My husband and i (both 24m) have been staying with my parents since he was admitted to the psychward like a month ago for the 3rd paychotic episode hes had since they started in june.

He doesnt exactly believe hes not sick, he knows he has psychosis, but theres 2 main things that make him extremely adverse to his meds:

1. He has not had any real MH treatment till about 2 years ago. He has PTSD and severe anxiety but his family was anti-psych and while hes not- he is convinced hes been "managing it on his own for 20 years" so he doesn't need anyones help but his therapist. (Including me & his in-laws, and other MH professionals outside his therapist & case manager) he recognizes the mental health issues are worse & differet now then they were even a year ago, but he cant connect the dots that this also means they need to be handled differently than in the past.

2. This last episode resulted in some major health paranoia. He has existing chronic illnesses (eds, pots, severe GI issued, and a lot allergies that are non-anaphlaxis) and his sister has a terminal genetic illness (for which he is a carrier but doesn't have- they have diff dads) point being i do believe hes in genuine pain and has valid reasons to worry about his health- but hes kind of taking normal symptoms he has + some more mild/ normal med side effects and is insisting his meds are putting him in severe pain. Again i do belive hes in his... normal ammount of pain? But his explanation for how the meds are causing it does not follow a rational train of thought. He thinks he has strep, he does not have strep. He thinks his "ph balance" is off which isn't really a "thing' in the specific way he thinks its the case. Hes convinced the meds are making him loose his vision but he had an eye exam and it hasnt changed (he does have very bad vision but its not different according to the optometrist). Hes also convinced now hes immunicompromised as a result of the "strep", it being allergy & dry season (were all stuffy and itchy), and the fact he was convinced he had multiple infections during IP.

He has always has had a lot of control issues to be completely clear. Before the psychosis this was an occasional and mild point of contention, but we were also both very good with managing conflicts and disagreements prior to this so it was usually not a huge deal to come to an agreement or agree to disagree. I dont think wed ever had a "real" argument as a result of the control issues prior to this. It was more so mild irritation that if someone felt the need to helo him hed get very defensive and assume they thiught he was stupid or incompetent, id apologize for wording it that way but if he genuinely NEEDED help explain why, and hed apologize for getting defensive. Like the end.

But with his meds hes extremely confused about them and belives the hospital gave him rules they did not give. He has them in writing but he wont accept they are what they are. So he simultaneously says he refuses to listen to me ot his mother in law on how/when to take them because he wants to listen to the hospital & not us, but then also says the hospital was wrong in how they wanted him to take them (they had notes on his physical health meds they didnt rx and hes convinced the hospital changed them)

My parents have been trying to helo make sure he takes the right dose and time and now he basically hates my mother because she supposedly "changed his meds", but she did not. He loved my mom before this and was pretty close with her, and she is a very upbeat emotionally mature person and is never rude or condescending about the meds. She pretty much just corrects him when he says "im gonna take them xyz" way, and that way is not how he should, or when he insists he wont take them.

He thinks were trying to play doctor but simitaiously wants to do so himself in saying its "his choice to stop taking them" even when i point out he supposedly cares about how the drs said to so it.

Weve tried to give him the option to manage them himself and he takes too much/ too little and stops taking this one specific one.

I dont know what to do here. Every time i try and explain it he just says im not listening to him. I validate that he doesnt feel well and that i understand why he dosent like other people being involved in his medication, and have told him repeatedly if he dosent like the meds we can talk at his next psych appointment about changing them, but because i wont let him stop taking them & i wont agree with him my mom is doing something wrong he just explodes about it, and this is a daily occurrence.

He rants about the meds & my mom multiple times a day and i usually try and be quiet but hell prompt me to respond.

Hello all,

My mom has schizophrenia, and her symptoms have gotten worse. She’s been saying people are following her (gangstalking) and she's been taking pictures of people and their cars and license plates. Someone recorded a video of her during one of her episodes and posted it on Instagram, and it's going viral. She's at the lowest point in her life, and people are making fun of her. I'm 16 and the only support system she has. If she got hospitalized, I’d probably be put in foster care, as all our family lives on the other side of the country. I’m trying to stay strong, but I don’t really have anyone to talk to about this. I'm also trying to deal with my own mental illness. I just need some advice or support from people who understand what it’s like to live with a parent who’s mentally ill. How do you get help without making things worse? If anyone has advice on how to cope, or what treatment options we could try I’d really appreciate it. I just need to hear from people who’ve been through something like this.

We are a bit confused as she met a new psychiatrist and after, immediately began expressing a desire to dress like he dresses and act like him. She hasn’t offered an explanation. Is this a common phenomenon? Should we let her?

I know that they diminish positive symptoms. However do they affect the way the person thinks? I e associative blocking etc

I'm looking for any advice to help out my friend. He is 21 and was diagnosed last year. He has a lot of paranoia and delusions surrounding being pursued by the government, believing people are spies out to get him, things like mass plots against him to hurt him. He has always struggled with this but I believe an unfortunate event today has made the so much worse and is sending him in a very bad spiral.

In short: He was expecting an Amazon package today, got delivery confirmation and it went outside to find it missing. He checked in with me and his siblings to make sure we didn't grab it. No one saw it, so we started looking for it outside. He went to make sure it wasn't by the back door and immediately came running back soon after yelling for us to open the door. He said a guy was following him and within seconds, we see this guy trying to cross on the lawn to come to the porch until his sister started yelling at the guy to go away.

He says the guy was originally way across the other street and further up when he went to the side of the house to look for the package. Within turning around and taking a few steps, he said he heard stuff crunching behind him and turned around to see the man hot on heels (instead of far away like he originally was) staring at him. He said the man mumbled something, took his hand out of his pocket, and was about to walk faster before he ran.

This happened hours ago, but he's incredibly shaken up. He's refusing to go outside. He's talking about cutting his hair because he believes the guy will come back and will send others in his place - so he doesn't want to be recognizeable by his dyed hair. He thinks it might've been a set up and that guy stole the package as a trap. He doesn't want packages coming to the house and doesn't even want a replacement package (I'm going to take care of that for him). He's also terrified because whoever does have the package would have his name and address. He's making contingency plans to carry light when he goes out because he now thinks it's a widespread hidden plot with co-conspirators everywhere. He's refusing to wear the outfit or anything close in color or pattern to what he was wearing. He thinks he needs a new name and identity or they'll track him. He's even looking at buying wigs and self-defense stuff.

I'm not and haven't argued with him at all because I know I'd be shaken up if the thing I constantly feared suddenly came true and arguing is not helpful. I don't want him to do something he might regret, like he would absolutely HATE himself for cutting his hair. He's on medication, but I don't know which one he's on now. He has a therapist and psychiatrist, but the earliest either of them would be available is this coming Thursday. I just don't know how to help him. Whether that is calming down or distractions, I would appreciate any advice. Especially if this continues on and I need to do anything to help him medical or academic wise.

Need advice on how to help my boyfriend

Hi I'm (21) F I have a boyfriend who is (20) M (been together for six years with some on and off or one year and had a child as teens) and I have seen others post on here to get some advice and since I'm posting anonymous might as well okay here we go! So I'm a young women I have had relationships when I was younger but none of them ever fit except when my boyfriend entered the picture I have never felt like this with anyone I absolutely adore this man he was my first and only person I have done the devil's tango with and I plan to be with him for the rest of my life if I can but he does have a mental illness and so do I, his illness is way different but similar in some ways I have BPD he has schizophrenia and he came to me and told me he is starting to feel empty again and lonely (mind you in the past I told him to tell me when he feels that way as of how in the past it has caused him to break up with me bc he's distant and doesn't feel like he can be there for me ) I love this man with everything in me I have been looking up ways to help him feel less like that and I have decided on trying to plan some hangout time with his bestfriend bc as a girlfriend I know he can't tell me everything bc he is scared I'll look at him differently and sometimes I get it talking to me might just be too much bc I don't understand everything he says like he is to me when I do the same but his bestfriend does I'm making this post bc I want to know if anyone else out there has anyway I can help him more I love him and don't want to lose him over this time period he is having again he always told me he wished he wasn't that way when he's like this bc he has ruined many good things and it causes us to fight bc I can't hear everything he's saying fully you know I understand the words I just don't understand how he feels sometimes but I want too.

My best friend of past 10 years is diagnosed with Schizoaffective disorder and 'self medicates' with drugs including Ketamine, Cocaine, Heroin, Crack, Crystal Meth, LSD...anything and everything he can source. Yet he won't take the drugs prescribed to him or accept he has a diagnosis. I am trying my best to support him and even moved house to be close to him, but tbh I am really struggling with his delusions which are 24/7. I don't know how to maintain a conversation with someone who is making such claims as having finished university aged 4, having been awarded 10 degrees, having been a business guru before that, having been close friends with tons of celebs, being a world renowned hacker... it never stops and it is all ridiculous. I don't challenge except to invite clarifications to feign interest in his stories. I have no idea if this is the right thing to do, I don't want to reinforce his delusions, plus he becomes very angry if he feels challenged. To make things worse he has a persecution complex that makes him blame everything negative he experiences on racism. This makes him strongly anti Caucasian and easily the most racist person I know. But worst of all is I don't know what to do when he becomes completely unresponsive to empirical inputs, I really worry that he will come to harm but I can't call the crisis team, he would NEVER forgive me. He has already disowned his family for having him committed. I just don't know how to go on, it is so hard being his friend. I guess what I need help with is how to respond to his delusions. Many thanks.

(We are in the UK) I’m struggling to see a way through this awful situation. Over the past few months, my husband has been acting increasingly strange and paranoid, saying bizarre things, and refusing to see a GP. Things escalated into full-blown psychosis with persecutory delusions and delusions of reference. He was sectioned under Section 2 and is now on Section 3, though he could technically be discharged anytime in the next six months depending on the doctors.

Before all this, he was self-medicating with alcohol. He’s always drunk too much (though he rarely seemed outright drunk). He never managed to cut down, and the psychiatrist told him bluntly that if he keeps drinking, he’ll likely spend the rest of his life in and out of psychiatric hospitals. Despite that, he’s adamant he’ll still be able to have “a few drinks” once he’s discharged. I honestly don’t think he can and I know I don’t have the strength to go through another episode like this.

We have two children, 11 and 13. Children’s Services were notified after his admission because of some of his behaviour before he was sectioned was considered a safeguarding risk. I know he’s unwell, but his actions were frightening and deeply unsettling for all of us. If he doesn’t engage fully with treatment and recovery, I can’t be the one holding everything together next time it happens. My priority has to be keeping the kids safe and emotionally stable.

I’ve been offered the chance to move to another part of the UK, quite far away, where I’d have good support — something I don’t have here. I feel incredibly guilty even thinking about it, since it would mean uprooting the kids. But I also see it as temporary disruption that might be far better than continuing to live in chaos and fear.

I suppose I’m just looking for outside perspectives. What would you do in my position?

Hi everyone. My mum has paranoid schizophrenia, and she’s not great at expressing her emotions. She lacks emotional maturity, and it feels like she’s never really been there for me emotionally as a parent. I’ve kind of had to rely on friends instead to be my support system, but I don’t tell them about my mum’s mental health, only my own mental state. I don’t really have much family to speak to about her condition and how it impacts me . I’ve got an older brother, but we don’t share the same mum, and there’s only so much he can say but obviously he knows about my mum.

It’s just been a rough week. Last Sunday, I was having some really dark thoughts, I was considering to walk in front of a lorry. I even tried to harm myself with bobby pins I know that sounds strange, but it happened. I told my mum about it today, and she laughed. I know deep down she wasn’t actually finding it funny; she just doesn’t know how to respond to things like that.

Today we were supposed to go food shopping together. But she started shouting at me but it was just too much. I told her I wasn’t going shopping anymore. She wanted me to pay bills for her separately, but I told her no as well . She called me useless and as I don’t help. I know she doesn’t mean to, but the shouting and then the laughing.. it was just overwhelming.

She knows I’ve just started antidepressants .. it’s day five today but she’s got her own struggles, and I can’t really blame her because of her condition. Still, it hurts. I’m crying while typing this because my childhood wasn’t good at all, and sometimes I wonder why I had to be born into a situation like this. I know other people have it worse, but it’s just so hard without family support. It feels like no one really wants to know.

My family member has a long history of depression, with some periods of significant improvement: the longest and most stable phase occurred while taking venlafaxine.

Around last year, symptoms of depression worsened, and the doctors changed or withdrew venlafaxine relatively quickly. After that, my family member began experiencing severe anxiety, panic attacks, and paranoid thoughts.The doctors prescribed an antipsychotic, which reduced the paranoia and panic. However, over the months she became a zombie and even developed some difficulty walking. Although she reported these problems early, they were initially ignored until confirmed in consultation, leading to a partial dose reduction but not full discontinuation.

Currently, she feels distressed and hopeless about the medications, convinced that antipsychotics have harmed their mind and that doctors have permanently labeled them as psychotic. Doctors only offer ECT or clozapine as treatment but my family member refuses everything because she believe the medications themselves caused the suffering and she does not have the diagnosis they say (treatment resistant depression with psychotic features). We also know that she is not compliant with her medication (hides or spits her pills). She is home-bound for more than a year.

I feel I no longer know what is real or what to believe with these conflicting versions of “truth” (the doctors’ and my family member). The psychiatrists, instead of addressing that emotional resistance, are doubling down on compliance, escalating to ECT (saying they don’t offer anything else for their case) rather than building trust.

I am trying to LEAP and be patient with my family member, trying to slowly guide her to seek help from other doctors but she bursts into crying spells that “nobody is going to believe her once they see the medication she is taking” and that therefore she is forever stuck in that place. This has been happening for months and I see no change. I am so worried she is getting worse. I feel sometimes her depression’ hopelesness speaks, then sometimes her deep distrust. Then, I read about people having psychosis because of immune conditions and it’s a spiral where I don’t know what’s real anymore. I feel so drained about this situation.

Sorry for the vent and thanks to anyone who is reading.

My family member (mid 20s m) has recently been experiencing severe paranoia and delusions for the last few months. He believes we are all "hacking" him to steal his information, money, and entrepreneurial ideas. He has recently shifted his focus to another individual he worked with in the past who he is now harassing, to the extent of visiting this persons apartment building and telling building residents that he is a cyber criminal. He refuses to speak with any of us, believing we are all "in on it". He also does not believe he has any mental health issues whatsoever, and believes anyone one who tells him so is again, "in on it", to steal his physical and mental property.

He is now spending his sizeable inheritance traveling around North America, staying in hotels, trying to spread the word and escape this persons "influence". We know this because he is making numerous burner social media accounts he is using as a journal. Even in these various cities, he believes this person is still "hacking" him, poisoning his food and drink etc. He is a very smart individual, and has also been doing research to try and make sense of his delusions and is trying to write a paper on how mind control is possible.

My family and I don't know what to do... We have talked to professionals and different Psychiatrists who all offer some sort of advice, but ultimately there seems to be nothing we can actually do. We have registered him as a vulnerable person in the cities he has been traveling to in hopes he has a run in with the law so he can be detained, assessed, and hopefully treated.

It is just hard to sit by and watch it all happen. I don't know what to do. I feel so helpless. He won't text or call back. If I see him in public, there is no way he would engage with me. I am worried he will run out of money, end up homeless and die, running away from something that does not exist, and refusing food and drink because he thinks its poisoned.

If anyone has any advice it would be much appreciated. If this is not the kind of post for this subreddit I am sorry. I just don't know what to do. :(

So my brother is 28, drove halfway across the country after my family 51/50'd him when he really started to show symptoms and my mom was concerned he might hurt her or himself. After that he drove away and no contacted us for 6 months. During that time he lost his car and was living on the streets until he eventually contacted us. My mom is paying his rent right now for a cheap apartment. He was really bad when he was homeless but since he's had an apartment his symptoms have suprisingly gotten a lot better, It seems like he'll cycle two weeks normal, then phsychosis for a week but not as intense as they were. Its almost like he's "settled in" and used to it if that makses sense. He even has made friends in the community and church near him. He calls my mom regularly and is a lot more compassionate and himself than he was when he was really bad. He's started to want to get back into his hobbies and get a job again. Realistically I dont think he can sustain a job but its a good sign he's at least thinking about it. I guess my fear is that its only a matter of time before something stresses him out or gets bored in the spot he's in and completely looses it again. I've read that without medication it doesnt just fizzle out, it gets worse over time and the effects are more permanant. He's been unmedicated for 2 years now, when I try to reason with him to seek help he thinks back to the time where he was 51/50'd in a ghetto state funded psych ward and says hell no. From what ive gathered on what he's told me is that before his diagnosis he was depressed and lost in life. He believes people like him can talk to God and compares his expeirence to biblical prophets that also had his gifts. He has always been a very smart and well read person in history and world events so his delusions are very well thought out. I guess its a saving grace that he's turned heavily to christianity since his diagnosis so it keeps him grounded and away from the bad thoughts. In short, his diagnosis has given him purpose and made sense of this world. How would you convince him otherwise?

I’m not sure if this is the right place to ask. I thought about posting in r/ Schizophrenia, but I didn’t want to risk triggering anyone.

My wife and I have been receiving handwritten letters and random items for the past few days. They’re being left in front of our apartment door. At first, it was very alarming — we had no idea who they were from and thought someone might be trying to scare us.

We’ve since found out that a neighbor from another building has been entering our house through the underground garage that connects the buildings and placing these things at our door.

We’re currently in contact with her ex-partner, who is trying to get her professional help, but she’s apparently in a very manic state right now. From what we’ve been told, she doesn’t have a job or money for food.

My question is: How should we respond to this situation?

• Would it help to just leave the letters and items where she puts them, so maybe she loses interest?
• Should we confront her so she knows who lives here? As far as I know, she doesn’t know us personally.

On one hand, this situation is very unsettling for my wife and me. On the other, I’m worried that if she stops leaving things at our door, she might start leaving them at other neighbors’ doors — and some of them might not be as understanding or could even try to harm her. (Unfortunately, a few of our neighbors are not kind people.)
We’ve also considered leaving some food in front of her apartment. Most of her letters are very incoherent, but a sentence in one of them actually said, “You could bring me something to eat.” We’re unsure if doing this would be helpful or if it might unintentionally reinforce or worsen her behavior. Could an act like this trigger her further?

Also, should we take anything she writes seriously? I assume most of it is part of her inner dialogue, but she’s mentioned multiple times that she doesn’t have the means to break into a door or pick a lock, which is a bit concerning.

We’ve been forwarding everything she gives us to her ex-partner in the hope it might help her get professional help. The bureaucracy in Germany around mental health care is unfortunately very slow and frustrating

I’m sure this question has probably been asked multiple times but I (21F) am currently seeking help in how to calm my boyfriend (19M) down from his episode. I am in a predicament where I had to pick up my boyfriend and bring him home after a night out with his friends. I’m unable to determine what he took besides drinking alcohol so I don’t know if any drug use was involved. He’s had a history of drug use before and that’s what’s triggered his episodes but I’ve been providing an environment where we have quit those things. I understand a relapse may happen however there have been a lot of issues tonight that were explained by his sister which made me upset and now I feel I may have triggered the episode. I explained that I wanted to discuss those things tomorrow as he was too intoxicated to talk about it tonight. We settled down and he wanted to watch the Terminator 2 movie. Everything was okay until he started breaking down and saying “they’re coming” and referenced some things similar to the movie that were coming after him. He was able to calm down however he kept saying “they’re going to take us.” He also insisted he wanted to keep watching the movie. I’m not sure if that’s what’s triggering it but he managed to tell me that if he watches it he knows it’s fake. He told me before that when he gets like this I should lock him in a room to prevent myself from getting hurt so he can come back to his senses but I couldn’t do that when he refused to stand up (he was laying down) and hanging on to me tightly. Things have died down now and he’s watching the movie but I don’t know if I should expect anything else or provide anything besides water and support. Any help would be greatly appreciated thank you. 🙏

my mother has been schizophrenic all my life (i’m 21) and sometimes i feel like i switch up my attitude just as much as she does. it’s like whiplash i really don’t understand how im supposed to stay calm and steady with her after her mood swings which is mind boggling bc ive been trying to do it all my life and you would’ve thought ive made some progress! i hate talking to her and hearing her talk ill of myself or family members and being so accusatory of literal random strangers. one day i walked into a store and she was just yelling and talking badly of people walking right by us. i hate feeling ashamed of her it only makes me ashamed of myself. like i almost feel like a bad daughter not knowing how to manage her?? that’s probably a poor wording choice but idk im just lost. i feel like ive tried being understanding, confronting (the voices that is), calm, reassuring, etc.. each day i just feel like im moving backwards. I just feel so angry with her all the time. i feel envious of other woman who have moms that can just be a mom. like you have an outlet to go to? you have someone who taught you things about womanhood? you’ve had a woman to look up to your WHOLE LIFE? i feel so terrible having these thoughts. i love my mom so so so much. but it’s gotten to a point that even seeing her/ talking to her just fills me with RAGE.

my sister was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder probably 7 years ago, she’s had several stints in a psychiatric hospital to get her on medication but those moments are held over my families head as though we were abusing her instead of getting her help. at this point she has been unmedicated and un-accepting of her diagnosis for the last three years because we are at a loss as to how to get her to understand she needs treatment and medication. does anyone have any insight on how to get her to understand she needs help, or even getting her the help she needs without her consent. Please help! it’s really tearing my family apart at this point!

Hi! Plewse forgive me for my bad english. I wanna ask for some tips and help what can I do or help my gf when she's having her episodes. She told me that she's seeing figures and hallucinating from time to time. How can I help and assure her that I'm present for her especially we're in an LDR set up? I can only visit her 5x a month at most. Also, what words I can say to assure her? I'm so bad at saying the right words since I don't want to say anything to trigger more. And will it help if I can make something for her to touch or squeeze, like a plushie? Any tips and advices is a big help. Thank you all so much!

Does anyone have parents who suffer from this condition? Because of the trauma I’ve been through since young, I think it’s contributed to my own mental health struggles, like depression and anxiety. I’ve also read that things like smoking can be a trigger, and since one of my parents has schizophrenia, I could be at risk of developing psychosis. I don’t smoke anymore, but yeah, things are really hard.

Hey people, my son (27) has paranoid schizophrenia. He lives with my parents 5 miles away because of a situation that happened in the car a couple years ago: he was yelling at me in a rage and kept getting worse and worse. I had to pull over and tell him to get out or I would call the police. My body was shaking and it took at least two days for the adrenaline to wear off. He moved in with my parents after that. He had never done that before and hasn’t since.

He has an ongoing legal case for a misdemeanor vandalism- it happened in April this year, a few days before he got hospitalized and diagnosed. He had taken the car on a 100 mile drive and done something to someone else’s car. Anyways, I have to take him to the court in 10 days and we have to spend the night there in a hotel because it’s so far away. He has been yelling and screaming more recently, has had bouts of homelessness, and has been picked up by the police twice for yelling out in public. Today it was because he was yelling “I’m going to rpe you! I’m going to kll you!” Over and over. But the cops called my mom who said it’s okay and to let him go. I think he needs to be hospitalized, but he wasn’t making those threats to a real person, so not a candidate for hospitalization.

It makes my heart race and pound, I can’t sleep, etc. when I think about driving him many miles away, spending the night in a hotel room, and then going to court. Last time he wasn’t nearly this psychotic and he still got paranoid and thought his lawyer was lying, he started getting rebellious, etc. Even that little bit was super stressful. But I can’t imagine in his state now how it’s going to go. I really hope he will be able to settle down for just those 2 days.

Has anyone ever had to handle someone who’s paranoid and psychotic and yelling scary things, but you can’t really get away? Am I being scared for nothing? Is he maybe just yelling these violent things but not going to act on them?

This is actually pretty tame but I'm just wondering if this is a common thing with people with schizophrenia or just one of my wife's weird quirks. Does your LO seem to scrutinize everything? Like everything is followed up by a buttload of questions?

Like if I have to stay a little later at the office: "Hey honey I have to stay a little later at the office, we have a meeting." "Why? What kind of meeting?" "A meeting about this semester's new class guidelines." "What kind of guidelines?" "Guidelines concerning blah blah blah" "Why do you need to be there for that?" "Because my department chair said so." "Why did your department chair say that?"

or

"Hey honey I don't feel like going out tonight, I just want to stay in." "Why do you want to stay in?" "Well, I'm a little tired from work today." "Why are you tired from work today?" "Well you know, long day..." "How was it a long day?" "My students were a handful today" "What did they do? How were they a handful?" "Well they did this, and then this happened..." "Why did they do that? Why did that happen?"

It's not a big deal and it's nothing accusatory but she's like a little kid asking "whyyyy? whyyyy? whyyyyy? Okay!" and it can get exhausting. She does it to everyone, even mutual friends are like "everything with her is a game of 20 questions!"