Schizoaffective Check In Thread #1

bpforever1 · Jun 12, 2020, 04:20 AM

I'm doing well. The advice I got from the manager is helping me perform as a teacher. I am happy. I took my medication this morning, then taught. Afterwards, I slept and woke up then prepared for tomorrow's lessons. I feel great. I went outside for a walk and up the stairs again.

Life is not bad. However, I am expected to show up at the teaching center starting in July. I hope I don't get sick!! We have to wear masks but still. I am not sure how safe it is.

I am doing well otherwise. I am relaxed so far.

I'm trying to practice to smile more!! lol, what a life!!

Fuzzybear · Jun 12, 2020, 05:50 AM

Hugs and love to all. I hope everyone has a good day today, with moments of joy or happiness

Breaking Dawn · Jun 12, 2020, 06:23 AM

The same to you, @Fuzzybear!

bpforever1 · Jun 15, 2020, 03:31 AM

I have a lot of preparation work to do for my lessons now. I am busy working and sleeping. I still like my job. I feel great!

I am wearing my contacts and feel amazing. I walked a little outside and went up the stairs again. I feel fine. The weather is hot and humid here. I feel tired most of the time. I have the air conditioner on but it is still a bit hot.

I am trying to look my best. It has been effective. People are noticing me. I feel good about myself.

I wish I weren't so tired though. I am sleepy and have to sleep a lot. But, it is ok. I've been managing so far.

Life is not bad!

WastingAsparagus · Jun 15, 2020, 08:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bpforever1

I have a lot of preparation work to do for my lessons now. I am busy working and sleeping. I still like my job. I feel great!

I am wearing my contacts and feel amazing. I walked a little outside and went up the stairs again. I feel fine. The weather is hot and humid here. I feel tired most of the time. I have the air conditioner on but it is still a bit hot.

I am trying to look my best. It has been effective. People are noticing me. I feel good about myself.

I wish I weren't so tired though. I am sleepy and have to sleep a lot. But, it is ok. I've been managing so far.

Life is not bad!

I see you say you're tired a lot of the time. Have you ever considered a stimulant like Nuvigil or Provigil? They can sometimes help with alertness during the day.

childofchaos831 · Jun 15, 2020, 08:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WastingAsparagus

I see you say you're tired a lot of the time. Have you ever considered a stimulant like Nuvigil or Provigil? They can sometimes help with alertness during the day.

@bpforever1 we had noticed the same thing... Have you ever gone to a sleep doctor or a neurologist about being so tired all the time? We ask because we are diagnosed with narcolepsy and we had been sleepy all the time and falling asleep all the time. We're on Adderall now (we tried Provigil first), and we are a lot more alert and awake during the day and are still able to sleep at night.

bpforever1 · Jun 16, 2020, 04:29 AM

Thank you for your concern. I sleep about 11 hours a day. I try not to drink too much coffee and drink about 1 cup a day. Coffee is very stimulating for me and makes me nervous. I can try to drink more coffee but don't want the anxiety. I used to drink 2-3 cups of coffee per day. But, it was affecting my work. I was told I speak too fast and act nervous while caffeinated. Thus, I don't drink too much of it anymore. It does keep me awake also. I am sleepy in the mornings because I take my medication in the mornings also. I could switch it to the evenings but don' t want to do so because I might forget to take it. As a result, I am sleepy in the mornings and take naps during the day. I feel fine now. I am not sleepy after napping. I don't sleep that much at night about 5 - 6 hours because of my schedule.

This morning I woke up at 4:45 am and had students from 6 am onward. Then, I had a break from 9am. I restart at 7pm again to teach more students. I initially did not like this schedule but like it now because I can nap during the day. I am doing fine.

Tomorrow, I have to wake up at 5:45 am . I have students from 7am onward.

I will be fine. I know I complain about being sleepy but it is not that bad. I am happy!!

Life is grand!

Breaking Dawn · Jun 16, 2020, 09:55 AM

Well, I seem to be having a very interesting morning. That's probably a good thing.

Deilla · Jun 17, 2020, 02:49 AM

I'm not doing well. I'm coming to the realization that I may never be able to support myself again. I'm trying to work on a music career and it's really stressing me. Not the actual music making but the promotion details and heart break that come with it. My voices are bad. They normally hum melodies and I don't notice them too much. But now because I am so stressed out, they are saying nonsense words to me. Over and over. Very loud too. I can never work again. I can't deal with the pressure. And I'm very depressed. My inner critic is beating me up terribly. I'm going to try to listen to some positive affirmations to drown out the voices. Wish me well. Thanks in advance and good wishes to all here!

WastingAsparagus · Jun 17, 2020, 12:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deilla

I'm not doing well. I'm coming to the realization that I may never be able to support myself again. I'm trying to work on a music career and it's really stressing me. Not the actual music making but the promotion details and heart break that come with it. My voices are bad. They normally hum melodies and I don't notice them too much. But now because I am so stressed out, they are saying nonsense words to me. Over and over. Very loud too. I can never work again. I can't deal with the pressure. And I'm very depressed. My inner critic is beating me up terribly. I'm going to try to listen to some positive affirmations to drown out the voices. Wish me well. Thanks in advance and good wishes to all here!

I totally empathize with music promotion being very difficult.

Can you listen to music to drown out the negative voices?

Sometimes listening to music (loud) helps me. It depends on the mood you're in. But if I put on like Jimi Hendrix or something it will help me get out of my head. Music has that power.

Sorry you're feeling bad.

Deilla · Jun 17, 2020, 12:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WastingAsparagus

I totally empathize with music promotion being very difficult.

Can you listen to music to drown out the negative voices?

Sometimes listening to music (loud) helps me. It depends on the mood you're in. But if I put on like Jimi Hendrix or something it will help me get out of my head. Music has that power.

Sorry you're feeling bad.

Some times music helps me. I have to be in the mood to listen to it. I get so emotional with music though. And sometimes it depresses me. I find listening to audio books and feel good tv help. And I like positive self-talk audios. Thank you so much for the support.

Breaking Dawn · Jun 17, 2020, 12:17 PM

Lots of hugs & love to you @Deilla!!

bpforever1 · Jun 20, 2020, 05:37 AM

I am feeling really stressed out! I have too much work to do for preparing for my lessons. I am overwhelmed and feel really out of it! The people I'm working with keep asking me to do favors for them too. I don't think I should say yes anymore. I'm tired and exhausted!! I don't feel right!! I will need to teach my last lesson tonight and sleep. Hopefully, I will feel better tomorrow!!

bpforever1 · Jun 20, 2020, 07:14 AM

I feel better by just letting it go for tonight. I took on another extra two hours today of classes and it threw me off. I will be ok. But, tomorrow will be busy for me! I'm usually pretty upbeat but this work load is killing me at times. I am trying to do a good job but know I need to maintain my sanity first. I am sure I will become quicker with time. I like my job but is is not as easy as I thought. I will be fine though. I just need to rest. I have only one class tomorrow but need to go food shopping. I will be busy but it is doable. I'm not happy about the people asking me favors though. I wish I could say no and will find excuses to do so next time. They're taking advantage of me. I know this. I try to be nice but it does not help me and my sanity. Life is stressful but not unmanageable.

WastingAsparagus · Jun 20, 2020, 01:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bpforever1

I feel better by just letting it go for tonight. I took on another extra two hours today of classes and it threw me off. I will be ok. But, tomorrow will be busy for me! I'm usually pretty upbeat but this work load is killing me at times. I am trying to do a good job but know I need to maintain my sanity first. I am sure I will become quicker with time. I like my job but is is not as easy as I thought. I will be fine though. I just need to rest. I have only one class tomorrow but need to go food shopping. I will be busy but it is doable. I'm not happy about the people asking me favors though. I wish I could say no and will find excuses to do so next time. They're taking advantage of me. I know this. I try to be nice but it does not help me and my sanity. Life is stressful but not unmanageable.

Have you heard about work-life balance? Might be a helpful concept to think about...

Is there any way you can decline those requests from others without them getting angry about it?

It sounds like you need to maintain your mental health. You should prioritize your mental health before work favors, in my opinion.

If you feel like they're taking advantage of you, can you tell them that you're not able to do things like that?

You can just say no, you know?

Deilla · Jun 20, 2020, 01:59 PM

I'm doing much better today. My voices are manageable. I'm so glad. I am calm today. I feel cheerful. I do well if I take things one tiny step at a time. I have a gargantuan mountain to climb. I'm giving myself a year to do it. Hope everyone is well!

bpforever1 · Jun 21, 2020, 05:07 AM

I felt better this morning and did all of my work. I also got some prep work done for this week's lessons. I am doing well again!! I was feeling out of it last night. But, today has been great! I went shopping for food. Then, I returned and vacuumed, cleaned the bathroom, and now am doing my laundry. I am doing great! Sleep does wonders for my head. I have to go to the doctor tomorrow. I am running out of medication. I hope I don't have to see him each month, but we shall see. I did not see him last month due to covid-19. I feel fine again!! The weather here is muggy though. I don't like it and am sweating when I go outside. I signed up to substitute for other teachers who go on vacation. I hope I can do this. I am doing fine but at times feel overwhelmed like yesterday. But, I will manage somehow by resting and relaxing when possible. The key is to rest when I can.

WastingAsparagus · Jun 21, 2020, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bpforever1

I felt better this morning and did all of my work. I also got some prep work done for this week's lessons. I am doing well again!! I was feeling out of it last night. But, today has been great! I went shopping for food. Then, I returned and vacuumed, cleaned the bathroom, and now am doing my laundry. I am doing great! Sleep does wonders for my head. I have to go to the doctor tomorrow. I am running out of medication. I hope I don't have to see him each month, but we shall see. I did not see him last month due to covid-19. I feel fine again!! The weather here is muggy though. I don't like it and am sweating when I go outside. I signed up to substitute for other teachers who go on vacation. I hope I can do this. I am doing fine but at times feel overwhelmed like yesterday. But, I will manage somehow by resting and relaxing when possible. The key is to rest when I can.

I'm glad you feel better now.

Deilla · Jun 21, 2020, 03:40 PM

Today has been a little hard. Some ups and downs. I'm on a down right now. I didn't do housework today so I feel really bad. I might try to get at least one thing done. And I always have tomorrow.

Breaking Dawn · Jun 21, 2020, 05:19 PM

I am feeling a lot of gratitude for this way of staying connected, & for something within myself that seems to give me direction, like a spiritual compass.

Deilla · Jun 22, 2020, 02:12 PM

I'm having ups and downs again today. And I've been stressed, so my voices are driving me crazy. I spent some time working on art and music, which really helped a lot. I might listen to some positive self-talk for a while and try to relax. Hope all of you are well!

bpforever1 · Jun 23, 2020, 05:07 AM

I went to the doc yesterday and got refills. I am doing fine. He said I am doing great and don't have to see him next month but in two months. I am absolutely fabulous!! I feel great! I had to wake up at 4:45 am to teach my morning shift. I have a night shift now. I want to take on more classes but have not heard anything yet for substituting for other teachers. We are not going to show up in person yet because the number of infections and deaths have risen here. I am not complaining and am happy to stay at home. And, no student has complained about me for awhile!! I feel awesome! I woke up and took my medication. I took a nap after my morning shift then woke up to do my prep work. I am just waiting for a class to start now, Life is not bad!. I should exercise more but it is humid here. I will go out in two days though. I have to pay some bills. I am hoping you all do well too! If not, hopefully you will hang in there.

bpforever1 · Jun 24, 2020, 03:46 AM

I feel great today also! I got another new student for next month but am hoping to receive more students. I like teaching. It is fun. I don't earn much, but am getting by.

It is hot and humid here!! Awful!! I did not go out today either.

Tomorrow, I will go out. I will dress nicely and wear a mask.

I am happy!