In Sanity

Diary of Perculiar Events

[sweetschizo-deactivated20190808]

Tips from a schizophrenic dude I talked to today who got better

Don’t make schizophrenia your whole identity. Schizophrenia is something that happens to you, not something you are. If you start defining yourself out from symptoms of schizophrenia, you’ll become even more sick.

So what if you got so sick that you lost your sense of self, hobbies and everything that used to define you - that means you have a clean slate. Try new hobbies, do new things, try a lot of stuff. Don’t focus on who you used to be, focus on figuring out who you can become.

If something raises your quality of life a little, do it. No matter how unnecessary, silly, irrelevant or stupid it might seem. Everything that raises your quality of life a little is worth investing in.

You might romanticise who you were before you were sick, but we all evolve as we age and nobody are the same place at 15 and 20. Nobody ends up where they expected they’d end up as 15 year olds. Not even neurotypicals.

You can get a good life even if you can’t take the standard route. I never went to high school either and today I have a job that I love and a life I enjoy. Don’t kid yourself into thinking that there’s only one way to have a good life.

Celebrate little victories. For me, the success criteria for a good day was that I got out of bed and brushed my teeth for several years. Don’t compare yourself to other people, if brushing your teeth is a struggle for you, it’s worth being proud of.

You can retrain your brain. I wasn’t able to read books for years, last year I read 9. Cognitive tests gives a picture of where you are right now, not where you’ll be in a couple years.

Fuck negative predictions from doctors. I have a very nice paper at home signed by a psychiatrist that states that I’ll never be able to do any kind of work. Now I have a very nice job.

I still have schizophrenia and I have never felt better about myself and my life than I do now. A full recovery isn’t the only way to get a good life.

Don’t let the stigma and the statistics and the negative stories get you down. You’re not a lost cause and you will get better.

[redchesh-blog]

When that down swing of bipolar hits you like a truck.. fuck this feeling! fuck these thoughts!

[lavenderwaterwitch]

Stoner Witch Tip 🔮

When burning your bowl visualize you burning away any negativity from the day, when blowing out your bowl visualize that negativity leaving your body and surrounding area 💚🍁💨 || You can also try adding some herbs to your bowl as well like Lavender, Rose petals (as long as it’s safe to consume) ~ I find this really helps me if my Anxiety is pretty active (deep breathing exercises)

[soggywarmpockets]

I just found a back stitch alphabet where tiny cats in various poses make up the letters and I don’t think I’m ever going to use another font for the rest of my life.

[orionlovescats]

Tell me more

[soggywarmpockets]

[witchy-woman]

@stonesandsigils soooooooo

[ephemeral-aprxcity-deactivated2]

EA: okay but using these to write a sigil to protect animal friends/familiars

[mrmrswoodman]

Practice Safe Sex. Tie your partner down to the bed so they don't fall off.

[redchesh-blog]

I can't decide between staying in bed crying, going to see my girlfriend, going to see my boyfriend, or make $160 for an hour of driving

[redchesh-blog]

I don’t know what my sexual preference is anymore

I have always been open about being a bisexual sadomasochist who enjoys almost any kink, but I don’t know anymore. I love my boyfriend and girlfriend (polyamory/open relationship) I’m split between being a sub or a dom. I have wanted to be a sub for awhile but every person I’ve been with has been too vanilla for me to have it work.  My boyfriend is okay with me being a sub to him but my girlfriend likes me being her dom. And to make it more complicated my boyfriend wants to be our girlfriend’s only dom, even though it has been a natural role I fill without thinking. I feel like I’m sexual flustered and confused on what I actually want. My life has been a cluster fuck of overthinking everything before this relationship(s) and was told that my romantic life would be too complicated to be able to over think it. So far yeah, I can only go “fuck it” and move on for my worries because it is too complicated for me to understand let alone explain.

[redchesh-blog]

Love Triangle Open Relationship

Me: “Imma fuck your bitch.” Him: “LOL same.” Her: “Please do.”

[redchesh-blog]

I can’t tell if its the insecurities, the shyness, the delusions, or the self awareness that is keeping from talking to the person I want to. I wish I could get to know her but I’m too scared that I will ruin thing which leads back to a self fulfilling prophecy of messing things up.

[hyosokas-blog]

Helping those you care about with Schizophrenia

I hate those “how to deal with ____” types of things, but as a schizophrenic who has faced countless misunderstanding and dehumanization, I feel the need to make this post.

How to support someone close to you who has schizophrenia

First, it is important to understand not every schizophrenic is the same. Not all of us hallucinate, not all of us have delusions, so it is important to understand your friend’s symptoms particularly. But please, if your friend experiences paranoia or distrust, do not force them to tell you their symptoms especially in those cases. Usually asking paranoid-types if we have paranoia is fine, or otherwise very obvious. 

You must be patient, and allow us to open up to you, but do not infantilize us. We are very human, and we are very much the age we are. We are not children, and do not need to be coddled–and in my case (Paranoid-type), it causes extreme distrust and paranoia to do so.

These are just a few symptoms that I decided to write about. There are a wide variety of symptoms that differ from one person to the next.

Symptoms of Schizophrenia + How to Help

Hallucinations

Auditory, visual, sensory, sometimes even smell–but not everyone experiences hallucinations.

Helping: Do not hold your friend down unless they have told you before to do so. In auditory cases, it is important to speak softly and try to divert our attention from what is happening. Ask if you could play some music, or bring us out of the room/area immediately if possible. In visual cases, be sure to speak clearly and softly aswell. Maybe even asking what we could be seeing, and offering to get rid of it in superficial ways could help. Do not press on the “its not real” “you’re just seeing things”. We know that. Instead, say “what are you seeing/feeling/hearing” “what can i do to make it go away” Keep in mind though not all hallucinations are extreme, and it is always best to ask how you can help before doing anything.

Disorganized speech

People with schizophrenia tend to have trouble concentrating and keeping a line of thought. This could be from quickly switching topics that have no similariies, making up words, and repetition. I’ve even heard of some people rhyming words that have no correlation to their thoughts whatsoever.

Helping: The best thing to do is just to tell us if you’re confused. Just ask us to explain what we meant, and in time you’ll probably learn how the individual’s train of thought works enough to understand things easily. Another thing to do would be to help us in strengthening our vocabulary or word use. Writing stories is a great way to start.

Disorganized behavior

Decline in overall daily functioning

Helping: If needed, reminding your friend to eat, shower, brush their teeth, etc would be wonderful. In my case for example, I forget to eat, sometimes for days straight. Motivate your friend.

Inappropriate emotional responses

Helping: Explain yourself. Please, just explain yourself clearly. Ask us to explain ourselves. Listen from our side of the story. LISTEN. We likely don’t know why we’re acting the way we are. Help us figure out why. Listen.

Strange behaviors that seem to have no meaning

Helping: Ask us why we’re doing it with genuine curiosity. Sometimes it might be a tick, so it’s best to observe before asking, because ticks can be embarrassing to be pointed out. If we are making strange choices, just ask us what our line of thought it. 

Trouble with impulse control

Helping: Tell us not to, tell us the consequences. Impulses are things you feel that is needed to be done even though they are bad. Explain to us that we don’t need to do it. Come up with alternatives.

Disassociation

Help: Tell us we are real. The world we are in, is real. Answer any questions we ask you. Be patient. Say their name. Tell them who they are. Tell them who you are.  

[redchesh-blog]

If you are one of my friends in real life.. this stuff would help a lot..

[sacred-lands-deactivated2018032]

Hi lovelies! I’m happy to announce my latest giveaway! I’d like to thank all of my wonderful and supportive followers, you all mean so much to me!

Items: - two beautiful quartz crystal obelisks - one blue sage bundle - one citrine obelisk - one copy of wreck this journal - two amethyst wands - one silver & amethyst point pendant - one wooden incense holder - 20 sticks of Wild Berry Incense (10 tranquility, 10 sensuality) - one bag of your favorite candy :-)

Giveaway Rules: - you must be 18 years old or have parent/guardian permission - you must be following me - if you win, you must be willing to give me your address - no giveaway blogs - you can reblog as many times as you like, each one counts as an entry, but please be courteous and don’t spam your followers - likes can be used to bookmark this post, but not as an entry - giveaway ends on march 31st, 2017 - following my instagram @thenotoriousroz counts as two entries, please message me if you follow so i can keep a list! Thank you so much for entering, good luck! If you have any questions at all please message me.

[sacred-lands-deactivated2018032]

4 days left! You can earn extra entries by following my IG @thenotoriousroz. Giveaway ends at 11:59 PM March 31st CST and the winner is chosen using a random number generator. Please be patient while I add in all of the extra entries! I will message the winner and they will have 24 hours to reply to me with their address before another winner is chosen.

[redchesh-blog]

Mental Step

“There is no past, There is no future, There is nothing but this moment.

Regret of the past is irrelevant, Worries of the future are pointless, All that exists is this moment.”

This has broken me out of thought loops that used to destroy me for days on end. I was taught to push the bad thoughts out of my mind but this mantra has helped me be able to focus on the present more.

[redchesh-blog]

Poison’s Path Hedge Shaman

[redchesh-blog]

[calciumms]

[melodyhansen]

[redchesh-blog]

I don’t give a fuck about the visual hallucinations anymore. I care about the delusions and voices. I can see my friends get brutally murdered in front of me and be able to continue on with my day. But the delusions of my friends plotting against me, tolerating me, secretly hating me, and them thinking of me as more of a pet.. that is the shit that makes me not want to leave my bed when I wake up.