Reader’s Question

I was diagnosed with Paranoid Schizophrenia three years ago. I’ve managed to put a successful life back together together and have stopped taking medication for about a year. I have lost all my clients and a home I set up for my husband in a country I haven’t lived in for 12 years.

I need an objective professional opinion of the reality of my situation. My family members roll their eyes whenever I try to talk about what I’ve been through — including three hospitalizations, unusual symptoms, outbursts of panic and weeping, etc. They actually think I’ve just been lying about everything and discount all I’ve done to get well. Any reference to the good things I’ve experienced and achieved abroad is seen as another tall story.

Am I still paranoid? Should I go back on medication? I have documents to prove my successes, but I am still brushed off and treated as a liar. Please help me understand why I am treated this way. Is it my fault? Is this really happening to me?

Our Clinical Psychologist’s Reply

Schizophrenia is a disturbance of one’s thought processes, impairing logical, rational thinking. And although such disturbances can be of a transitory nature and prompted primarily by other conditions, it is more common that such a condition is relatively chronic, requiring consistent medical attention.

Compliance with treatment is one of the main issues that sometimes complicates treatment for thought disorders. Sometimes, the side effects of medications are a primary instigator of this, and sometimes aspects of the illness itself are at play.

Because of the nature of the illness, and because of the variability that can exist with respect to both etiology and the course of treatment, it’s very important to have stable, ongoing medical care and supervision.

The responses of family members to mental illness can vary considerably. In large measure, it’s an illness that affects the entire family system. For this and other reasons, several organizations have come into existence that address the typical concerns of individuals and their families touched by mental illness. Among such organizations, the US-based National Alliance on Mental Illness is widely recognized as a valuable resource.