Hello I am a recovering schizophrenic who discovered my illness through an unlikely crime. My illness led me to believe that demons were after me, which caused me to steal a military truck to try to get away. This incident alone turned my world upside down. I spent five months in a detentioin faciity and hospital. During my episode I experienced paranoia, hallucinations, catatonia, and other delusions. Below are examples of some of my bizzare experiences.
I thought that a relative was trying to harm me, and that the relative had killed her husband. I believed that family members were look-a-likes, therefore I asked them questions to verify their identity.
I also heard voices that told me I was a dishonor to my family, and they told me other insulting things as well. I did not believe people when they told me the date, I thought they were doing a prank on me. Instead I believed God was sending me messages through milk cartons that had the correct date on them. Throughout the course of my episode I experienced catatonia and thought I was remaining still, literally, for God to bless me.
Thank you for enabling me to share my story...Is there anyone out there who went to jail, like me, because of their illness?
Hi Valash,
Welcome.
Sure, I have a friend who spent six years in and out of jails because he committed a crime while psychotic. This happens to people.
You can recover. You can put the past behind you.
If you would like, e-mail me privately for info on what you can say if you're looking for work and have a criminal conviction. I've been trained at my job to provide employment services for patrons. Even with a crime, you can find work. Legally, an employer can only ask if you've been convicted, not if you've been arrested. And of course, you would not voluntarily provide information about a crime committed, but if the subject did come up, there is a certain response you're supposed to give. I can suggest this response to you in a private e-mail.
A lot of people diagnosed with schizophrenia have done things during an episode that they later regret. You may be feeling guilty and ashamed. That is OK. You are also dealing with the shock of having a diagnosis, and along the stages of emotional response to trauma, whatever your feeling is natural.
You may want to go to the search bar on the upper right of this web site, and type in "stage emotional response trauma" and it should bring up a blog entry I wrote on the topic.
I wish you all the best in life.
Regards,
cb