I am pretty sure it is possible to help with the stigma with sz a pretty good amount. Elyn Sacs helps the stigma a little bit. The stigma with with shootings is horrible with having sz.
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I try to reduce stigma in my local vaccinaty maybe if people see these forum posts on WWW it might help.
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I eat stigma for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
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I rarely talk about it, but I think people know because they seem to be busybodies.
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Autism is considered cool by people I’ve met and the government spend billions helping them but schizophrenia are more seen as losers and bullied so isolate even more.
I don’t think i have schizophrenia as such.
Reckon it’s ptsd and what they did to me.
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The stigma has done wonders for my sex life.
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I was celibate for 11 years! Wtf?
Anakin: How does one learn this type of power? Darth Sideous: Not from a Jedi.
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Lol
Blockquote
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I don’t necessarily see the stigma
My main issue is having a diagnosis and the low self esteem it cretes and that loosing my dignity from it,
I’ve never seen myself as a failure but a rare successful person
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I have more stigma towards my SZ then my dad. He wants me to do everything in life that he has done. Then I say to my self wait I am a schizophrenic and I cant do anything because I am a Schizophrenic.
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I think we are at a pretty good level of tolerance for people like us in most western countries today. Theres always going to be those individuals who hate and fear sz people. Understandably. Since schizophrenia basically means insanity when it boils down to it. Obviously its always a good idea and in our interests to help educate people about how a lot of sz’s can and do live normal lives. So as to debunk the myths. But i also think you gotta be careful. I for one am apprehensive around other sz’s, especially if they are actively psychotic and not getting treatment. You’d have to be a bit naive not to.
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I understand why it’s stigmatized
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I hate stigma. When I was a member of another site, I had a lot of followers, and I got the chance to educate people online about schizophrenia, and, when necessary, direct them to one of those articles about the top myths of schizophrenia. I felt good about that. In person, it’s much harder to educate some people, because oral communication isn’t my strong suit, and there’s not a chance to step away and think when someone says something very offensive.
I felt stigmatized on the dating scene. There were two main reasons. The first one (which was some how worse than the stigma from SZ): All through my teens and twenties, hardly anyone wanted to date me, because I refused to have unmarried sex. The only ones who did want to date me were already male friends who were obsessed with me by the time they asked me out. They thought they could sweep me off my feet and get me to change my mind various topics. Were they ever wrong.
I was very clear on everything I expected. I would not even stay overnight at a man’s apartment for any reason, even to just sleep on the couch. I refused to drink alcohol and got very angry at one guy at a restaurant who kept saying, “Just share one bottle,” over and over again. I kept saying, “No.”
So, it was much easier for them to find promiscuous women and just screw around without making any kind of commitment. I’m no expert, but I think that at ages 15 to 30, it’s very hard to find someone who is looking for anything long term, let alone a life-time commitment. This is cruel, but I laugh at women who say, “I think he was just using me for sex.” Well, no kidding! 
With many of the “modern” women, you can even shack up with them for three to seven years, and not have to promise any long-term commitment. No ring, no nothing.
Once the onset of schizophrenia began, I got rejected by many men as soon as I mentioned the illness. It was a big deterrent, worse than my value system.
I lost all my friends too between 1999 and 2004, even my best friend from junior high. I’m pretty forgiving though. I realize many people don’t get training in school on what do do if your friend loses her mind.
Sorry for another wall of text that is kind of ranty. But, yeah, stigma of any kind stinks!
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Most of the people that stigmatize against SZ do so because they are uneducated on the subject
I find that many health professionals stigmatize against schizophrenia the most
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@anon70814080 , I hate that your date kept trying to get you to drink after you said no. He’s probably a sexual predator.
I love, absolutely love, that you educated people like that before. Thank you for all that hard work and for the willingness to put yourself out there like that. The more people get educated, the better.
I didn’t believe in sex before marriage either. It led to lots of problems. I started having my pastor screen my dates by asking the questions and telling them what he expected of them on the dates.
My dad was an abuser and not in my life, and my mom was in another state. I was emancipated at 16 and on my own. It wasn’t easy. And it led to guys (and grown men) from the neighborhood telling me that since I didn’t have a dad they didn’t have to respect me. So I got my pastor involved.
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I should apologize for the line about laughing:
This is cruel, but I laugh at women who say, “I think he was just using me for sex.” Well, no kidding!
I am often too obsessed with logic. It’s like I have no heart. It has its downside…Sorry for being heartless.
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I was the same in my teens and twenty’s and thirty’s I saw dating pointless unless it was to find a life long partner. I was to worried about pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. I did not even trust condoms in any way. The only sexual contact I had in life was through couch dances at strip clubs. I found them to be touching bare skin and rubbing on me too dangerous. I still got worried about HPV or something so I completely stopped this.
I had boughts of alcohol use. In my early teens I wanted to be professional athlete in ways and abstained from alcohol marijuana for the longest. I found out I have addiction and have to completely abstain from drugs and alcohol.
I had to help raise my sisters child who we never knew who the father was. Sex out of wedlock does lead to odd situations.
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Well, @Dude1 , I’m glad you helped your sister out. I have a dad, but he was so abusive when I was a child to the whole family he lists his rights. I now talk to my dad since he’s become a better person and is also sober.
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Can’t stand it. Stigma leads to discrimination and I have first hand experience of being discriminated against due to schizophrenia….which wasn’t nice at all.
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