Earlier one of the members on another topic was saying that it’s part of the negative sz symptoms and I too kind of agreed with him. But I need to get more opinions on this.
Personally for me I don’t have interest on having a job and settling down in life. But I eat a lot and watch a lot of tv shows series movies sports and browse the internet alright… so one persistent question that comes from my parents and my sister is…
aren’t you motivated to do those above mentioned things… to which I have no answer.
Eating does not require any effort. Watching tv requires no effort. Things that require no effort don’t require a lot of motivation. Things like personal hygiene, running errands, working, etc…require effort and thus require motivation to do.
Having a job can be extremely difficult for someone with sz and eating and watching tv do not compare anywhere near in difficulty level. That is unfair of your family to say I think.
My parents say the same, they say how come I am motivated to eat but not motivated to work.
@Anna is right, there is levels of motivation and harder things like work or even personal hygiene and exercising require a higher level of motivation which I am missing.
mine seems more linked to depression… My spontaneity improves quite a bit after taking Prozac and/or a good night of sleep…
It helps for me to break things down into smaller tasks on paper or in an app… Today I had to think through and write out all the steps of sending out a condolence card for a friend who lost his wife. I was surprised at how complex it is. I didn’t finish sending it yet but now I have a plan for doing it in pieces a little at a time.
It really is hard for me to keep all the steps of doing seemingly simple things in my head. I am now much better at shopping for groceries but cooking, laundry and cleaning sometimes still confuse me and I still have trouble doing these automatically. I have a pretty good routine of feeding our cat every morning though so I am glad I can manage that chore pretty well.
A lot of it can be a fear of making a mistake too. I rarely cook poultry or beef because I am afraid of doing it wrong and making myself or someone else sick. I get really stressed in driving through areas I have never been through before.
So true. Reading and eating require no effort from me. Laundry too, as machine does the work. Dishes and cooking not too hard.
But shopping, dressing, going out, brushing my teeth, exercising, praying ritual prayers, painting and writing all a great effort and I usually end up doing only little if anything at all.
It takes a lot of effort and determination to take care of yourself. You have to find something that will self motivate you. When I lived alone, it was really hard for me to want to take care of myself. Everyday I wrote a goal, one simple thing, that I wanted to do that day. And I taped it to my bathroom mirror so I looked at it several times. Some days I didn’t achieve that goal, but when I did I felt so good about myself that I wanted to do more. It became easier to take care of myself, because it made me feel good about myself when I did. It takes a lot of time and is a struggle.
I have a job right now, but I struggle MIGHTILY with motivation. Sometimes, we get so busy at work that I forget I’m even unmotivated lol but just before I go into work, I really dread it and have to push myself. But I like the feeling of accomplishment after a day’s work, it’s nice.
I felt the same way, but at the end of the day, I was proud of myself for being able to have a job. I would crash when I got home, but I was so happy I could take care of myself and live on my own.
It’s like the night before and the morning of work, I just dread it so much lol but you’re right, at the end of the day, I’m proud of myself for being able to work. Feels good to earn money
Avolition describes a loss of motivation; the will or desire to participate in activities or to do things. Some schizophrenic patients show avolition in that they will sit still for long periods of time, seemingly indifferent to their surroundings, and without displaying any interest in work or social activities. In extreme cases, this behavior becomes catatonia
i get that for sure. i still get the blank stares where im kind of just stuck there looking at nothing.
I used to get stuck for like several minutes where i wouldnt really move and id just be in a blank stare.
thankfully its not severe like people who get catatonia
Things that are no big deal for people are a huge deal for me.
Taking shower and dressing is a big thing , doing exercise too.
All my activities are a big deal to me and can take a lot for me to do them.
People don’t like me mainly and can behave badly to me even without saying anything nasty it’s their energy and mannerism to me that is not ok but there’s so many of them and I feel tied up in invisible restraints n uncomfortable so what can I do in self defence?
Nothing but avoid them as much as possible.
I avoid most people.
I spend most of my time in bed .
Sometimes I stare at the wall but not so often last few years I’ve been better and able to watch tv.
I used to feel attacked by the people on tv so I refused to watch tv.
Some people are easy to watch some are difficult.
I have no goals of working or studying.
I’m happy to keep doing what I’m doing.
Maybe in the future I might add a extra activity if I want and can but not now.
Work is to difficult as I can’t stand being around most people and believe I have no superiors but don’t think I’m superior either.
I volunteer work a couple of hours.
My manager doesn’t talk down at me unlike most people.
If she did I couldn’t work with her.
She tells me what needs to be done and I tell her if I can or can’t do it but usually I can /want to too.
I wear the same clothes three days perhaps but shower daily and change underwear daily.
I brush my teeth every day too but don’t floss every day.
Want to start.
Hopefully can make myself do it.
If not move constantly it can lead to mild catatonia then find it extremely difficult to get out of the spell so make a conscious effort to increase activity.
I used to struggle with this but taking supplements, using a reward system and writing out my goals for the day and crossing them off feels great I get a lot more done these days. Oh and coffee!
On disability though but I work very part time and manage myself, the house and billls ! That’s a lot but everyone is different but I like days when I get to cross a lot off my list😊
I get a lot more done these days. Oh and coffee!