So, I had a meaningful, intelligent conversation with my pdoc today about medication. Toward the end of the conversation, he claimed (again) that he had a schizophrenic patient with a PhD whose IQ at one point tested at 138 (because he had applied for mensa), but after refusing meds for 20 years, his IQ apparently plummeted to 86 (or so that was the value when he was retested).

I think 86 is not too far above the threshold for mental retardation, is it not? Or at least it’s below average. And if my pdoc’s word is anything to go by, I’m guessing at some point you would become “mentally retarded,” or so to speak, if you kept refusing meds. To me, that sounds a little odd and difficult to believe.

Is this actually a thing that happens, or do you think this is just another scare tactic? I have never heard of such a thing happening. However, I am not discounting it because I just don’t know. I’m not an expert in the field of psychiatry and don’t claim to be.