Out of the blue, I came to the realization.
I suffer with a severe mental illness.
Schizophrenia and bipolar.
I cant believe it.
I must be screwed.
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Cheer up @Wave !!
We say, C’est pas la fin du monde. I think you speak French 
It is not really believable most of the time but it’s real and there is no escape. You might as well embrace your current life and cherish the little things. Those are magic.
Did you change any meds recently?
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No, same meds @mermaid1.
Im not depressed, just feeling a bit shocked that my brain works differently than most people out there.
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1 in 4 people has a mental illness. You are not alone.
I am ill like you, and lots of us on the forum.
It’s not shocking. It is shocking to know in this day and age we are able to survive with meds and treatments. The world is advancing.
Sometimes I wonder what would have happened to me if I was born 100-400 years back. I don’t think I’d have a good life.
Forget your illness and focus on some positivity.
Are you thinking of adopting a new dog?
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I’ve been unstable recently, and it’s made me realise I’m a mad guy.
I sort of knew it before, on an intellectual level, but now I know it in my bones and in my heart.
I’m a mad guy and I’m ■■■■■■.
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its ok, your still a good person in my book 
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Yes, Im still thinking about adopting a dog @mermaid1.
My dad is on board with it too.
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Thank you @asgoodasitgets!
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Your mental illness doesn’t define who you are or who you can become @Wave it’s just something you have.
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I know right? Sometimes it dawns on me and I think “oh yea, that’s why that’s so hard”. It’s funny how we become so accustomed to something so difficult. Let’s not forget to pat ourselves on the back sometimes.
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I find it is a LOT easier to live with schizophrenia and bipolar when no one knows you have it. Ie, if you tell no one about it. Then they treat you like a normie and you fit right in with the rest of society. At least I do. I tell everyone that I work for myself as a saleswoman for Avon. They fall for that every time. (Even though I don’t work for that company anymore). If I find that they want to order something from me, I’m only too happy to oblige. Just B.S. your way through life.
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The bipolar part of my disorder, I can kind of live with, but the schizophrenia part is hard to process.
I mean wow! schizophrenia is such a heavy duty disorder to live with.
I honestly don’t know how I survived all these years!
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@Wave,Isuffered extremely from the bipolar part of my illness for many, many years. I also suffered extremely from the sz part of my illness as well. Both in equal measure. It’s hard for me to say which was worse. They were both equally bad to experience. No, I don’t say the sz part was worse, because it was not. It was equal to the bipolar suffering.
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I suffer with bipolar, big time @SkinnyMe, don’t get me wrong.
bipolar is more familiar to me, but schizophrenia is more of an overwhelming and larger than life illness to live with.
They are both very difficult to live with, I agree.
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@SkinnyMe and @Wave for me I have found it hard to hide the symptoms and consequences of my bipolar and with the sz, for me, it being so mild, I’ve kept it mostly to myself in this little inside world I created. I could only imagine how hard it must be for people who suffer from more severe schizophrenia, it must be terrible to be so frightened all the time.
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That’s a coincidence right out of hell. I just had that same experience 3 minutes ago. The only difference is I had an epiphany and realized that I am cooler than most of my psychiatrists.
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For some reason I have an opposite issue. I can’t come to terms with it being severe. It just don’t believe I am that ill. But I know I need those meds to stay sane. I know.
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I have the complete opposite problem.
People don’t believe the severity of my condition because I seem so normal.
Even those close to me tend to forget negative symptoms exist because I compensate for them with coffee and fake smiles.
“you were able to do [thing A] a while ago, so you should be able to do [thing B] just fine now. Just pull yourself together and stop being lazy!”
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I’m the same as @Pikasaur and @anon80629714
I don’t think I have an issue and people around me don’t think I do either.
And yet, here I am, on Clozaril 
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