Ask A Schizophrenic Anything

reply to post by lisa2012


I've always been very spiritual. I don't put a name to my god, I just acknowledge that he's there, and smile when I believe I've seen him.

Religion's never sat well with me. I don't believe in following rules man has created in the name of one god.

If we are all equal in His eyes, he will give us the information we need to know when we need to know it.

When you were at school did you had good marks in general? How much you did at philosophy?


I want to share some of my experience with schizophrenia: I am a guy, and my mother is diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder(mood disorder + schizophrenia) and she was so bad that my father had to move away with me(1 or 2 year old me). I never go to a mental doctor, but i know now by self investigation on internet that i had grave OCD in teenage years(13-16). I thought in the time that was too much time at computer that caused that(stress), and guess what, i start to get discipline and i was getting a lot better but later i camback to stress... then after OCD(16-19), i start to be paranoid and with thoughts of being watched by people around me, and disorganized speech, lost of concentration, difficult on making easy decisions, i hardly could have a decent talk to somebody... and i was thinking about my mother thinking:"oh no... maybe she passed me the illness". Now Im 20 years old, and im getting back to normal now, I have no OCD and getting better and better on schizophrenia/schizoaffective symptoms. I think it was a phase of my brain development that triggered that illnesses on me and stress played a major rule!! I discovered stress triggers/make much worse this illness on me because i have that tendences, but happly im getting naturally lot better and almost normal . thank god.

Now what i think about meds. Personally i would never take any meds because of it side effects, they are horrible and plus... they can damage your brain in long term, affecting your motor abilities. My mother is an example for example, she don't have technic to throw a tennis ball more than 3 meters away, difficult swimming, etc.... . But maybe this was the cause of the most strong meds she take some time ago when in crisis, because i hope light meds dont do so bad, i hope! . On other side, meds make much better schizophrenia symptoms... but imo, only if no way the hell out i would take that drugs. So my advice, always try to use natural methods to heal yourself, because meds can be dangerous... and very important, stay away from stress and lead a healthy life!

I just wanted to share . Sorry for disorganized text. Feel free to ask me questions. cheers

Wow, you're brave for starting this thread, imo
I'm glad you did though, it's definitely changed my understanding of people with this condition for the better. You seem more intelligent and lucid than a lot of people around here, actually!
Here are my questions... sorry if any have been covered already:
1. Does it have any effect on your ability to feel empathy?
2. Do you have any pets?
3. Do you paint, draw, take photos or play an instrument?

reply to post by Spiritfilled


I would rather not, for the time being.

Thank you for your post.

reply to post by lisa2012


I know the different effects.

Don't talk about them in the forums.

Originally posted by doorbell412

Originally posted by CleverNameHere
I know it seems a bit absurd; trust me, you don't know the half of it.

It all goes so deep, I'd rather not start on any particular part of how I became Schizophrenic.................

ATS attracts some real whack jobs these days....

Well, some of us aren't in denial anymore.

reply to post by sumgai


This is where some people may start or stop believing what I have to say.

1. December 21, 2008

2. I don't really eat on a schedule. When I'm hungry, I'll munch on fruits/veggies(I love veggie platters). For meals, it's very random, both what I eat and when I eat it. I try to focus on healthy things, though.

3. I don't take medication, and I haven't been prescribed medication.

4. I've been thinking about getting more into meditation. I can't see how it wouldn't help understand some things.

5. I'm decently active. I don't work out or anything, but I work full time, and I'm all over the place in the kitchen at work. Also taking college classes, so with walking between classes and then 34646 miles to my car, I get a decent bit of exercise done. I also keep up a 5 acre yard, cutting/weed-eating and whatnot. Sweating out impurities feels amazing.

6. There's something about everyone's eyes. I don't know how to describe it.

7. Yes.

8. When I was around 8, my brother threw a rock at a stop sign but it hit me square in the forehead. A couple stitches, but nothing major.

reply to post by nunya13


The world is all about perception. I could just as easily call everyone else "crazy" for not viewing the world the way I do. I just happen to be in the minority. As they say, majority rules.

reply to post by DaMod


Schizophrenia is one of the only mental illnesses where it's possible for the affected to witness themselves go crazy.

No, I haven't had my head checked. I'd rather not let doctors take out a part of my brain. You can never be sure whether there really is a tumor, or if you're on to something big and they want to make sure you can't access that information anymore.

Now I'm starting to sound paranoid. Hah.

reply to post by AlBeMet


Haha. I've already stated that I may or may not answer. You can ask anything you want. =P

Thank you for your post.

reply to post by platipus


Windows, because I grew up using it.

Second line.

Originally posted by enonymous99
Kind of different than me. My voices I physically hear things that are not there. Shouts, A distant radio, conversations I can not make out. I see people stanind in looking at me when no one is there. I constantly misunderstand people hearing a different conversation than what they are actually saying and can not read body language at all. I constantly think I can do things I can not like stopping my medications, working, or living on my own.

I'll neglect hygiene for days on end if not reminded and have next to no concept of time. I want to drink or use drugs just in order to shut my mind off.

I am paranoid but likewise I consistently get taken advantage of. It took me 18 years of legal and personal problems to even admit I had a problem because you do not even know you are having a psychotic reaction.

You know most people I talk to make no sense to me either. Mostly a lot of useless jibber jabber noise.

reply to post by CleverNameHere


Do you feel comfortable discussing the situation with peoples eyes in more detail? The more you post, the more it seems that there may be something going on here that's more than symptoms of illness. That is in no way saying that you aren't; it's just simply impossible to define the reality of another person.

reply to post by drsmooth23


I've actually written a message to myself on a piece of paper, stuck it in my pocket, and fallen asleep.

When I "woke up," it was all nonsense. It LOOKED like it probably meant something, but I couldn't make heads or tails of it.

reply to post by CleverNameHere


I wish you could tell me more about what this other plane of existence looks like, PM me if you like, I think I've been losing my mind lately. I've only seen strange things while I've hada sleep paralysis, and a UFO one time.

Also, what do you think about this 12 year old girl named January who's a schizophrenic and has many imaginary friends?

reply to post by Julie Washington


Other than strange beings I see every once in a while, they're usually just people. Sometimes they'll glitch: For instance, when my cousin opened my locked door and sat on my bed. When I saw him, he was opening the door. I blinked, and he was already sitting on my bed.

You can feel when the entities are there. It comes across as a "presence" that you can just.. feel. I'm not sure how to explain it.

I'd rather not go into detail on the guardian angel thing, yet.

reply to post by richierich


Thank you for your inspirational post. =P

I'm kidding, sorry for the sarcasm.

I've got a great psychiatrist, and I see him daily. As I've said, he's got the ability to throw me in an institution whenever he wants; he trusts me because I don't hold back anything, and he can see how much better I am after we've had a long talk.

Looks like my bloodline stops here.

I have a memory that goes way back. There are quite a few things from my past that I can see quite clearly. Why?

ADHD and OCD. Doctors thought I had tourettes as a kid, but it turned out to be the OCD giving me the slight twitches.

reply to post by LuFri


I'm a Pisces. I'm unsure of my blood type, I've never really paid attention to that, which concerns me now that I think about it. I'd never know if my blood was suddenly changed or not, haha.

It's been about a year since I've had blood taken. I think I'm O?

Thank you for your post.

reply to post by Electro38


I'm not going into the drugs. Mods don't like it when drugs are discussed.

I'm a male.

I've had romantic relationships, but they don't last long.