Friday, March 07, 2008
8:10 a.m. Wake up early, thanks to the Geodon. Slept ten hours to make up for not getting a wink of sleep on Tuesday. Eat high-fiber cereal, swallow the G. down with a glass of water. Must take the drug with food. Shower, get dressed, run out the door. 10:30. Arrive at work, take my morning brea...
Thank you for the excellent blog. It sounds like you have a very health diet! Btw, I did start taking Zyprexa yesterday, at a low dose. I was starting to hear constant irritating music and withdrawing. I do know I need to take it, but it is not easy. Thank you for being a good example of how to take care of yourself and how to cope.
Carolyn
You're welcome, Carolyn.
Chris
Hello Chris! You'd be such an excellent motivator for my brother... who has sz... did you ever consider that? seeing people and talking to them and giving them hope?
Is there anyway my brother can meet you? or you guys can talk? I dont think he ever spoke to someone who has sz.
Tell me, how long has it been since you first got sz? and what medications work best for you?
Hows your doctor? any good?
Hello _S_,
Right now I take 80 mg Geodon, twice a day with food, and that is the maintenance dose. You must take Geodon with food for it to be properly metabolized, and ideally, take it with 500 calories.
I was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1987, coming up on 21 years ago.
Regret I am not able to talk to anyone one-on-one yet at this point.
If your brother refuses to take meds and is in denial, it could be that he has anosognosia, which is a symptom of the illness, that is a lack of awareness that you are sick.
In that case, I always recommend that family members read Dr. Xavier Amador's book, I Am Not Sick, I Don't Need Help, which guides you through how to couch what you say, so that your loved one will take the medication.
I really have no energy right now to go beyond the mile and also have a number of physical problems that I'm attending to.
Respectfully,
Christina
Hello Chris... thanks for your reply :)
Actually, he is taking his meds and knows he's ill... he's taking respridal (might have spelt it wrong) and its been 5 years. The thing is, we dont really know if his case is schizophrenia or not, like his doctor says most probably but not sure since it isnt so strong with him. He graduated from university and is working now, he's just not really social or talkative and is very slow when responding to us, and cant make decisions. He seems to daze off a lot and sometimes not respond to conversation.
Hello _S_,
He could have a very mild form of schizophrenia, and if so, he would still need to take his medication. Not everyone with the sz hears voices or hallucinates. It is a disorder with a spectrum of manifestations and differing levels of severity. That said, the pain is all too real for someone living with the illness, and one of the NAMI peer support guidelines is that we won't judge anyone's pain as any lesser than our own.
He may be having residual "negative symptoms" even if he has no "positive symptoms." Negative symptoms could be a flat affect, lack of motivation, and general low mood.
The key is to take the meds as prescribed. There are still psychiatrists who believe that recovery isn't possible for someone with schizophrenia, so if they see someone doing well, those doctors believe the person might not need meds or was misdiagnosed.
The truth is, only a rare few people who have an extremely mild form of the sz could possibly function without the meds. The reality is, for optimal mental health, those of us diagnosed with schizophrenis need chemical intervention.
Best regards,
Chris