Normal life without meds possible?

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Hello, I have moved away from meds and am trying to manage. Does anyone know if this is possible though? I do still take serotonin which basically helps with depression and other symptoms but is unable to really help with voices, delusions etc.

I have been trying to do a lot of exercise(which really helps me) and spent a lot of time with people who know me well(basically to make sure I don’t drive/make large decisions when I am in an episode of forms.

Recently, I found out that my boyfriend of 4 years who is one of my main supports is being stationed in South Korea for the military. I will not be able to see him for 6 years and this has re-surged many of the voices I have been working on ignoring(like that is even possible :unamused:).

I have a lot of finals coming up and am worried that I will loose my ability to perform(has happened before), so I am considering going back on meds but feel as if I lost at my goal. Any suggestions? Thank you

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good on you for being able to study :trophy:
i don’t do meds…but if you ’ feel ’ that you need to go back on them…talk to your pdoc about it
my life is not normal…but i am content.
i do
l-tryptophan
withania
st john wort
unhulled tahini
omega 3s
vitamin bs
healthy diet
yoga
weights
jogging
walking
meditation
eft brad yates
cbt…( i have a great therapist and good shrink )
i live in the peaceful countryside
i have back up plans for psychosis
and a carer
people in wheelchairs have limitations so do we sz.
the trick is to try and accept them and work around them.
take care :alien:

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19 times out of 20 going med free is a train wreck for those with lifelong SZ. The few times I’ve tried, any gain in function I thought I’ve had has been entirely illusory. :frowning:

Can’t recommend it to others in good conscience.

Pixel.

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The med free life might be for some…

It doesn’t work for me.

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I sure wish I could do without med’s. I get a brief period of uphoria when I come off the med’s which is really nice, but after that it turns into a disaster.

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Same here… I do have some zyprexa tablets around… but using them for more than a 1 time thing to reverse insomnia really messes me up in a lot of ways…

It’s crucial you avoid all foreign and unnatural substances… caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, and god forbid anything else… (I’m still working on this.)

More or less I’ve med free for almost 8 months… There have been a couple relapses… Novemeber/December were the worst… but me and my family sorted out how to make that easier in the future. I tried hosting x mas as my mom was out of town… big mistake. People are my trigger. Having anyone in my house for 3 days or more is certain to drive me crazy. They know that now… I also told them that I don’t care for holidays… if they want to spend time with me they can make different plans when they have the opportunity. Otherwise I’ll drop in if I feel like it on holidays. Which I probably will, but its not an obligation so I don’t have to stress about it.

Really it’s stress that makes symptoms worse for me. Even waking up from a bad dream can lead to 10-30 minutes of intense voices.

I have thought broadcasting delusions… so it’s crucial that I keep control of my mind. Hearing people walk around or talk or basically any interaction with humans makes me hallucinate telepathic responses from them. If I am in the state to let my mind run wild, I have to make sure I don’t feel guilty about it that’s a stressor on its own. It was more or less the same for me regardless of whether I was on meds or not.

If meds DO help you… then take them. Natural healing from SZ through relaxation and therapy and introspection… It’s a full time job… having to keep up with the real world probably isn’t compatible.

Sorry your BF got stationed in Korea. I had friend go over there. North Korea is more bark then bite, even though they treat their people like ■■■■.

Keep checking in with us though and you’ll learn a lot. There are a few non-medders on here that just roll with it. It’s not the smoothest ride, but at this point in my life I can afford to use this time to see what I can do myself to sort out the chaos…

For the last few months the voices have been harassing me. “You’re christian… YOU"RE CHRISTIAN.” I’m certainly not… but they wish to impose common crap on me like that. That’s one of several hundred things they’ve called me for a few weeks before it tapers off and they move to the next one. They find a button and they press it and press it and try to have an influence over me.

My point is though, you can get over topic x and y… and I’m hoping eventually all that crap runs its course and their aint nothing left.

They do like to call me a child molester… they know that one really bothers me. That’s ■■■■■■■ ■■■■■■■■ though. I hate this illness, but I dealt with side effects and a series of unaffective overpriced meds for 2 years… I understand how my SZ works… it’s part torment, part reflective harassment…

Stay positive… Trust in your future… do what you gotta do…

Research stress management and how to handle depression and mania if you deal with those.

Serotonin for the win.

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Why? Is there a reason you don’t want to take meds?

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Okay. Here is the deal:

As a minor factor, my body does not respond very well to medication. I get many side effects that drive me mad. It become a battle between the lesser of two evils, but I cannot tell which is worse.

Also, I am often hesitant to try meds, because I am constantly told (voices) that it is poison, and I am dying( I know this isn’t necessary true by any means, but I can’t get it to stop).

However, the most influential reason is oddly enough my family. My parents sort of avoid the fact that I have psychosis and always change the subject when I mention something. I have high grades, and they see that as evidence that I do not need medication. (even though I freak out commonly sometimes landing me in trouble of all sorts)

I am not going to fight them on this, because they already agreed to pay for my college if I get into a “top-ranked” (by their standards) school. As a result, they are not keen on paying for medication.

I know this may sound insensitive of them, but they are good parents. I understand why they feel this way and don’t want to burden them. I think they are kinda waiting for me to go to college anyways.

Well, that was long-ish. Despite that, I am going to try and go along with it. Hopeful it goes okay.

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Set up a back up plan just in case…

An ER visit will costs hundreds if you need an ambulance…

I’d also maybe find a pamphlet from a Doctor’s office and drop it on the living room table… it sounds like they are in denial… that could be corrected in a few months if the information was presented to them.

Good luck with school. College is tough.

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How long have you been med free for now? It depends how well your symptoms stay away, while youre not on anti psychotics.

i remember when i was in hospital i had a very good morning when waking up and almost felt 100% normal and i thought that all the nonsense that has been revealed to my during psychosis was gone. and i told myself and the nurses: i am normal i dont need any more medication everything is good! and i didnt take the morning meds and the noon meds. but after just a couple of hours, 14 oclock or 15, the mood suddenly changed. peoples expressions changed and the music played by the radio totally shocked me, as i heard a song by lady gaga, but the entire lyrics were upside down! instead of her normal lyrics, she was singing about angels and demons and all that fairy tale stuff. i was completely disturbed that something like this could happen even though i was feeling like my old self (back in reality) that very same morning.

however i am not taking meds for 6 or more months now and i am relatively stable. it would be fantastic if meds helped me to get rid of voices and delusions, then i would be taking them. for me the meds did nothing to improve my mental state, so i stopped.

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It needs to be pointed out that we with SZ are NOT good judges of our own health while off meds, for the most part. A trusted third party needs to be the arbiter here. My own trusted third party (Mrs. Pixel) has asked me to not screw around with my meds again in the future.

Pixel.

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I recommend Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, whether on meds or not. I am not on meds, but I have the luxury of time to take care of myself. I work, but a low-position job at a school, so stress is minimized. I have a loving husband. I live in a small mountain town for peace and quiet. I exercise and I eat healthy (went through a phase recently of not doing that and it doesn’t go well) I have many symptoms and I work every day to balance reality/sz. It’s not a passive decision. You don’t decide to not take meds and then sit back and hope things will be okay. They won’t. Talk to your therapist, pdoc, and get good information and lots of support. I wish you the best!

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For me its not a good idea quitting meds. Tried it two times and it was no succes. My last psychosis in 2015 was the worst. I quit my meds and got an severe episode. I learned my lesson. Besides we are not all the same. Some do great without meds.

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I’m 1 month without them and am feeling great.

Guess i’m no sz after all.

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Sounds like you are going through a lot of stressful times. Stress has a big impact on those who are on the fringe of sz symptoms as it seems you are. I’d definitely get it under control if you feel any worries.

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My advice is: don’t settle.

I had a really crappy pdoc for over two years and my life was heck. I had poverty of emotion, my bipolar was the only thing I could feel, and I had a lot of things going on that I can’t explain. It’s like I know what people are talking about when they talk about sz in a way (I’ve been medicated since my first hallucination so I’ve never had anything really bad) but the background noise was turned all the way up. I can’t explain what it felt like but you probably know.

Then I went to a different, better, pdoc and changed my meds. I’ve tried just about all of the ones with mood stabilizing properties (geodon, latuda, etc.) and I’m on saphris now. For me they work wonderfully until they just don’t work any more. Switching all those meds is worth it. I would want to settle all the time. “Oh, it’s not that bad.” and he’d say something to the effect of “that’s not good enough” and we’d move on. Part of my problem though is the bipolar in the sza was nuts. I think I’ve spent more time working on that than anything else so that might be part of it.

I’m really ‘lucky’ (in other words someone [in this case someones] were very unlucky). My dad didn’t and maybe still doesn’t think that I need meds. The luck/unluck part is that my mother’s two aunts were sz and my mom saw her dad have to get up at night and go rush to help them and all that good stuff.

The winning argument my mom used was ‘if she was diabetic would you not let her have her insilin would you?’

I’ve never been off meds and I never plan to. It might be because I’ve been bipolar my whole life and this is the best I’ve ever felt but, meds 4 life.

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My psychiatrist wants me on meds, she said that I would have a poor quality of life without antipsychotics - I guess that I have to trust her judgement.

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It so depends on person i can take anything its continusly but have my views why, but stress does not help could you not join ur boyfriend x

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Have you ever heard of John Nash? He did ok sans meds but I’m not advocating that.