Schizophrenia: My parents are the only ones that know

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 28/02/2013 - 2:37pm

I had my first episode of schizophrenia at 22 years old when my grandmother died. At first I did not know what my illness was. It was a very good doctor who sat me down and told me to act like a diabetic and take injections for the rest of my life. I was heartbroken. I still have to accept that I have this illness as I find it is a horrible word and I am still facing stigma, side effects and confidence issues.

My parents supported me and wanted me to get better and lead my independent life again but my siblings never visited me in hospital and I missed their support.

My parents are the only people who know the details of my condition

My parents are the only people who know the details of my condition. I let them know when I have had my injection and how I feel with the side effects. I have good friends and colleagues around me but I never discuss my illness as I feel the stigma is still out there and I have lost childhood friends and lost confidence about making friends at home. This is something I have to get over and hope that opening up online will help my confidence. I also feel that I want to be known for my offerings and not for an illness.

My little sister is now aware of my illness. She was able to support her colleague's mother who had an episode while she was abroad. My sister was able to talk to her colleague and help her deal with the situation.

I hope I gain the support of friends

I am at a turning point at the start of 2013 and look forward to this year I hope all goes well and I gain the support of friends at home which I feel I need. I hope that the burden of the side effects lifts this year so I can carry on with life instead of writing off a couple of days every month.

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Comments

Very brave

Submitted by Rebecca on Fri, 01/03/2013 - 4:17pm

I was always an open minded person, but since suffering from my own mental health problem I am very proud of a certain trait that I have developed that allows me to totally non-judgemental towards others. I don't understand people who are - and I never will - but if someone like yourself were to tell me they had such an illness as schizophrenia I wouldn't so much as blink. Offer support if you needed it of course, but ultimately you're no less of a person them somebody a physical health problem. I think you're very brave to keep on the way you are, and quite frankly the friends you have lost due to this, however painful, are simply not worth your time. You are worth your weight in gold. Take care.

schizphrenia

Submitted by paul on Fri, 15/03/2013 - 11:04am

I was once on injections and the side effects were horrific so i asked to be put on tablets. They did so after a lot of persuaision. After stopping the jab i still suffered the side effects still for a few months further. Ito am a scizophrenic and there are many new drugs on the market to control this condition. To take these tablets leaves no side effects I openly tell people that i suffer from a mental illness and i seem to be accepted for it. Im not bothered about what anybody thinks of me because ive had this illness for a long time and i can see that stigma has reduced over the years Yea some people call me as to being off me head and thats really a warm hearted jesture because they smile whilst saying it. actually that statement makes me chuckle a bit. Anyway back to the medication issue when i was on injections i couldent sit down i was pacing up and down all day . I was shaking like a leaf due to parkinsons reaction. Let the doctors hear you because oral medication will improve your quality of life to no ends. I hope that this comment brings you hope for the future.GOOD LUCK

Thank you

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 15/03/2013 - 9:22pm

Thanks for letting me know about the medication. I hope to get my life sorted. I would just like to add that my colleagues found out about my illness and I was quite surprised how good some people were towards me.

side effects

Submitted by paul on Sat, 16/03/2013 - 2:34pm

Hi its paul again, concerening your side effects caused by depo injections. They are to somepeople an absolute nightmare myself included. In my experience when you ask a doctor to change the mode of medication you recieve some are reluctant and wont listen due to the thinking that the benifits out weigh the side effects But actually you have the upper hand in this request. They cant force you to have injections unless they place a section 62 in your hands. Then by law they can force you to have it. This is time consuming and has to be implemented by an independant second opinion doctor and is for psyciatric emergences usualy. Like us all you maybe on meds for years so welcome to the psyciatric club Best wishes and GOOD LUCK

Reply to Paul

Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 06/04/2013 - 7:06pm

Hello Paul, Thanks for your comments. It is early days but I saw a consultant through BUPA to hurry the process along, and he suggested that I take the tablet form (3 one a day) of Depo over Easter while I was off work and see how I react to it. One tablet was a weekly dose of the inj and it did bring on the side effects of vomiting and fatigue. I was then told if this happened to change to tablets of Risperidone. Half a tablet at night. Well it has worked wonders. I was due for my next injection on the Tues after Easter but did not go and started the new tablet on the Thursday evening while I waited for all the side effects from the weekend to clear. I am so happy. I hope this lasts I feel really good and feel I can make plans without worrying about dates when I have to write off a weekend every so often. I hope this makes sense. Thanks for the good wishes.

Thanks Rebecca

Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 23/04/2013 - 8:38pm

I have just had an argument with my sister as I originally said my parents are the only ones who really know about my condition. My sister did not tell me twice that she was in hospital with pneumonia and then an infection. She said in her argument that I am not well. I am fine, I am going to work where she has been signed off for another 3 weeks she has been off since March. It just shows the stigma I am up against with my own family.

please dont worry

Submitted by paul on Mon, 18/03/2013 - 11:44am

Hi its paul again. Please dont worry about your illness because there are millions of sufferers out there. Your not on your own in fact 1 in 4 peoples have mental health issues and with that statistic one could say that its now become the normal in society. The psyciatric wards are full to the brim with people from all walks of life, Over the years ive met proffecinal people manual workers and those who cant work due to being on heavy duty medication. So please dont worry its like having the mumps or measles for these you need anti biotics and the anti biotics we take are psyciatric pills to help a person recover Its best to take this medication untill the doctor says different to stop chances of a relapse .GOOD LUCK with kind regards.

Thanks

Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 27/03/2013 - 10:00pm

Thanks for sharing the story. I do have to point out that what the doctor told you is not true, it is not like diabetes and you do not have to be on medication for the rest of your life. In fact numerous studies have shown that people who are treated without psychiatric medication actually do better in the long term. You could ask your doctor what alternative treatments are out there. You don't have to live with the burden of the side effects for the rest of your life, you can recover without drugs if you have plenty of support and understanding people around you.

'Schizophrenia' is not a lifelong 'illness'

Submitted by Cheryl Prax on Wed, 27/03/2013 - 10:16pm

It is a myth that you need meds like insulin for diabetes. Psychiatrists have admitted that this is just an analogy and was only told to people to get them to take their 'meds'. If you don't believe that then research it on the web. No one should take these drugs for life. They are a short term solution for a very few people. You have been sadly misled.

Like insulin for diabetes

Submitted by john hoggett on Thu, 28/03/2013 - 11:22am

I am concerned that your Doctor told you that you needed to take these drugs for life and that they are like insulin for diabetes. Dr's often say this. It is an inaccurate analogy. In type 1 diabetes the pancreas stops producing insulin. Injecting insulin is substituting for something the body usually produces. The drugs you take are not found in the body. They slow down certain nerve impulses. Some people find this useful, some do not. A friend of mine has type 1 diabetes and a diagnosis of schizophrenia. He does not take drugs for schizophrenia despite being told to take them for the rest of his life. He got the social support he needed to resolve his problems. He still hears voices but they don't bother him very much. He is on the whole hopeful about his future. There is evidence that most people who do recover come off there medication. It is well researched by respected researcher, Martin Harrow. Your problems came on in your early 20's when your grandmother died. Often people's difficulties start in their late teens/early twenties when making a transition from childhood to being independent adults. Some people need more support than others at this period? Death of a family member is difficult. Traumatic events often precede an emotional crisis (what used to be called a breakdown) which in some people is expressed as hearing voices and other strange experiences. I wish you luck in your recovery - because recovery is entirely possible

Recovery is Possible - Medication, Diet, Exercise, Reduce Stress

Submitted by Matt on Sun, 07/04/2013 - 1:35am

Taking medication worked very well for my wife. But ultimately she was determined to get off medication completely and as quickly as safely possible. This still took years but she has now done so and recovered (initially her doctor had told me she was likely on meds for life). We have our own blog, which I hope you don't mind me mentioning here, we set it up because we wanted to help others through the experience of schizophrenia. We wanted to express our views about the other things that are necessary to recover or at least improve the condition, because while medication is very important so is diet, reducing stress and exercise particularly after medication has stabilized a person. Too often these things are neglected. Given all the evidence anyone suffering schizophrenia should take omega 3 fish oil and also a multivitamin like SBX to supplement diet. This is such an easy thing to do, yet very important.