Schizophrenia

Hi @Iam

Welcome to the Forums.

I'm so sorry to hear about your experiences - It's really not fair how you were treated.

I'm really glad you found us though, and decided to bravely share your story - I can assure you that you're not alone.

This is a wonderful community - where support for each other spans across all diagnosis and experiences.

I just wanted to say 'welcome'. I know many other members will jump in here soon and say hi too.

Nik

Hi @Iam,

Thank you for sharing your experience and I’m so sorry you had to go through that.

I know you are not the only person on the SANE Forums who has experienced discrimination in relation to mental illness. Although things have come along way, as @viv discusses in this post, there is still so much stigma around mental illness in our society. You might also like to have a read of some of the other threads about discrimination and stigma:

@anthariamac has shared an experience about discrimination within the psychiatric system here.

@Annabellehas talked about struggling to find understanding from her family here

There are also some discussions about discrimination in the workplace. Here is a recent one.

Feel free to add your own thoughts.

I think I also remember from another discussion that @kenny66 has had some brush-ins with the police.

@EdenAmaranth, @anthariamac, @Annabelle, @kenny66 and other Forum members, do you have any thoughts you'd like to share about discrimination and attitudes around mental illness?

Welcome once again, @Iam.

Acacia

Hi @Iam and welcome

Mate, I'm very sorry to hear that you have had such a tough time with things. Everyone in this world deserves happiness, and when that is taken away by the actions of other people, well, it's unjust and unfair.

I havn't been long to the forums myself, I'll tell you what you will find here is a community group of caring, supportive, un-prejudiced people who are all battling along doing their best with the cards they've been dealt, I admire them all. There's something very comforting in reading words that you identify so much with, that you have the feeling you could have written them yourself. Of course you feel sympathy for them because you know what they are going through, but it's also supportive knowing that you arn't alone with your own feelings.

I've spent many hours, just reading back through old posts and it has been very therapeutic.

I truely wish you all the very best

WombatBoots/Matt

I think I would describe my experience with the police as mixed.

I have been put in the MHU forcibly because of my behaviour and at the time I had no problem with this.

I have also been forcibly medicated but this did help me get better.

I found it is often difficult to understand and acknowledge aspects of treatment when unwell because logic can be distorted.

So upon reflection stuff I objected to at the time turned out to be the right course of action for those circumstances.

I think I have mentioned before that a lot of people have a fear and ignorance in relation to schizophrenia. Some come be very cruel and aggressive to sufferers of this particular MI.

There are some young coppers from the local regional police station who are good natured about my schizophrenia and some of the things that can arise from it.

However the police who are based in the city are different.

I was just reflecting on this today.

I made a complaint to the police some little time ago about a personal safety issue relating to a neighbour.

The police came and saw me to discuss and initially took my fears quite seriously and, wait for it, then asked me did I really want to press the complaint because my schizophrenia would make me a very unreliable witness.

The only terms they attributed to schizophrenia was paranoia-hallucinations and a tendency to violence.

So immediately I was and am disempowered as far as the authorities are concerned.

So of course I dropped it.

Every day I have to sit down and carefully separate out was is an hallucination and what is real.

Life is difficult enough without authorities assuming people with schizophrenia are non persons, without representation.

I cant hide my schizophrenia, nor do I particularly want to, but discrimination is real at all levels.

Sometimes I think that the mental health unit is the only appropriate place for me to live.

This is of course would be contrary to all best practice of how to deal with people with severe mental illness and their supposed rehabilitation into general society.

The education of police and persons in authority in general is critical but from my observation is proceeding at a glacial pace.

When things are rough its hard to know what to think or do.

Sorry you are not in a good place.@Iam

Like @kenny66 I have had mixed experiences with police.

It is important that we all are entitled to protection from law enforcement agancies not harrassment.

Its an area that SANE is trying to change.

Go Gently

I wrote about being drugged and attacked and how the law blames it on a symptom of schizophrenia so no other young female ever has to go through it. I had an awesome life and family and it was destroyed because i was a victim of crime. I don't care how many mental health proffessionals put it down to a symptom of paranoid schizophrenia they never walked in my shoes. Even when i have psychosis most things i hallucinate come true and i have proof that there is no way i would know the things i know. People and the law always say schizophrenics are violent but when schizophrenics are victims of violence it's a delusion. The law and people ruin your life when you are diagnosed with schizophrenia and make you think your crazy, yet police and people are racist that is way more insane.

You sound very upset about how you have been treated. What was the crime? Was it just one?

I dont believe schizophrenics are violent and I hope SANE succeeds in changing attitudes. But you are right there are a lot of people who jump to wrong ideas about MI.