Have you told your extended family (cousins, aunts, uncles) about your illness? I haven’t told any of them, though I suspect my parents have told some of them. I do want to tell one of my cousins, because she is very caring and sensitive, but I don’t see her that often. I’m just wondering if you all have told your family about your illness, and if so, how you went about it.
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No I haven’t told any extended family about my illness…
Only my immediate family knows
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I’m worried that when I do visit with family, they’ll suspect something is wrong with me. So I might as well get it out of the way and tell them about it up front
No why will they see something is wrong with u.
I’ve found us schizophrenics are very good at hiding things
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idk, maybe it’s just my paranoia. I’m pretty good at hiding my sz, but I still feel like people think something is wrong with me
Some of my extended family knows about me and they “understand” but some other still asks me when i will get a job
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I don’t talk to family, have not since I was 18, so no one knows
Not everyone from my extended family knows but many of them do know I’m sure.
I really don’t care as much.
I never told them, my mum did. I think all of them know. She never really asked me whether she could share it, which I find a little odd in retrospect. But it wasn’t meant in a bad way. Also, I was unemployed, in and out of wards and some would have noticed my son is living with them and goes with them on holidays, which of course needs a bit of explanation. I don’t really care, I’m open - friends, family, colleagues all know a lot.
She also told my brothers and uncles that I was sexually abused by her brother (my other uncle). She shared that without asking me too, I believe. This does bother me a little, now I’m thinking about it. Especially my brothers and sisters-in-law were quite upset.
We never really talk much about any of this, but it’s kind of convenient that there is no explanation needed.
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My dad told my aunt and uncle, I am not sure if any other family members besides them know but I feel like some of them probably know.
I don’t think anybody knows on my mom’s side of the family. I haven’t told too many people but my friends know although I don’t think some of them care enough to understand it, they still see me as more normal than screwed up I guess which is kind of nice.
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Almost everyone that knows me knows I am SZA. I want to help smash the idea that SZ/SZA people are all dangerous sociopaths or psychopaths. I get a lot of people who are shocked and say they have no idea. So far I haven’t had any real bad experiences.
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I haven’t really shared what’s going on with me with anybody beyond my immediate family. I’m not sure what my mom tells everybody else, as they have to notice something going on though. It wouldn’t bother me if they knew.
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I want a job I’m tired of sitting home all day. I can’t even drive. No longer own a 
car
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Yes i have, I’m very open about it. I’ve written articles about it in the family paper, and I’ve had to rely on relatives to take me to the psych er several times.
all my extended family know of my illness and they are nice about it…i dont feel stigma…in truth i think it says something interesting about me…it beats telling them i work in a bank…that would be boring…sz is an interesting disease…i think that hollywood could make an interesting story/film about all schizophrenics
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I have 7 aunts on my mum’s side, there is no such thing as keeping something private from the family. I don’t like it, as they all seem to try and go out their way to say how well I look these days. Kinda misses the point that it’s not like being in a wheel chair…
I wish no one knew, but it’s too late for that now. Guess this is how it plays out when you have hospitalisations quite young and people find out.
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Immediate family knows. Extended does not to my knowledge but my mom could’ve told them behind my back who knows.
I told my wife and nobody else.If I tell my father, he will probably not believe me and laugh of me,
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immediate family knows.
extended family mostly doesn’t, they are kinda on a need to know basis by a general understanding of the rest of the family. not to be ashamed of me or hide it but there’s no reason they need to know. if it comes up then it comes up.
plus most people think differently of me anyway so they just take me as weird.
same sandbox, different day.
I think they know, maybe from Google searching me or my mom,
one big part of family suffers, depression and addiction,
I find out about them too. Things have gotten desperate,
cuz their mother used to be all positive, no problems,
and now she wants to open up to my mom.
If we all could just realize, no shame. Absolutely none.