Hi. I’ve been reading this forum a few times and thought I’d post since everyone seems nice and optimistic here. I’m 31 years old, male, and I live in suburbs of Tokyo, Japan. I’ll first explain how I got the disease.
I became delusional in the end of first year in college, though I had been a little depressive since the high school days. Entering college life was fun, but it also brought problems and stress. I got rejected from a girl, and the part time job I had wasn’t going well. I joined a tennis club (I wanted to get social) but it was boring me though it was actually full of nice people. The hardest part was the rejection, and I spent day and night thinking about that. I was pretty active, going downtown meeting friends, seeing movies, and digging for CDs, but I was doing a bit too much. I wasn’t getting enough sleep.
I started to hear voices and acting funny. I was reciting poems in loud voice in front of TV. I couldn’t walk straight in the streets because of all the signs and lines on the road. In about a week, I got hospitalized into an isolated ward and I spent 4 months there. I was feeling sluggish and sleepy all the time, but 8 months later I got back to college, where I got into a music club and wasted most of the time there. My major was politics, but the interest and will had gone away. I was feeling so lazy and spent most of the time listening to music, but the disease didn’t affect me having fun and enjoying life since I wasn’t having delusion anymore.
Things changed when I quit college two years later. I was failing classes since I couldn’t concentrate on them at all. I regret leaving college now. I think I could have done better. But I would have been stuck in my room in the dark for two years or more had I not joined the music club and meeting people, going to parties from time to time, etc. Four years of college made me a music geek instead of a graduate lol. Many of my friends started working, and I had less time hanging out with friends. I started feeling lonely, though I managed to stay connected via SNS.
After two years and two part time jobs, I had a relapse and it was a little worse than the original symptoms. I was hospitalized I had electric treatment (I don’t know how common that is in the U.S.) and had memory problems. I managed to get out after 4 months. Medications switched, and I was feeling about twice as sluggish as before. I had less energy, and I had to sleep a lot.
By this time I started going to a peer support center, where I made many friends having schizophrenia and other mental disorders. I started training for job 4 years ago, though it’s not easy to regain physical and mental drive. But I realize I’m doing pretty well, and I’m feeling optimistic about the future.
I spend most of my time in my room, listening to music and surfing for YouTube videos. One of my goals for the future is to create music. I play the guitar (mainly a Stratocaster) and I’m interested in desktop recording (like ProTools and Garageband) and other equipment like synthesizers, samplers, etc. I’m looking to get a job in the future, and I’m going to a new training center this month.
I listen mainly to 60s to 2010s rock, techno, hip hop, metal, jazz. Anything from Patti Smith to Autechre. My recent favorites are Deerhunter and Metallica. I’ve started digging for cheap vinyl. I like watching videos introducing people’s vinyl collection, which might seem dull for some people lol.
Anyway, I thought I’d introduce myself before I start posting comments. I want to get to know you guys and share knowledge and information. See ya later!
