Wondering; opinions appreciated.

06/27/09

Rain

Topics:wonder paranoid schizophrenic headaches

Recently I've been wondering about a lot of things. My mother was diagnosed as Paranoid Schizophrenic when she was 17, as well as my grandmother on my father's side. My mother stopped taking her meds during an abusive relationship with her ex husband, and I keep in touch with her regarding her difficulties. As for myself, apart from the following specified occurences, here is some information that might shed some light on things. I believe myself to be hypervigilent; loud noises, sudden movements and barely touching me results in a surprised reaction, unconsciously. Everyone I know is constantly telling me that I'm jumpy, to which I can only say, I know. If I could help it, I would. I've had migraines for as long as I can remember. So has mom. Within the last few months I had one of the worst I've ever had; for roughly 2 days afterward I had trouble putting sentences together. This particular incident worries me because English was always my strongest subject in school. For the past several years I've withdrawn to the point where I can't stand to be around people. I have no social skills and lack the want to have them...of course this proves a problem in the workplace. At the moment I'm unemployed and looking, however reluctantly. I also have moments where I space out, but these don't happen often. I've been told that I'm overly paranoid and I've come to accept the statement. Recently things have been happening that worry me. One of my main concerns is something that happened maybe a week ago, and I haven't been able to come up with a logical explaination for myself. I was lying down...I wasn't tired or anything, just relaxing. Out of nowhere I got an intense feeling of panic, all of a sudden believing that I'd lost something. After several minutes of searching and not finding the item in question, I realized that the item didn't exist. In the process I remember literally asking myself if this was actually happening or not. Also recently, I've smelled...something. I can't really explain the smell, but I guess you could compare it to one of those plug in air fresheners. Anyway, I'd been smelling this scent so I asked my grandmother (not the one mentioned above) if we had anything like a plug in or a candle to explain the smell, and she said no. A few days ago whilst in the restroom, having just taken a shower, a heard who I believed to be our neighbor across the hallway, though he sounded close enough to be in the kitchen just beyond the bathroom. He sounded like he was arguing with his wife. When I left the bathroom I asked my grandma if she'd heard anyone, and she said no (mind you, she is in her early 50s with normal hearing). I'm in the process of locating a professional to which I can discuss these things, but I don't know when it'll happen. Anyway, I'm sorry for the long post. If you have any questions, please ask. I don't want to wonder anymore. -Rain

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Answers (2)

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Christina Bruni

Hello Rain,

I understand your worry about what's going on and for that reason I would seek out a professional now rather than waiting to see when it's going to happen.

Because if it turns out you have SZ, the quicker you get into treatment, the better the outcome. A delay of even a year could have irreversible consequences if you need medication.

SZ is a highly treatable medical condition and people can and do recover from this illness every day. People who get treatment right away could even see their symptoms go away or be greatly reduced, resulting in their having a mild form of SZ as opposed to the severely symptomatic form that can occur if treatment is delayed.

So put your mind at ease and talk to someone now. If you are under 30, that's all the more reason to get your blood tested to rule out or confirm SZ along with a psychiatric intake with a doctor. This is because SZ usually strikes when someone is in their late teens or early 20s.

I wish for you to have a good result when you reach out. While you wait for the doctor visit, keep monitoring what goes on. You have the advantage in that you are aware something isn't right. I would like for you not to have SZ. However, if you do, remember that as I said, people can recover from it.

Best regards,

Christina

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re: Wondering; opinions appreciated.
Rain
Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 06:11 PM

Christina, thank you for your response and input. I recently turned 20 and it seems like whatever is going on, whether or not it is SZ has been amplifying. I make sure to talk to my mom, as she can tell me what she went through as a girl and we can compare with what happens with me. I also share my concerns with my grandma and a few close friends so that at least those close to me understand that I'm having difficulties, even if they don't understand them. I'll know more about a professional consult later this week.

re: Wondering; opinions appreciated.
DCROY9633
Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 06:31 PM

What kind of blood test can rule out or confirm sz? I didn't think there was any way to diagnose sz other than by diligent observation of symptoms by a professional.

Carolyn

re: re: Wondering; opinions appreciated.
Christina Bruni
Sunday, June 28, 2009 at 06:38 PM

Clarification:

I'm sorry, I wasn't clear. The blood test would be used to determine if someone has a medical condition that is causing psychotic symptoms, for example, [street] drug use or some other medical condition that causes similar symptoms.

No blood test at this time can confirm or deny SZ. I believe in typing the response I conflated the reason for taking the blood test.

Regards,

Christina

Monday, June 29, 2009

julia111

Hyper-vigilence is a common symptom of post traumatic stress disorder, but smelling strange things is sometimes a symptom of schizophrenia. Your other symptoms could be caused by a number of things. Seeing that schizophrenia runs in your family, I would definately get checked out as soon as possible. I've read that they can sometimes prevent schizophrenic symptoms turning into full blown schizophrenia if treated early enough. So if I was you, despite your desire not to get out, try to get to a professional, who respects you and takes you seriously, as soon as possible. I am not determining by what you wrote, that I believe you have schizophrenia for sure, because many of the symptoms can also be related to having a full blown anxiety disorder.