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Juliaspavlov: Husband does not believe in schizophrenia...
I'm not so sure I do either at times. What I do believe in is that people can go through periods of extreme crisis and they may need assistance from other people for a while in order to successfully move through those crisis states. Will everybody be able to do so? No. For reasons I don't yet understand, not everyone will.
He says you may as well try to understand the meaning of the universe than understand a 'label' of schitzophrenia.
I can appreciate his sentiments. In a nutshell... if you have an experience of psychosis, that's psychosis. If you keep having experiences of psychosis from time to time, that's schizophrenia. Personally, I prefer to think of it as psychosis that's not yet been resolved.
There are two factors that can help guide you in understanding your son's experience: the first is
cause, the second is
model.
Cause: There are a lot of theories out there in regard to what causes psychosis in the first place. For this reason, psychosis has been described as the "fever" of mental health -- it can be present alongside a number of other factors. Mainstream psychiatry tends to push the biomedical model to the extent that most people believe that's the only cause, but it's far from the only one. In spite of the confusion, it can be helpful to try and identify any triggering factors because this can help determine the best treatment options. For example, sometimes the use of streets drugs can produce psychosis. In these instances, the cure is usually pretty simple -- stop taking drugs and the psychosis goes away. As another example, there is a link between trauma and psychosis. An individual experiencing psychosis who also has some heavy trauma in his or her past will likely benefit from therapy that will assist them in dealing with the trauma. For a sampling of some of the factors that are thought to produce schizophrenia and psychosis, try here:
Presumed Causes of Schizophrenia & Psychosis.
Model: Over the years, people have identified a number of causes and then created models of approach to address those causes. Some of the models include the
biomedical model,
the mystical model and the
myth-of-mental-illness model. Each model contains different treatment approaches and it's possible that one will fit your son better than the others. For a brief introduction to various models of approach, try here:
Controversies Over Cause of Schizophrenia.
If you identify more with the medical model, I suggest you read up on the work of
Dr. Jaakko Seikkula. If you identify more with the mystical model, I suggest the work of
Dr. John Weir Perry. I toss those two names around a lot and I do so because both of those doctors have (or did have) a recovery rate in the range of 80-85%. This exceeds by far what most psychiatrists in this culture are able to produce -- a number of whom don't even believe recovery is possible. It's beyond me how anyone who doesn't believe in recovery could possible produce it in others, but maybe that's my own personal bias.
Meantime, if trauma may play a role I suggest the work of
Dr. Bertam Karon and
Dr. John Read.
Your best bet is to read them all, but if you prefer to pick and choose, you've got a few options to choose from.
Meanwhile, if you were going to read only one book on schizophrenia I would recommend
Mad in America as a solid introduction to the complexities of schizophrenia and it's treatment.
It's possible that other people will have some other recommendations for you. Best of luck to you and your son.