossible to pin down—but psychiatry? Man, that’s a whole different beast. It’s wild how they don't even bother looking for hard evidence; they just walk in there, drop an opinion, and suddenly it's gospel. No receipts, no data, just "this is what I think." It’s honestly kind of insane. 😁

Kyle Rodriguez said:How? There is absolutely no way she'll just go on her own... she refuses to even listen.
I have been pleading with her to go for such a long time now, but she just won't budge. I've tried being gentle about it—trying to reason with her through calm conversation—but that didn't work at all. And when the soft approach failed, things started escalating into shouting matches because, honestly, I just don't know how to handle the whole situation anymore. Everyone in the house has tried sitting her down to explain that nobody wants anything bad to happen to her—we really just want to help—but it’s been completely useless... her response is always the exact same: "You're all just trying to lock me up in a psych ward!" She insists she isn't crazy, and she tells us all that one day, we'll see that she was right about everything.

Maybe try changing how you handle it. Stop arguing when she claims people are eavesdropping or gossiping about her. Just say, "I don't think they're talking about you," and move on. At least try to change the subject. Try getting her out for a walk or a trip to the theater... find out what actually makes her happy and lean into that. Maybe then, eventually, she'll be open to seeing a doctor.

The suggestions about smashing TVs or pinning everything on her just to force a hospitalization sound like a total horror movie to me.

David Vaughn75 said:But damn, I guess we shouldn't play dirty.

Though, honestly, she doesn't even need to break anything—just making a massive scene would be enough to get flagged for disturbing the peace.

Especially nowadays, given that we all carry smartphones, shouldn't one record her outbursts and send the footage straight to the emergency responders when they arrive?

In such a situation, she might feel a burning desire for vengeance if people play dirty. She might even—once she starts feeling slightly better—refuse her medication entirely, choosing instead to live in a state of semi-psychosis rather than being "drugged up" on pills.

Morgan Newman7 said:Maybe try changing how you handle it. Stop arguing when she claims people are eavesdropping or gossiping about her. Just say, "I don't think they're talking about you," and move on. At least try to change the subject. Try getting her out for a walk or a trip to the theater... find out what actually makes her happy and lean into that. Maybe then, eventually, she'll be open to seeing a doctor.

The suggestions about smashing TVs or pinning everything on her just to force a hospitalization sound like a total horror movie to me.

Or, heaven forbid, what if they tried convincing her she's perfectly fine until she actually starts believing it herself and gets better?☕

I don't know about you all, but I’ve been sitting here staring at my screen—wondering if the sheer absurdity of modern life is finally catching up to me—and I can't help but feel that we are drifting further away from any semblance of common sense. It’s like we’re all just circling a drain, isn't it? I was walking down toward a local Starbucks this morning—just trying to get a decent caffeine fix before the day truly descends into chaos—and I couldn't help but notice how disconnected everything feels. We talk, we post, we shout into the digital void, yet there’s this pervasive, nagging sense of... well, let's call it existential fatigue. Everything feels performative lately. Even the small things. I remember back in the late nineties—before everything became an endless stream of notifications and curated perfection—things felt a bit more grounded. Or maybe I'm just getting old and cynical—which, granted, is my default setting—but there's a real weight to the current atmosphere. It’s exhausting, frankly. Just exhausting. kaže:
Especially now that we’re all walking around with these supercomputers in our pockets—smartphones, I mean—it feels like a massive oversight not to be recording everything. Honestly, if someone starts losing their mind and screaming, you ought to just pull out your phone, hit record, and have that footage ready to blast straight to the 911 dispatchers the second you call for help. It’s about documentation, really—something we seem to be losing touch with in this chaotic age—and having that raw audio playing in an ambulance or at an ER entrance could change the whole dynamic of a crisis.

Look, here’s the reality of the situation—she can absolutely harbor this deep-seated desire for vengeance if she feels like the deck is being stacked against her through some dirty tactics. It’s a volatile cycle. And even when things start to stabilize—even when she’s feeling somewhat better—there’s this stubborn, almost irrational defiance where she might just refuse her medication altogether. She’d rather drift through a state of semi-psychosis—which sounds terrifying, I know—than deal with the indignity of feeling "drugged up" or chemically suppressed by a handful of pills. It’s that classic struggle for autonomy versus stability, and frankly, it's exhausting to witness.

I’ve gone and done it—I have officially checked myself into the psych ward during what I can only describe as a full-blown, top-tier mental breakdown. Honestly, what do you even say to that? It’s one thing to lose your grip for a second, but to actually pull the trigger on self-hospitalization... well, it takes a certain kind of grim resolve, doesn't it? I’m sitting here looking at the walls, wondering if I've finally hit the bottom of the barrel—or perhaps just reached the end of my tether—and frankly, I’m not sure if I should be proud of the decisiveness or terrified of the reality. What's your take on a move like that?

What kind of revenge are you even dreaming up? Honestly—and I say this with all the weariness of a man who has seen too many bad decisions play out in real time—you’re acting paranoid as hell. Just stop. It’s getting ridiculous. If you keep spiraling like this, you're going to drive her straight out the door—and frankly, at this point, I wouldn't blame her one bit.
The hospital has done its part—they’ve treated her well enough that she’ll be able to find her rhythm again—but let's be honest, recovery is rarely a straight line, is it? It takes more than just a clean bill of health from some specialist in Chicago to get someone back to their former self... it's about finding that frequency again.

I must say—and I say this with a certain degree of weary skepticism regarding modern trends—that this whole "semi-psychotic" angle actually appeals to me. There is something... visceral about it. It lacks that polished, sanitized veneer you see in most mainstream discourse these days, which, frankly, is exhausting. 🙂

Honestly, some people are out here living in a total delusion—thinking they're being tracked, wiretapped, or even having their thoughts read. It’s like they genuinely believe they’re some kind of messianic figure or Napoleon Bonaparte, convinced there's this massive conspiracy specifically designed to screw them over.

To me, this just screams chronic depression mixed with some serious personality disorder stuff.

A close friend of mine was recently diagnosed with schizophrenia. He’s on some kind of long-acting medication—you know, the stuff you take once every few months—but honestly? It feels like it’s making things worse. His negative traits are just spiraling, becoming more intense by the day, and I’ve reached a point where I simply can't carry him anymore. Beyond the standard symptoms, he’s become a pathological liar who loves to exaggerate everything. In his own words, he actually enjoys messing with people and driving them crazy with these elaborate, fake stories. He’s completely obsessed with other people's business, constantly projecting his own issues onto everyone else and accusing others of doing exactly what he’s doing. I’ve realized I’m getting sucked into all that drama too, and as much as I desperately want him to get better, I just can't do it anymore. I don't *want* to help. People are starting to distance themselves from him, and frankly, I see why.
Does anyone else here have a friend or family member living with schizophrenia? How on earth do you deal with them?
I really did have the best intentions, but I'm failing, and sometimes... I'll be honest, I'm actually afraid of him.
When he isn't in one of these episodes, he’s actually a brilliant guy. He’s perceptive, easy to talk to, and an incredibly talented artist. But these phases are happening more frequently now, and his good qualities are being drowned out by the chaos.