Hi,

A very good friend of mine I met in AA was diagnosed shizoaffective after a lot of other things. We're both recovering addicts and have loads of mental illnesses, but her diagnosis is really confusing. It also doesn't help because when I'm trying to read about it the research sucks. I'm bipolar I, so when I go manic I'm psychotic and delusional (I don't hallucinate some do). The best I can figure from talking with my friend is we BOTH go manic, but in our case I think my manias build up and last longer while hers pop up more frequently and are shorter. Like in my case the paranoia or delusions are a lot more intricate or have a well developed plot, so they may last longer because they are so real to me when I'm in the mania. With her she will just flip and hospital staff become Nazi soldiers. Either way it's all terrifying. I feel for you all being stuck between diagnosis. At one point my friend was diagnosed with dissociative disorder which is even worse because lawyers claim it is faked at trial. Really, when a person gets sober there's no telling what is wrong until they are clean for one or two years.

I'm sorry you all are not given the obvious support and recognition needed.