It’s nice that you want to help people but you have to ask yourself, “What do I really owe this guy”? You are not obligated to help him. You have to consider your own wants and needs too. Like I said, it’s a very good character trait to want to help people in need, but is he your friend?
I’ve lived in houses with other schizophrenics but we were all in a program under the care of a mental health agency. I think if you are going to live with someone who has schizophrenia it has to be on a case by case basis. Do you like him? Do you think with his personality that you will be compatible in close quarters? I wouldn’t say that it couldn’t work out just because he’s schizophrenic. But if you have been in group with him you have an idea what he’s like. But from listening to him talk in group, does he sound responsible? Does he function well? If he does drugs I would not even consider letting him move in, that’s a deal breaker.
If you want to let him move in I would find out a little bit of his history first from him. The bottom line is that you do not want to take on the problems of someone else. If he is stable and responsible than I would consider it. You don’t have to grill him about his whole life but I would just informally ask him a few basic questions to get an idea of what he would be like to live with.
I was on my own for 25 years. I mostly rented rooms in peoples houses. Almost all of them let me move in after one short interview. They asked stuff like: Was I neat and did I clean up after myself? Did I cook a lot? Did I have a lot of visitors? What was my job?
What does your potential roommate do for a daytime activity every day? When interviewing him, you don’t have the right to get too personal or nosy but I’ll warn you, if you are both home all day together doing nothing in a small space, that could get old fast. If you are compatible it might work out to both be home all day at the same time, but boy if you have friction it could turn uncomfortable.
I don’t want to make this a big deal or complicated but I just wanted to give you a rough idea of what it could be like. It might not be a big deal at all to let him move in. You might like each other and it could work out perfectly fine. When I lived in houses with other schizophrenics it wasn’t bad. Schizophrenia was not a big deal. In my experience of living with different schizophrenics for years, Schizophrenics are perfectly capable of being good housemates, friends and co-workers. I have had paranoid schizophrenia for 35 years. I know that I’m dependable, and responsible and can get along with other people of all ages. We are perfectly capable of being responsible, and acting like anyone else.
Like I said, letting someone move in whom has schizophrenia should be taken on a case by case basis. Having schizophrenia does not automatically mean trouble, but what you mainly want is someone who is nice, friendly and knows how to follow your rules in your house and be responsible and not cause trouble.
And remember, sometimes in this world you have to look out for number one!!!