What are some things you think a Sz has to push themselves through to get better?
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Maybe one of the first steps is developing a healthy sleeping habit.
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It is a scientific fact patients with schizophrenia do not get better.
the crippling lack of motivation
Bull â– â– â– â– !
Never hear of many that do which is the problem.
Patricia Deegan is one and is helping SZ to recovery.
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It’s not about getting better, it’s about getting numb. Schizophrenia is a chronic illness so all you can really do is become numb to it 
I must have missed that memo. 
Or you can kick its ass.
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Okay…I researched this well enough to be offered admissions to grad programs in rehab counseling…it was part of my life and part of my research for my honors thesis
we need to be empowered. We all, even normies, need mastery of what happens to us and what we do. We need to feel as if we are a part of the doctor’s efforts to make us better (because we do 50% of the work) and we need to feel as if we can do what we are capable of…because in reality, we are all capable to an extent. It is about finding that extent and committing to putting the appropriate effort into it.
We need to be given respect. We need health, education/vocation, independence (we are mostly adults here), we need what everyone needs.
We need to overcome and be proud of it.
We can overcome, it is just difficult. Some of us do not get better…some of us do not even want to get better or have the cognitive ability to even comprehend the process of getting better, or at that, the capacity to even know that oneself is in fact ill.
Crisis opens to door to opportunity. I thought that was bullsh*t when I first heard it, but looking at what I have done since I gave it a chance, you have zero chance of convincing me and people like me otherwise. We can live in defiance of what most consider the end of everything. “I’m gonna lose my mind” say many people…I lost mine years ago…and I still carry on. Yeah, we never get cured. I sit and study and hear people in my apartment or right outside the door. I hear the same three voices in my head, those little characters commenting on my life. Thinking people are after me, watching me, even when I shower and take a dump. I have chronic nightmares. I am generally hypervigilant, I stay in excessively intense physical condition and carry a knife…and I was trained in Israeli hand to hand combat before I even graduated high school…So what? Like that really gets in the way of being a scholar? More like learn to channel that energy into learning as well as I can and then watch myself go…
I became an intellectual when I was a psychopathic deviant at the time of my diagnosis. A scholar in psychology…and the psychopathy ■■■■was just schizophrenia making me distrustful and hateful of imaginary people. I have antisocial tendencies…like when I am in danger I get cold and explosive…and hell-bent on something, I pick something to do to get out of danger. Comes in handy when it is “make an A on this or no degree.” Gets my ass in gear for real.
Learning to clean up a messy psyche is what we have to do. Doctors will help out and give medicine which makes it easier…but we have to be on the move towards beating the challenges we are given. It gets down to empowerment.
Like the little engine that could…“I think I can, I think I can…”
I started recovery with powerlifting, a sport where you insanely heavy weights. It is all about knowing that you can. If you step up to the barbell and doubt your own strength, you will fail. I learned the ropes about what we can do versus what we are willing to do.
I never imagined lifting as much as I did. I never imagined recovery going as far as it has for me. I knew things could get better if I tried. I tried my best, and things went well enough…but it still hurts.
In my chosen profession, knowing pain makes you more effective. I am okay with suffering. I see what it’s worth. It brings opportunity.
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The one thing I can say with certainty is that anyone who thinks they shouldn’t bother trying because they won’t get better, not only won’t get better, but will probably get much, MUCH worse. Hard to find a more unhealthy, unhelpful attitude when you have SZ.
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Push through the FEAR
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My view from my truck at work right now.
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From the day I was diagnosed I just took it day by day. I never expected to feel better but I always wanted to feel better. I had my relapses and got the meds changed a little bit. After almost seven years on AP’s I’m doing better than ever with this illness. I do get in a lot of rest each day but I do get to do a lot of fun stuff like fishing or some small tasks around the house.
I didn’t push myself much cause with negative symptoms you’re quite paralised. I got better like a drop in the bucket each day. At first I didn’t feel I was getting anywhere but as I look back today those baby steps are one big stride to where I am today.
Hang in there with your meds…take it religeously…try to gain insight and try to timeously consult your psychiatrist with a threatening relapse. At 25mg of Abilify I’m on a heavy dosage but it works for me. If I go lower, which I want to do,I normally relapse, so I stay on my dosage. So get your meds adjusted to what suit you best. And you don’t get it right in a week or two. It take months and sometimes years to get the right meds regimen.
Putting up with the bad times when you are incapacitated, albeit for several hours. Trust in your body and your basic functions. Sleep. Shelter of money.
I believe it is good practice to whether the storm when things are bad. Then when times are good to push yourself to continually try and get a better place in life. Currently I am trying to find a job. Just went through a period where I wasn’t sleeping and hearing the voices again. Even if you fail you gotta keep trying.
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Sometimes I have to ask myself "do you have the will to live?"
and the answer has always been yes. That is all that has pushed me through the worst.
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For me, it’s getting my meds right. I was only diagnosed a year ago after sudden onset. I have had 2 relapses since my original episode. My meds make me so tired and restless, I wonder if I’ll ever feel normal. If I could get my meds right, sleep a normal amount at night, get rid of the restlessness and have a normal amount of energy my world would change. To me, the right meds at the right dose are everything. Easier said than done.
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But have you ever had any luck with meds?
I’ve had one that seemed kind of okay but then it had a certain side effect that could have literally killed me so I was forced to stop taking it in the end. Gosh it seems like I’ve tried so very many.
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I’m with you on diet, although I don’t eat raw foods and I am a straight vegetarian-mostly grains and carbohydrates. Leafy green vegetables like Swiss Chard. Tempeh has a lot of protein. it is good fried in vegetable oil with Turmeric. It turns golden. Try different grains: different kinds of rice. Millet is delicious when prepared correctly. Couscous. These two in the summer. Beans occasionally. Try different kinds of breads. Rye is good. Eat in moderation. Know when to stop. Enjoy your food. Use plenty of condiments: Coriander, Turmeric, Cardamom, Tamari. Esp. Tamari! Lots of fruit! Esp. in the summertime: Blackberries, mangos, blueberries. Enjoy gathering it. Enjoy preparing it. Enjoy eating it. Drink Lemonade, Limeade, Ginger Ale, Spring Water. Don’t drink alcohol, caffeinated beverages. Don’t smoke. Don’t do street drugs. You have to be on the right medication to even begin to approach enjoyment of life. It helps to be old too. Clean air, healthy people surrounding you, a pleasant environment. Mens sana in corpore sana. I like to walk places instead of go in the car or ride a bicycle. Observe the natural world: trees, flowers, animals. The sky and the clouds. The air and the wind. The changes in the weather; the gradual changes in the seasons. Night and day. Hot and cold. Learn to listen rather than talk. Enjoy your sexuality. Keep to yourself. Find out what it’s all about.
I’m all for Lao Tzu, Lieh Tzu, Chuang Tzu. Esp. Lieh Tzu and Chuang Tzu.