New to schizoaffective

Hi @Dreamingtree

Not sure how useful I'll be, but wanted to at least say hi back, from another person living with schizoaffective disorder.

I'm lucky- after diagnosis I finally gave up the weed (I'm not assuming this is a problem for you, but it shaped my recovery) and have been very fortunate to access a psychiatrist (I had been seeing her for a long time anyway for other mental health issues), a psychologist and also group therapy.

What supports do you have?

Yeah @Dreamingtree - my cannabis usage was most definitely not medicinal!

But if it works for you and your Dr is ok with it, then totally you should continue

Sounds like you have some decent supports. Those last two can be tricky. I don't have any real suggestions as to how to find them. Are you in a city or rural area?

@Dreamingtree

CBT is good. I also did DBT quite a while back, and found it helpful. My only regret with that was I just did the 6 months, not the repeat. But anyway, it was useful.

I've done groups for a long time and find them great- as long as you find the right facilitator and group!

Currently I do a mindfulness group- which is, as the name suggests, focussed on mindfulness skills and activities. It's great.

But yeah, we are all at different stages and with different diagnoses (subtle or major). If your hospital does run groups that sounds like a great place to start

Yoga and meditation would be great for you I think @Dreamingtree

We do limited practices of both in the group- it is only half a day- but it has finally got me into the habit of meditating each day, even if only for 10 minutes mindful of breath

(Oh, to say we do yoga is a bit of a stretch- we do "chair yoga"! Which is fun, but yeah)

I'd look into Qi Gong too 🙂

Hi, and welcome. I have just joined a few moments ago 🙂

I am commenting on your post because I was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder 13 years ago. I have coped by firstly being honest with my support team past and present, when you are honest about what your going through, it is much easier to treat. I have never really let my mental illness limit me in life, and I want you to know you can still go on to do amazing things with your life, schizoaffective disorder doesn't have to be a burden. If you respect your resilience, you can do anything. There are hard times involved, I wont lie. To inspire you and instil hope, I have just graduated with a diploma of mental health and I will now join the mental health sector to support people like me and inspire them in their recoveries. Mental health is hard work, stay strong and focused 🙂

Wow! @sjb800 ! Thank you for sharing! That is very inspirational. We need more people like you in the sector. Ones who really 'get it' based on their own experiences. Thank you!

I look forward to seeing you around on the forums. Feel free to tag me by typing "@" in front of my name e.g. @tyme

@tyme Hi 🙂

And thank you for the warm welcome!

Yes it was once a dream of mine to help others like myself, I didn't go through my recoveries alone, I always had support. So I pushed myself through my diploma, I figure my lived experience plus a professional aspect will be a credit to the mental health sector in years to come.

And just like the opening poster here my diagnosis was changed to schizoaffective disorder too, it was originally paranoid schizophrenia. I have other diagnosis too, but this post isn't about me, I'll save it for another time 🙂

Cheers again!