As someone who is highly functioning, I wonder what all of the other highly functioning people live like. I am a full time honors student on scholarship in exclusive honors classes. I have made the dean’s list every semester, been in the top 15% of my class, ect. I like being messed up and feel like aggression and egoism is my crutch. I am really into lifting weights, I am an advanced lifter and am pretty impressive looking. Been doing it for five years. I rage out. I blast Slipknot and KoRn mostly, all of the time in my car, I tackle my work and get angry when my symptoms creep in on me. Like today I was very productive, took two quizzes, wrote a paper. Participated in a class discussion. Today is my rest day from lifting, hence me being on here talking to you lot.
My friend who is also a student at my school who is schizophrenic and takes meds is into the whole darkness thing. He loves listening to the same music.
I take medication, duh. Take your meds.
How do the other full-time occupied people do it? Do you see life with schizophrenia as a challenge and want to kick it’s ass? Do you feel like screaming sometimes while doing your occupation but just keep cool and endure it? Do you have outlets for stress and anxiety? Do you just roll with the punches of this illness?
I am moderately high-functioning. Some days are worse than others. But generally I get stuff that I need done if I plan it the day before. It’s harder for me to make on the spot decisions.
I spent much of my life hiding any so called illness. After finally graduating, I gave myself a fresh start and vowed to tell no one. Doctors just put me in hospital I hated so I just avoided docs at all costs and suffered in silence. I vowed to prove the dinosaur docs wrong about me.
Details deleted
But I had a break at work. That made me lose my security clearance.
But in a way it was good because I got another fresh start telling no one the details of course. My confidence was crushed but I just faked it and carried on ‘against all odds’ I liked to say.
It’s scary staring out all over again after the security of a gov. Job. But you gotta do what you gotta do and just try the best you can.
If you just fake it and tell no one and hide everything, they really don’t know although I often feared they would call my schools and find all the gory details, they never do. Who has time? There is work to do that you are hired for. So just do it and keep your mouth shut and act like everybody else.
Until there is another problem and then you move on again to another fresh start.
People are usually just happy to get rid of you if there is a problem and will give you good references and help you move on.
I would say most people on this site are High Functioning, just at different levels - but all High Functioning.
Low functioning schizophrenics would find it difficult to use a computer.
There are State Institutions that house low functioning schizophrenics - one not too far from me
By high functioning I mean full integrated into society, full time occupations, like they would if they didnt have a psychiatric disorder. Mainly talking to paranoid schizophrenics and schizoaffective people, disorganized and catatonic people have less fortune with being able to function. Some do, miraculously, but quite few.
I guess that counts me. And since I am unmedicated now, its more difficult to keep up.
I guess I wouldnt be considered high-functioning since I don’t have full time job. I can’t even manage a part-time job.
I dont know, I think that most everyone on here is high functioning, regardless of the DX
Going to school or working is not the only measure - there are other areas that can be measured
I think that many people on here are doing their best and are really trying to improve their lives
I’m at a strange point in my life right now. I screwed up college a few times with psychiatric breakdowns mid-semester. It totally trashed my GPA, killed my chances at financial aid, and got me on the hook for student loans that still need paid off.
I’m more stable now, my mind is more clear. I just don’t know for sure how to proceed. I want more, I think I can do more, but what and how much? These are things I need to work out.
Me too - I had a couple of breakdowns in the middle of me attending college - I dont see this as a failure, I just got unlucky- I didnt get to finish, but I managed to get a decent job that lasted for a long while- I see this as a success
I would get help from the schools mental health or whatever they call it to be allowed to withdrawal from classes after or during a break.
Try to get out of a class. Or retake the class. It took me 3 times to pass physical chemistry. Usually they let you get the higher grade.
I’m high functioning. I work Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I go to classes on Tuesday and Thursday and church on Sunday. All of this stuff keeps me stable, because I get to interact with others and get out of my head.
I will be going to school full time, by myself, in a big city to finish my degree next semester (if everything goes as planned). I might put it off and do a step by step plan over several months, because I’ve jumped into things before and had problems. I’ll have to start the fourth class of French taught a different way and 7 years cold. With that I’ll probably wait and study on my own or get tutoring. I haven’t talked about my contingency plan with my family yet, but that’s probably because I just learned about contingency plans in my Business class.
I highly function by pushing through my bad feelings, which usually come at the beginning and end of the day. I also make plans. If I feel tired or like my mind is wandering, I’ll go on Facebook and study during the next day. I have that luxury, because my job is kind of a work study thing. Next semester I’ll be totally relying on my SSI and I won’t have a social place to go.
I would say I am high functioning. I own my own business, I work part time but make enough money in 8 months to take the rest 4 months the year off.
I have good people skills in business dealings.
I go to poker night every few weeks to play tournament with friends (it is fun to figure out someones tells)
I downhill mountain bike, snowboard, skimboarding, train muay thai kickboxing, I am planning to learn brazilian ju-jitsu.
I try to help my friends and family and be there for them when they need it.
I have travelled across the world for several months backpacking, had an amazing adventure.
I’ve gone skydiving (last year)
Went Bungee Jumping 3 months after my first major psych break, was still pretty symptomatic but I decided ■■■■ it , its my birthday Im doing this!
I enjoy daring sports.
with all that said. many times i have been on the verge of blowing up. the days can be a struggle but I just try to roll with the punches.
I just tell myself that things will get better and instill that hope in myself the best I can.
I’m fairly high functioning… I can’t handle the stress of a full-time job, but I work for myself and do just fine, so I’m not so bad. Symptoms are just minor hallucinations and paranoia, nothing I can’t handle. I socialize, talk business with customers, and I can go out and run errands if I have to. I’m much better off than I was last year!
i am pretty thick…i found it difficult to change the fax machine roll…!?!..it was very confusing!
but on the plus side i made myself another sandwich !!
take care
I don’t have any Sz symptoms that interfere with my day to day life…I am overall…for the most part living symptom free. In so far as most people who know me or cross my path would have no idea I had a mental illness…I suppose yes I am high functioning.
However…I have for reasons apart from schizophrenia ALWAYS found this world around me to be completely F-ing insane…I don’t fit in…I am a misfit…an outcast…a dropout. I dropped out of society long before I began to have symptoms of Sz. Sure I tried…repeatedly…to do whachyour supposed to do in this world…but found that this is not where I fit in.
So I help people where I can and struggle with all else I deal with APART from schizophrenia…regaining my sanity was a picnic compared to what it would take to rejoin society…which would be some sort of act of god…and I am an agnostic.
Anyway…it is…well…why must we join the ranks of society in any conventional fashion to be considered highly functioning?
I don’t think one has to earn money and be a taxpayer to be considered high functioning. High functioning to me means being able to solve my own problems as well as helping other people with their problems. Solving problems is all really what work is or should be.
(I think being high functioning in other ways is mostly a matter of training. A lot of daily living skills should have been demonstrated, corrected and repeated to you by your family. Technical and social skills should also come from schooling. Even if they didn’t teach you correctly or you weren’t receptive at the time, by reading and practice you can learn to reprogram a lot of your own behaviors. The problem is neural nets often require lots of repetitions to be changed and there is often a lot of bad training to be undone.)
I wonder if people who were low functioning (like say they had a learning disability) to begin with are more likely to develop disorganized-type SZ and those that are higher functioning are likely develop the paranoid/delusional type.
I socialize with people, none of my friends know that i have psychotic mental illness, i am as smart as my healthy friends, and even smarter than some of them. I participate in activities with friends, i used to go bars and clubs with friends every weekend, but since i quit drinking i dont go out at night anymore. Before i had a terible anxiety and i was withdrawing from people, my anxiety has reduced but my withdrawal memories still some how is programed in my brain, i need time to erase all that bad memories of withdrawing from strangers and act as i never experienced.
