Some people say I'm unique, that there aren't other people with schizophrenia like me. Well, there are people like me out there, but the stigma is so great that they don't come forward.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I am a woman with chronic schizophrenia. I have spent hundreds of days in psychiatric hospitals. I could have ended up living most of my life on a back ward, but things turned out quite differently.
I think the stigma surrounding mental illness and also the stigma surrounding self-esteem issues or insecurities or just even feeling different is something that doesn't really get enough attention. Everybody struggles with feeling alone or that they are going through something they don't quite understand.
It can be difficult for people to talk about it, because there still is that stigma around mental illness. But I would encourage people to do that, because they'll be surprised once they do 'come out' how many other people have had similar experiences.
I just didn't believe I was like everybody else. I thought I was unique.
It turns out that I'm far too schizophrenic musically for people to categorize me. I think people judge me a lot before they ever really know who I am.
Schizophrenia demons live in my head.
A lot of people are living with mental illness around them. Either you love one or you are one.
I think that dwelling on other people's perception of you is the road to complete madness, unfortunately. I try and resist that.
There is no such condition as 'schizophrenia', but the label is a social fact and the social fact a political event.
Please hear this: There are not 'schizophrenics.' There are people with schizophrenia.