I was experencing psychosis a few times a week and borderline suicidal when I started on medication. They put me on 20mg of Olanzapine. It smashed my thoughts away and gave me peace, although I put on 20kg and slept 11 hours a day.
Over time my dosage decreased and my mood lifted and I started remembering how it felt to not be paranoid and hallucinatory. I really liked that med but it was bad for my heart so I had to change.
I’d say it took a good six months before I started feeling better and I continued improving over the next five years.
My life is many times better now than it was back then.
Edit: I should add that part of me misses the magic.
Because I’d rather deal with my hallucinations myself. I’ve learned to master them. I control them. They never controlled me.
Besides I am adverse to prescribed medication
Plus looking at the fresh faced, naive, sheltered, spineless shrinks I can completely understand why they would want to unman a man like me by making my dick malfunction.
Better chemically castrate the straight talking bloke there.
Although if it works for youse cool.
I prefer exploring the spiritual aspects of what’s happening to me myself. I hear very little talk of that from anyone tbh.
meds have prevented me from getting admitted to the mental ward constantly the last 18 years and I only have gotten hospilatized 14 days and now I’m finally totally positive symptom free.
Tree don’t blame yourself for have been unemployed for 38 years. I haven’t worked for 28 years and I know for sure that I won’t work any more. Enjoy your life don’t look back on the past and don’t think of what could have been. You have really proven that you are a winner because you have survived this terrible illness for so long. Just go on with your life get the best out of your remaining life and please try to stay Positive.
if i keep things simple and don’t go out alone and avoid things like public transportation and stuff i do ok. Can’t do most normal things in life but i do better if i keep things simple, then i am ok. But i can’t say i can lead a normal life though.
Ironically, my pdoc just said I’m so much better than last year, or ever before since he knew me. He says I’m a lot more coherent and clear-headed, and even look more relaxed physically.
I know there is a possibility of relapse, which terrifies me. But getting off meds made it possible for me to start processing the trauma and existential core issues underneath. That simply was not possible on meds. I felt like walking around in a forever haze, which kept fearful stuff in a blurry mist, but never really gone. It was always there underneath, in my body and mind. Now it seems to start to heal.
I really hope it’s possible to stay away from meds, or just use them on an as needed basis.
Oh well if you think you are the minority that could do without meds, by all means go ahead and try. 98% of the time you are going to end up in the hospital again though, you probably don’t realize it but you are already talking a bit gibberish in your words
I live different to most but live a realised life. Meds slow my brain down so it’s tolerable. They help me focus and have allowed me to do some amazing things like move overseas and get married etc. Their improvement in my life has been profound on any level.