Do you know any mentally ill people?

yes my brother was diganosed with scizophrenicina about 9 years ago its been a hard uphill struggle, he is now eating and smoking himself to death and has a very poor quality of life. Part of it is medication realated. The side effects of psycotropic drugs are horrible and in the long run not helpful for long term use. I wish we could find some help for him that was healthy and would really help him.

They use the same types to treat all of them.   So someone labelled with bi polar and someone else scizophrenic can be on the same medicine.

Also, I come from a family where I've seen lives shattered bc someone refuses to take a pill. However, I wouldn't want anyone to force me to take meds ever so I don't agree that there should be laws to mandate it. Y'all have no clue the side effects some of these medicines have.   I've been on so many trying to find the right ones for me. I've had everything from constant nausea, feeling of agitation, constantly feeling uncomfortable, lethargic to I'm unable to hold my eyes open, headaches, high blood pressure to I'm about to stroke out and they have to put me on high blood pressure meds, low blood pressure, high colestorol then back to normal when I stop the meds, the sweats, to involuntary body movements.

I only think medicine should be mandatory to bring someone out of a psychotic state but then how do you always tell???? Just my two cents.

CuteNSweet, thanks for sharing

I hate it when people stigmatized mental illnesses

We wouldn't stigmatized diseases like cancer or we'd feel like jerks. Too bad we can't feel the same way about diseases of the mind

@cuteNsweet

thank you so much for sharing. i didnt know they used one medication to treat so many different types of mental illness.

SoutherNtellect wrote: petiteone29 wrote: For those who are diagnosed as bipolar or know someone who is. How did you find out? Did something happen that made you realize you needed to seek a professional. Just curious because I think someone really close to me is bipolar but wont admit to it. acting out in college. i was manic as fvck what goes up must come down and i ended up in the hospital

Same. My diagnosis is iffy. They are debating now Btwn bipolar and major depression with psychotic features.   Who's knows. Anyway, the way I was diagnosed is I had lost my mind litterally.   I was manic as hell in 2011. I barely slept or I was on a crash and I slept all the time.   I wasn't able to function in everyday life like I got to the point where I couldn't do my job.   Then on other weeks I'd be so efficient that I could do my job and my co-workers together.   Well after a lot of that I became psychotic. Like paranoid as fk.   I thought ppl were out to get me.   I thought I was being followed. I thought my co-workers were harassing me.   I ended up in a hospital. So I don't know what my diagnosis really is bc my symptoms kinda cross over. Honestly, I joke and say I'm depressed, bipolar, and scizophrenic bc at different times I was diagnosed with all three depending on my symptoms at the time lol. I'm a crazy chic know this lol. Seriously though the same medicines is used to treat all of them though so I guess it doesn't matter. I ended up loosing my job behind being hospitalized and my life has been pretty sh*tty since I "lost it.". I don't blame anyone that doesn't want to be labeled with this ish.