Quote:
Originally Posted by mgran
Acropora, I understand what you mean about the diagnoses potentially ruining your life in the wrong hands. For example, my neighbours already dislike me, and my landlady is friendly with them, and listens to their gossip rather than finding out what's really going on. I've had to ask an agency that helps people with mental illnesses to mediate between me and my landlady... now I'm worried because she definitely knows, from the remit of the agency that's helping me, that I have a "severe and enduring mental health problem." On the other hand, the agency offers me protection, and will serve my interests with housing needs... perhaps it will now be harder for my landlady to get rid of me, since to do so would betray prejudice.
But yes, I do live in anxiety about people knowing. So far my family know, though my father's in denial, a friend from church (a clinical psychologist) and my minister and his wife. Other than that the people who know are those who are involved with me as part of a support team.
Thank God I live in England, where support is easier to come by.
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Myself being male seems to compound this problem since from what I've heard the disorder is not as common in males as females. That is sad to hear about ur landlady...I own my house so am glad I dont have that to deal with. Though has already started to change my life from within,as well, in my case it seems to be initiating a divorce after a a 17 year marriage...being 36 it seems hard to figure how to start and move on with a new life, I have 2 children 6 and 9 and thankfuly I have no violent character traits as some I've read do.
I often wonder now, what would/could have become of my life just if I never was diagnosed with such a stigmatizing disorder, I have had everything one could need and live a good life though now slowly changing toward a unknown situation...all because of what was a three day peak period where I gradualy slipped into psycosis and was involentarly comittment by the hospital.I always kept the mild symtoms to myself before then.
I remember most of it, thinking people could read my mind thinking the main psycologist was Walt Disney, thinking I was getting messeges from Television...and more but in my case i was overly amused by all this instead of violent.
after a 8 days in commitment....I came out feeling normal again, normal to me being mild halucinations and delusions, now after being on meds so long most of this is gone but the stigma is still there.
I feel the same as people that know the full story....how could this actually happen to him/me, now my pdoc is saying that the Abilifiy manufactures say Im on a dose that they would never recomend at 60 mil and I need to be put on something else....along with the meds for ADHD (vyavance) and (Ativan) for anxiety as well as (Metoprolol) for my heart rate, sleeping meds and more.
So to try to explain even half of this to someone in general just seems like a imposibility without having a stigma stampd to my forhead in big letters
SCHIZOAFFECTIVE DISORDER....REJECT
oh well though right, life has to move on in a possitive direction.
sorry bout the ramble.
acro