Hey Rhi!
Would love to help you with this! What are your ‘symptoms’ so to speak? None of those ‘signs of schizophrenia’ actually get down to the nitty-gritty of what it is. Those are just warning signs for parents who wonder if their child has it and is unwilling to talk about it.
Here’s what schizophrenia is:
a long-term mental disorder of a type involving a breakdown in the relation between thought, emotion, and behavior, leading to faulty perception, inappropriate actions and feelings, withdrawal from reality and personal relationships into fantasy and delusion, and a sense of mental fragmentation.
There’s two main parts of this definition which I’ve highlighted: Long-term and faulty perception.
A) Do you perceive reality in an altered state? This generally means hallucinations. They can be auditory, visual, and tactile. I guess theoretically they could involve the other senses, but I’ve never read anything on that and I feel as if it would be difficult to diagnose (and likely would have something to do more with a different physical miswiring of the bran?). But enough about that- Are you seeing, hearing, or feeling things that don’t exist? Are you perceiving an altered reality from others? Because that’s the main component of schizophrenia. If you don’t have this, throw away that article. All that article is saying about you is that you’re a troubled teen (but still may benefit from professional help, so don’t feel discouraged from this).
The other component is long-term. If the above is true, how long has it been going on? The past few weeks? Months? Years? I’ve had “schizophrenic episodes”, but I certainly have never had schizophrenia because it’s a long-term problem that follows you everywhere. This could be the beginning of it, although still don’t go putting labels on yourself when a professional can do it better. If it’s short term, it may stay that way.
If you both experience reality in an altered state and have for a long time, it’s okay. We’re here for you. But even more than that, there are heaps of people everywhere for you because this is very common. If you do in fact still fear you’re schizophrenic, say the word and I’ll provide as many resources as I can in terms of finding support groups, friends with similar experiences, and a therapist. You’re going to be okay! I promise!
