Firstly, im a diagnosed schizophrenic. My problem is that every couple years i relapse by noticing people following me. Its very suttle like they will bump into me at several places while im in town or be at places already when i go there, theyll make themselves known to me by smiling at me or some other small cue.
Sometimes its cars as well, where il notice the same car driving by my house and then notice again on my holidays.
Has anyone any tips out there on how not to notice these patterns or coincidences? It makes me believe people are really following me. Im on meds and in therapy just reaching out to see if anyone knows any tips
When I start to read too much into coincidence, I like to use probability.
Is it more likely that
A: people are organising on a massive scale to stalk and harass you subtly?
Or
B: your mind is plating tricks on you, which us very common for our diagnosis?
If A feels like the true answer, I follow up with “what on earth could make me worth the effort?” I remind myself I am just an average person and I have done nothing to catch the attention of an organization powerful enough to pull it off.
I also try to remember that “cues” could be due to other things.
Could people be smiling at you to be friendly? Could cars be driving by because those roads are on those people’s regular route throughout their day?
I know I can’t logic my way out of a relapse if my brain does decide to go down the rabbithole, but I really feel I’ve avoided a lot of internal distress by trying to see facts and logics instead of trusting my instincts.
Because let’s face it, schizophrenics do not have good instincts, and we can’t always trust our gut.