Bf with schizophrenia

Hey guys!

I wanted to ask for some basic advice. I have a friend (he is sorta a bf) who was paranoid schizophrenia. He has delusions but he can still function and work etc.

He sometimes goes on rants about his delusions relating to being a vampire etc. I never really know what to say to him when he talks about this and was wondering what the healthiest thing to say was?

Also, he has a really hard time sticking to plans and cancels 90% of the time. Why is this?

I just want to make sure I’m helping him out in the best way possible.

Thank you for your time and reading

So you don’t really want to say much about delusions at all because they aren’t logical. You definitely don’t want to say anything that would make him believe you also believe the delusions. That can make the delusions worse.

As far as cancelling could be so many things...a lot of people with sz are lacking in motivation or just don’t feel good that night. A lot of people in general have anxiety in social situations which can make going out anything but relaxing. Another possibility is adhd like symptoms.....I didn’t have adhd until I got psychosis and I’m not sure if it’s from the illness or the meds.

Thing is we all have a range of symptoms and none of us have the same ones due to additional illness....some people also have ocd etc....it just seems to be really common to have additional illnesses with psychosis and sz.

I don't have sz, but I have psychotic features with my depression. I don't have a lot of delusions, but I have a few. Like for example

To combat that delusion (which I'm not sure it's a delusion but other people have told me it is a delusion) one of my T's is making me research how blood gets cleaned in the body.


I don't know about the cancelling things. I don't cancel too much of the time but I also don't make loads of plans. Sometimes when I cancel I just don't feel good though. I do have other diagnosis besides depression with psychotic features so I don't know if that helps or hurts me in terms of the cancelling things.


Maybe talk to a therapist (T) for a couple of sessions. Just to get an understanding of his illness and what you can do to help him. Also have you ever asked him what is most helpful for you to do for him?


Best of luck, Kit

I had a paranoid schizophrenic father, sister and grandmother. What I learned growing up in a schizophrenia dominated home was that you never validate the delusions but you never challenge them either. I learned as a young child to accept anything my father said as his reality but try not to make it my own reality. As a child, that's a tall order since adults define reality for children all the time. For many schizophrenics the delusions are not intermittent. Meaning they have a constant stream of them and they cluster around a theme. For example, my father had religious delusions. All his delusions were related to one particular religion and the details of its theology. Even if a schizophrenic isn't verbalizing his delusions doesn't mean they aren't alive and well in his head waiting for an external stimulus to make them visable. Don't be surprised if the delusions seem to pop up randomly. They aren't random. He's just being stimulated by something in his environment and he's speaking what's going on in his head.

The same is true for hallucinations. Many schizophrenics have a running dialogue of voices they hear constantly. The voices aren't always command hallucinations, ie. ordering him to do something. Sometimes the voices are running commentary of his own actions or conversations with other people in the room. Hallucinations are heard as if you were speaking to me. They are not internal, like thinking thoughts. It is very much an external auditory experience. Command hallucinations are more of a problem. At their worst they can propel the person to harm others. In a mild form they can command the individual to engage in odd behaviors that appear to make no sense. Not every schizophrenic has command hallucinations but they are common.

@plynstrom266 Is he on medication and managed regularly by a doctor? My understanding is a good med regimen means delusions are almost eliminated.

Quote:

Originally Posted by plynstrom266 Hey guys! I wanted to ask for some basic advice. I have a friend (he is sorta a bf) who was paranoid schizophrenia. He has delusions but he can still function and work etc. He sometimes goes on rants about his delusions relating to being a vampire etc. I never really know what to say to him when he talks about this and was wondering what the healthiest thing to say was? Also, he has a really hard time sticking to plans and cancels 90% of the time. Why is this? I just want to make sure I’m helping him out in the best way possible. Thank you for your time and reading

@plynstrom266
Do you know if he gets medical help like meds and therapy? You can’t fix him unless he makes efforts himself

A lot of my hallucinations were much fewer in total or less intense when they did happen, once I got on medication. But I really haven't seen any improvement with things that others call delusional thinking, so I don't think one can always just rely on medications like they're going to solve everything. Life can be really rough even with medications, and medications come with a whole string of other problems like side effects, being really drowsy, or weight gain.

I think one of the best things you can do to support someone who has delusions is to just listen and not argue with the person. Then, even if you don't necessarily want to agree, it feels less threatening and it feels like you care. If someone says something that validates the way I feel, as in, "that must be very scary," etc., it helps me feel calmer instead of crazy and escalating.