That is very true. Psychiatrists told me a story about me that did not sound right at all but that created an unlivable reality for me. I have fortunately found mental health professionals who would care to listen to my story in my own terms and little by little i hope they allow this to their other patients, and not just me who is particularly persistent and refuses to live by labels that make little sense of my lived experiences.
I donāt have an issue with psychosis per se, because psychosis is precisely not a labeeling for life. It is an episode. It is actually the one thing in the dsm that psychiatry recognizes one can fully recover from. They just normally donāt diagnose people with psychosis alone, and confuse it with any number of conditions they claim to be chronic( against all evidence to the contrary). To my psychosis is simple a creative reaction of the mind to difficult circumstances. It is not the problem in itself and should not give rise to abusive and coercive practices that aggravate trauma.
Thank you for reading. Itās always hearth warming to know you are not alone. Especially since during the many years iāve lived this. i felt completely alone.
If I were a U.S citizen, I would consider suing the doctor as the danage i suffered as a result of the misdiagnosis was immense. But Iām sure I have little chance of winning in court. Iām more optimistic about the activism route: if i can prevent him from practicing psychiatry: i can work towards changing what we understand by mental health conditions and consequently the role of psychiatry in it. I know iām not alone in working towards this goal, ad Mad In America and Open Dialogue abundantly prove. Change is on the way, with or without lawsuits.
What i mean by the diagnosis being revoked is that it was removed from my medical record and replaced with brief reactive psychosis, which simple means that i have had a psychotic episode in the past.
In my country those records are private under the law.
Yes we do. And there are thankfully alternatives like open dialogue, although they are not yet mainstream. Going beyond the medical model in understanding and treating human suffering is the next revolution in mental health. And it will be a global effort.
My first psychosis was not drug induced. But then I donāt see psychosis as a medical problem, but as a creative response of the mind to challenging circumstances.
The others I think did in fact result from psychiatric drugs. But the problem again is not so much the psychosis, but the drugs side effects and their impairment of the healing process. Coupled with truly traumatic repeated hospitalizations, labelling and stigma( including self stigma). I am not there anymore thankfully. But the journey to healing continues and i feel stronger everyday.
To answer your question. I did not sleep the night before my hospitalization. It was not because I was not tired or could not fall asleep, but because i was too afraid to go to sleep. I already felt the brain swelling sensation i describe in my letter, and i felt that if i went to sleep in this state i would never wake up, i would just die. So i paced in my apartment the whole night with my racing thoughts. The days prior to this i slept absolutely normally and peacefully. In fact i never had sleep issues prior to this, although i had it at times since. You are absolutely correct, sleep is the first thing to go way in psychosis and the most important thing to regulate for recovery. Thatās why some sleep meds could be helpful at least initially, rather then antipsychotics that risk increasing anxiety.
I will probably write again. Thereās so much more i could say on this issue. But for now i need to further my education and my recovery journey.
Some of them just donāt know any better. They have been thought the medical model at school, even if they find it imperfect or problematic, they are unable to see a āscientificā alternative to it. They donāt know what their role might become if you take their prescribing power away from them or limit it greatly. We need holistic mental health training for psychiatrists: it must include not only pharmacology, but psychotherapy,psychology, philosophy, anthropology, religion, history and cultural awareness.
That is very true. Psychiatrists told me a story about me that did not sound right at all but that created an unlivable reality for me. I have fortunately found mental health professionals who would care to listen to my story in my own terms and little by little i hope they allow this to their other patients, and not just me who is particularly persistent and refuses to live by labels that make little sense of my lived experiences.
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I donāt have an issue with psychosis per se, because psychosis is precisely not a labeeling for life. It is an episode. It is actually the one thing in the dsm that psychiatry recognizes one can fully recover from. They just normally donāt diagnose people with psychosis alone, and confuse it with any number of conditions they claim to be chronic( against all evidence to the contrary). To my psychosis is simple a creative reaction of the mind to difficult circumstances. It is not the problem in itself and should not give rise to abusive and coercive practices that aggravate trauma.
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Thank you for reading. Itās always hearth warming to know you are not alone. Especially since during the many years iāve lived this. i felt completely alone.
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If I were a U.S citizen, I would consider suing the doctor as the danage i suffered as a result of the misdiagnosis was immense. But Iām sure I have little chance of winning in court. Iām more optimistic about the activism route: if i can prevent him from practicing psychiatry: i can work towards changing what we understand by mental health conditions and consequently the role of psychiatry in it. I know iām not alone in working towards this goal, ad Mad In America and Open Dialogue abundantly prove. Change is on the way, with or without lawsuits.
Report comment
Thank you.
What i mean by the diagnosis being revoked is that it was removed from my medical record and replaced with brief reactive psychosis, which simple means that i have had a psychotic episode in the past.
In my country those records are private under the law.
Report comment
Yes we do. And there are thankfully alternatives like open dialogue, although they are not yet mainstream. Going beyond the medical model in understanding and treating human suffering is the next revolution in mental health. And it will be a global effort.
Report comment
Thank you for reading.
My first psychosis was not drug induced. But then I donāt see psychosis as a medical problem, but as a creative response of the mind to challenging circumstances.
The others I think did in fact result from psychiatric drugs. But the problem again is not so much the psychosis, but the drugs side effects and their impairment of the healing process. Coupled with truly traumatic repeated hospitalizations, labelling and stigma( including self stigma). I am not there anymore thankfully. But the journey to healing continues and i feel stronger everyday.
Report comment
Thank you Richard for your kind words.
To answer your question. I did not sleep the night before my hospitalization. It was not because I was not tired or could not fall asleep, but because i was too afraid to go to sleep. I already felt the brain swelling sensation i describe in my letter, and i felt that if i went to sleep in this state i would never wake up, i would just die. So i paced in my apartment the whole night with my racing thoughts. The days prior to this i slept absolutely normally and peacefully. In fact i never had sleep issues prior to this, although i had it at times since. You are absolutely correct, sleep is the first thing to go way in psychosis and the most important thing to regulate for recovery. Thatās why some sleep meds could be helpful at least initially, rather then antipsychotics that risk increasing anxiety.
I will probably write again. Thereās so much more i could say on this issue. But for now i need to further my education and my recovery journey.
Thanks for reading.
Report comment
Some of them just donāt know any better. They have been thought the medical model at school, even if they find it imperfect or problematic, they are unable to see a āscientificā alternative to it. They donāt know what their role might become if you take their prescribing power away from them or limit it greatly. We need holistic mental health training for psychiatrists: it must include not only pharmacology, but psychotherapy,psychology, philosophy, anthropology, religion, history and cultural awareness.
Report comment
Thank you. Feel free to share with whomever could find this information useful and empowering.
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