Re: Schizophrenia and the journey to recovery

I did very well in school without much effort. I did particularly well in science which is why I chose Chemistry as my major in college. Surprisingly, when I finally got to college I did my best when I was in a total psychotic episode. Somehow it brought life to my papers I wrote and allowed me to think in a very abstract way. My professors seemed to look forward to my projects. Eventually however, I ended up in the hospital too many times and was forced to quit school just shy of my bachelors degree because I was misdiagnosed as having depression and the medication they put me on made my symptoms worse. It took me 20 years to finally get a correct diagnosis and until recently have just been riding the wave of life’s ups and downs with a lot of twists and turns. I found myself choosing all the wrong friends who only would use me because I was always willing to help out other people in need because, in a way, it helped me cope with the fact that I had issues bigger than I would admit at the time. Now, I’m finally trying to commit to staying on medication and counseling so that one day I can finish school and live the life I always wanted for myself. Healing in itself is a long process and I believe I’ve been working on it for so long by myself that I’ve developed some very realistic ways to cope with Schizophrenia but I also realize that I can’t do it alone anymore. I’ve opened up to my family about my mental illness and I’m slowly learning to accept what I can’t change. It’s been a hard and lonely road but I can finally see that there is light at the end and the path to understanding myself is becoming more clear. I’m happy to say that I’m now a proud person who happens to have schizophrenia and not a just a schizophrenic person. Mental issues have been a blessing in some aspects of my life and in others it has hindered me, but from the pebbles left behind I’m slowly building my life back and at the end I will be the best version of myself. Through my faith in myself and a power greater than myself I know there is hope.
Love and light my friend. 🎃. Happy fall days to you