Had some really good talks with my son recently

Same here. You can overdose on it. I guess some people use it to get high: http://ehealthforum.com/health/benad...e-t144141.html http://www.kmbc.com/r/15381731/detail.html

Personally I think it is. It's not popular to say so anymore, because 1) it sounds like you're blaming parents and 2) you sell more drugs if you convince people they have a "broken brain," an incurable life-long genetic condition for which the only treatment is antipsychotic medication.

It's my understanding that schizophrenia used to be called "schizophrenic reaction" in an earlier version of the DSM. Implicit in that name is the idea of something external which the person is reacting to. The term schizophrenia makes it sound more like the person is flawed or damaged in some way.

It's got to be said, I don't know anyone with a schizophrenic spectrum disorder who didn't have some stress in their background. My mother had a terribly traumatic childhood, and mine, while not as materially deprived was no bed of roses. My first memory that I'm clear on is the front windscreen of our car blossoming out as a silver spiders web, then collapsing in on us as the bullet intended for my father passed through. Later that day they firebombed our house, and we had to leave the country. That wasn't even the worst of it.

If I'd been raised in a cultural background where I didn't feel alien, if I wasn't worried about people murdering my parents, and if my mother hadn't been "mad," would I have ended up "mad"? It's hard to know. My brother survived. Perhaps he was stronger, or perhaps it is just that he is younger, and can't remember some of the stuff I do.

Anyway... yes, I think I am still working through some real baggage.

My adopted son's home life in his bio family was horrible too. His sisters were adopted by another family. The older one will be 19 soon, and she's "psychotic." From her adoptive mom's point of view she inherited a mental illness from her bio family. But I can't help but wonder if her incredibly traumatic childhood isn't the problem.

While my bio son didn't experience the kind of horrific childhood that my adopted son did, he definitely feels it was stressful. His dad abandoned him. I was poor. We moved around a lot. He tells me those were painful for him. His dad was Nigerian, so he also experienced being raised as the only black in a white family. He was also the victim of bullies at every school he ever attended. I don't think it helped at all that he started drinking and taking drugs when he was in high school.

Would other people find that to be stressful enough to lead to psychosis? Well, lots of people have similar childhoods without becoming psychotic. Maybe it's a combination of personality and experience. Possibly thinking style and social isolation contribute too. I just don't accept that it's as simple as having a diseased brain.

OCD can cause psychosis,that's what my nurse said.
I don't have a diagnosis though bedcause my doctor doesn't label.

I don't think there is anything wrong with me, I just react to what they are doing to me, I really think they gave me medication ,so I'd shut up about it, but I won't take it again.

I'm not believing their threats of hospital, I can see through the lies.

I had a very traumatic childhood also..hmm makes you wonder. My father who also had an abusive childhood was dx later in life, my mother had an abusive childhood and is in my opinion in need of mental help.

I don't get delusions the way your son is describing, but I find it really interesting, the many ways this can come out. I'm glad your son is talking to you. I am 32 and am only now barely talk to my family about this. I am really glad he has a mom like you to talk to and a good therapist. That's more than important.

I can only explain my psychosis like a waking nightmare. Or when I have to go to sleep, I really don't want to go in my head with whatever is creating this.

I didn't know omegas helped with this, I have been taking them for months now , I hope it will help.

It amazes me how many children with trauma histories hear voices. And your voice, Anika. What did it say? Something like "You'll find out soon enough." It even sounds like something a threatening parent might say to a child. That was actually my first thought when I read your post last week.

I'm sorry you can't talk to your family, but depending on your history you may not feel safe talking with them about it.

My son says the same thing.

It sounds very scary.

The idea is to try and balance omega 3's with omega 6's. People who eat a Western diet are out of whack, with way too many omega 6's. In addition to taking fish oil you might want to try to cut back on processed foods.

I've always viewed the schizophrenic spectrum like a foreign language - the same basic thinking is there, just being conveyed to us (and through us to others) in a different way. I don't feel broken or damaged, but my behavior and expression (and sometimes lack of expression) certainly aren't what various doctors tell me is "normal". Still, as your son proves (and myself, I feel), the language can be interpreted. It just takes a patient person to figure out the lingo.

My wife knows my nuances better than I do, for example. She's taken the time to explain to me how she knows what various things I say or do mean, and I'm often surprised not only at her accuracy, but that I conveyed those things at all. I hate outward expression that I am not in control of, I hate it more than almost anything. Loss of control is something that terrifies me. Because of this, what expressions I do have are apparently very subtle. She notes that I fidget two fingers on my left hand in a very particular way when I'm getting anxious, and the same two fingers on my right hand and the same time as the left when I'm angry. I never knew I did that.

My face is a terrible indication of my moods, because I am almost always aware of what it is showing, and it is usually deliberate. Guess I can't keep all the various extremities in check. :P

Glad to see you visiting, ER. You always have great insights. Hope your job is going well.

I hope my son finds someone like your wife to love him. I know he desperately wants a relationship - and in fact all of his psychotic episodes have prominently featured delusions about girlfriends, wives, children.

He's continued to confide in me more and more of his experiences and thoughts while in psychosis. It's really startling how much he remembers of what was happening - and his interpretations of things at the time.

Currently he's interested in his piano and has been practicing literally hours a day. Last night I had to ask him to stop and rest because he was getting so frustrated. We're going to find him a teacher.

Music is an amazing outlet of expression that helps me when words cannot. I hope he finds happiness in it.

I hope so too. He loves music. The last few days he's been working very hard at mastering The Entertainer by Scott Joplin.