Trigger Warning
Do you think being forced to keep secrets your entire life could cause schizophrenia? Trigger warning As a child I was molested by my older brother on a regular basis from around ages 5-11. The thing that made it a million times worse is that my mother knew it was happening, witnessed it several times and didn’t do anything to protect me or stop it. Life went on, but it was an unspoken rule that you keep the secret and pretend we are a normal , loving family. Everyone thinks my mom is a saint, meanwhile I have the burden of the secret. My mom also wants me to have a close relationship with my brother that molested me, she has ZERO empathy for what I had to go through. I’ve had mental health problems starting around age 12 and I’m wondering if along with trauma along with the stress of keeping a secret for decades and pretending that my mom is a wonderful person could cause schizophrenia? Thank you for reading
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I think you should tell your therapist about it.
I’m sorry it happened to you, but no one can tell how much pain you were holding during years.
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I would say that’s probably the number one cause of your schizophrenia
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Can I ask why you say that?
Are you still living with family? That would be awkward and stressful.
I have stopped caring what triggered my SZ. It uses up energy that I want to instead apply towards overcoming the illness on a daily basis.
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That makes sense. No, haven’t lived with them for a very long time
Because you have repressed emotions which made your brain look for a way out by creating your sz
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It really is difficult to deal with, especially my mother. Is it ok if I ask you if you have a diagnoses? Have you found meds that help?
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I know. You need to look after yourself now. Im schizophrenic too
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Im doing good now. between relapses
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Did it take a long time to find meds that helped?
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About a year of trying different ones
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Can I ask which ones worked for you? I can’t find anything that helps!
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It’s different for everyone just keep trying different ones
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The meds only do so much. If you have unresolved issues from your past that cause you significant ongoing stress, you can count on this stress amplifying your positive symptoms – making them much worse. You may find that getting help for the past abuse not only helps with the emotional trauma, but will also decrease your psychotic symptoms by lowering your overall anxiety/stress. My symptoms get worse when I’m wound up. I put a lot of effort into keeping myself grounded for this reason.
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Thank you for that…I can’t even find meds that help at all at this point
What are your voices like?
That’s the thing, I don’t hear voices or see things. It’s more about strange thoughts and feelings. Like my house feeling unfamiliar to me or my memories being distorted, and my feelings being blunted
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