My expectations from life are very low.
I advise you to take a similar approach!!
Don’t expect wonders from yourself, don’t compare yourself to other people,
just take pressure off your shoulders.
8 Likes
Is it ur last quote …like sagar…dont dissapper from forum
Just kidding …!!!
2 Likes
My goals are way off in the future - distant goals. It has always been like that for me. I think it is a common problem. I’ve come across people who were similar to me in that respect.
That is what I have been preaching here too. You should only compare to yourself from yesterday. Try to improve a little bit every day, week, month, year. Progress is not always visible to others, but as long as it’s visible to yourself, that is enough reason to celebrate.
4 Likes
Wow, thanks for that. I’d still be in the quiet room in the psych ward tied to the damn bed and wearing a diaper if I had taken that advice.
“Nil sine labore.”
(Latin for “nothing without effort”.)
5 Likes
Keeping a recovery journal is how you track incremental successes.
1 Like
I have a diary where I jot down news about myself and the world., as well as thoughts and opinions.
During my first year after psychosis there was a certain inertia that kept me working on some personal projects, but also a steep decline in my social life, personal hygiene, sleep hygiene, and mental activity in general.
During my second year I kept experimenting with antidepressants and also started looking for answers on this forum. I was having a strong victim mentality.
During my 3rd year these trends continued, but after a while my dad tried to shatter my inactivity with some challenges with which I coped reasonably well. And that made me wonder why I had given up.
Now in the beginning of my fourth year, I have started changing my atttitude, I have adopted a more aggressive approach to deal with the illness. I am no longer waiting passively for new meds or therapies. I take baby steps, small challenges everyday, and my improvement so far (just 2 months in) has been visible not only to myself, but to my close ones too.
I think and feel that I am on the right path.
3 Likes
While I’d have killed myself if I hadn’t taken that advice. 
1 Like
@shutterbug don’t play the smart guy.
My advice is very good for lots of people.
Not for all.
1 Like
I’m here to provide contrast.
2 Likes
I back u erez …ur opinion is valuable to us…!!! Thanks for sharing …!!!
2 Likes
I distinctly remember going to a support group and having the facilitator point to the over-medicated, drooling lump in the corner and tell me what a wonderful example of recovery he was and how I should try to be like him. That evening after that meeting I made my first suicide attempt. It wasn’t because of voices. It wasn’t because of delusions. It was because someone who should have supported me stole my hope for the future and I saw suicide as the only sensible option.
Edit: I should add that this meeting was sponsored by the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA). I’ve never had a good experience with that bunch in the quarter century I’ve had this illness. I don’t recommend them to those serious about recovery.
1 Like
@shutterbug I thought you were lucky, but I don’t think so anymore.
I would never ever change places with you considering your past.
There is a big difference between hope and expectation; and expecting to recover is dangerous.
1 Like
Life is dangerous and everyone will die of something. Not everyone will live before they die, some will just survive, and barely at that. If death takes me tomorrow I can go knowing that I lived.
1 Like
@shutterbug Now I am angry.
You say that some lives are more valuable than others and your approach is repulsive.
I prefer to survive than to kill myself because I can’t satisfy my expectations. 
I believe that the life of that:
is worth living.
1 Like
I have some expectation because of what I previously do(work related).But I think I have got to adjust so that I don’t make myself feel bad.
1 Like
Like @zeno said, I believe there is a big difference between hope and expectation.
I have a lot of hope for myself, and I believe hope is important.
But expectations… The more I have of them regarding myself, the worse I feel when I can’t live up to them. It’s important to have realistic goals and expectations, and not steal victories from oneself by setting them too high.
2 Likes