A safe place for when you have none

Step 1: Get a box, any size is fine! 

Step 2: Decorate it! (I used wallpaper and paint) 

Step 3: Buy things to go inside your box - Remember this is your self-care box, so fill it with things that distract, comfort, relax and cheer you up in times of distress.

For example:

Sensory toys  🌟 

Puzzle books 🌟 

DVD’s 🌟 

Colouring books with pens or pencils 🌟 

Soft toys/teddies (These are great for comfort) 🌟 

Stickers 🌟 

Play-Doh! 🌟

Write a few letters to yourself for when you need them 🌟 

For example - Your favourite memories, reasons to stay alive, reasons not to self-harm, you can do this, motivational quotes, the things you love about yourself

Diary or Notepad 🌟

Step 4: Once you have all your items of choice put them all into your box! 🌟 

Step 5: Whenever you feel low, anxious, scared, alone, angry or distressed. Go to your box. It will always be there for you when you need it. 

If you make one, take a picture and show me! 

Hi everybody. As most of you could figure, I’m a schizotype, meaning I have schizotypal PD, a psychosis spectrum disorder that is often equated to mild schizophrenia (though they are not the same thing).

On Tumblr I’ve often covered symptoms and characteristics schizotypal personality disorder that aren’t incredibly taboo, like social deficits and how I experience emotions differently. Discussing episodes is bold new territory and while this post is not another meme orchestration this is all pretty important.

What exactly are psychotic episodes?

Episodes are when psy spec individuals involuntarily disconnect from reality. In that moment, we might blow a text someone sent us way out of proportion and send a barrage of text messages in panic. We might think our bosses are mad us and freeze at work. We might see someone suspicious in our retail store and hide in the inventory room. We might misperceive neighbors taking a walk at night to be dangerous and demand people turn off the lights so they don’t see us.

Yeah, that’s what episodes are and how they often affect us. It’s not what you see in 80s horror films. We’re harmless during episodes, but they often have consequences like burning bridges or getting fired because of how confusing and uncomfortable it made the people around us.

Are they preventable?

Episodes are unavoidable, and you can’t plan for them not to happen. What you can do is make everyday lifestyle choices that leave you less psychologically prone to them on a day to day bases.

For me that includes the following:

• 8 hours of sleep

• Eating foods that are legitimately nourishing

• Religiously taking my meds when I need to

• Taking CBD daily. It helps, I’m telling you.

• Being in touch with family/friends throughout the day to keep megrounded in your life and me

• Reflecting on episodes I do have, what caused them, and what I can do to reduce the risk of the same circumstances occurring.

Can people get better and stop experiencing them someday?

Psychosis spectrum disorders are lifelong and incurable. So we live with the risk of episodes for our entire lives. With the right treatment team and lifestyle choices, they might happen less frequently, but they never do go away.

How can I get out of an episode?

Different for everyone. You kind of need to learn on your own, honestly.

How can I help a friend/loved one during an episode?

• If you’re with them, assure them that everything is okay and be comforting. They might not connect with you well, so do your best to be understanding

• If you’re not with them, consider calling them so they can hear your voice. If they don’t answer, leave an assuring voicemail that they can listen to

• If you’re texting, send a selfie or photos of your day to ground them

• Start telling them a story/life experience you had. It’s completely irrelevant to what we’re thinking, but that’s the point. It gives us something to focus our mind on

• Sometimes you really can’t help someone or get them out of it. So it just means being present and calm, may it be over call, text or in person

Far From Home spoilers in post

If you're psychotic, on the schizo spectrum, or struggle w paranoia please be advised that spider man far from home is hella triggering

don’t force them to tell you what their delusions or hallucinations are. they could be afraid to tell you because they feel they’re being spied on, they’re ashamed, w/e. just respect their boundaries.

don’t treat them like a child. treat them like you would any other person, they’re human, too.

don’t immediately dismiss their delusions/hallucinations just because you think they should be able to tell they’re not real. the psychotic might not know at all, because hallucinations look and sound SO real to us.

listen to what they have to say. if they say there is a camera in the room, cover where they say it is with tape. if they say they can’t go somewhere for whatever reason, don’t force them to go there. if they think their food is poisoned, prove to them it isn’t.

don’t get offended if they don’t trust you. they’re delusional, and can’t help it. they want you to be on their side so prove you can be trusted.

communication is key. ask them what you can do to help, because even the most extensive list of coping tools and methods isn’t 100% inclusive of everyone’s exact needs.

don’t use their illness against them. don’t tell them lies. don’t joke about it (unless they say it’s okay).

don’t allow them to abuse you. like any relationship, you can choose to leave whenever for whatever reason. learn to recognize abusive behaviors.

schizophrenia and psychosis (a key symptom of schizophrenia) are mental states that can cause symptoms including paranoia, hallucinations, delusions, disorganised thoughts and unusual behaviours. friends and family are extremely important to a person’s recovery from schizophrenia and psychosis. your empathy and love can make a big difference.

support for communication difficulties

- some people with psychosis may be unable to think clearly. speaking at your normal pace is fine, but you may need to give your loved one a little extra time to absorb and process what you’ve said, and be willing to repeat it if they didn’t understand.

- if your loved one shows a limited range of emotions, be aware that it doesn’t mean they aren’t feeling anything. some people with psychosis simply have difficulty expressing how they feel.

- understand that sometimes, people experiencing psychosis express “inappropriate” emotions, eg. laughing at something upsetting. don’t take this personally and try to remain patient if this happens. if you need to clarify the reaction with the person, do so in private and in a calm manner.

- some people struggle to make eye contact and find it unsettling. if your loved one is clearly avoiding eye contact, don’t make a big deal out of it - they’re not trying to be rude, rather, it’s a symptom of their illness. you may find that your loved one prefers to sit beside you over being in front of you as it’s less confrontational, so you could try to do this more often.

support for hallucinations

- avoid encouraging the belief that the hallucinations are real if possible, and instead use language such as, “i don’t see anything, what do you see?” so that they feel they can talk to you about it.

- don’t mock or laugh at your loved one’s experiences unless they do first or have stated that it’s okay if you make light of it.

- offer distractions such as watching tv or listening to music.

support for delusions

- recognise that their delusions may be very real to them. don’t dismiss, minimise or argue with them about these experiences, and do not act alarmed or embarrassed by them. however, it’s important to be careful that you don’t inflame your loved one’s paranoia - don’t actively encourage it, and instead, offer your empathy. - be as empathetic as you can. if your loved one is experiencing paranoia and is afraid because of that, understand that they legitimately feel fearful even if you think the paranoia is unfounded. express that you understand why they feel this emotion and ask them what you can do to help in future.

support for social isolation

- encourage your loved one gently, never forcefully, to partake in social gatherings when it’s appropriate. perhaps suggest a weekly outing, for example, a walk in the country, seeing a movie together or a meal somewhere quiet.

- small things go a long way. they don’t overwhelm and sending something uplifting every so often encourages recovery. remind your loved one that you’re thinking of them and that you care about them.

- if your loved one forgets their medication, drop them a reminder every so often. it’s important that they keep taking it if it helps them.

crisis intervention

- know that you can’t reason with acute psychosis and that your loved one is unwell. they may say or do things that they wouldn’t normally do and they may not understand that those things could upset you.

- understand that the person may be fearful of their feelings and their loss of control over them. because of this it’s important that you don’t express anger or irritation and don’t use sarcasm as a weapon. don’t raise your voice. speak in a calm, level way.

- avoid making continuous eye contact and avoid making physical contact without permission or warning if the person is agitated or afraid.

- remove objects that the person may use to harm themselves if they express wishes to self-harm or attempt suicide. this includes anything sharp and tools that they could use to inflict burns.

- provide options for getting help. your loved one may be more willing to seek help if they feel they have control over the situation. for example, suggest a doctors appointment to get started on medication, but suggest that you or someone else will go back with them if the medication doesn’t help or has too many side effects.

- don’t leave the person alone. if they have a support network, get in contact with people who can help and stay with them.

Hallucinations means experiencing sensory input which isn’t actually there. The most common example is hearing voices, but hallucinations can affect all senses - they can be visual (seeing things that aren’t there), auditory (hearing things that aren’t there), tactile (feeling things that aren’t there), olfactory (smelling things that aren’t there), and gustatory (tasting things that aren’t there). Hallucinations are heavily associated with schizophrenia but can also occur in a variety of other mental illnesses. With the help of my followers, I have collected a bunch of tips and strategies for dealing with and coping with hallucinations!

General tips:

Remind yourself that even though you can see/hear/feel/etc these things, they aren’t real and they can’t hurt you. You’re safe - your brain is just messing with you.

Engage with something you know is real and focus your attention on that.

Activate a different sense - preferable the sense that is most connected to reality. As an example, if you’re having visual hallucinations, put on some music, close your eyes and focus on that, or if you’re having auditory hallucinations, put on a movie and try to focus on that instead of the voices.

Practice grounding exercises (preferably with the senses that are best connected to reality) and focus your attention onto what you know is real. (This post contains many good suggestions.)

Distract yourself with something you enjoy - play a video game, exercise, watch a movie or a tv show, play with your pets, talk to a friend, make art - your hallucinations will likely still be there, but they won’t have your full attention and will thus be less distressing.

Try to block out the hallucinations by providing some real sensory input for the same sense. As an example, if you’re hearing voices, put on loud music and sing along, and if you’re having tactile hallucinations, take a shower.

Moving/doing something active might help divert your attention from the hallucinations. Stim, pace, exercise or go for a run!

If you have a pet that usually reacts when something unusual happens, use them as reassurance. If they aren’t reacting, it’s likely a hallucination.

Use your hallucinations as creative inspiration. Write, draw, paint, make music - it can be a great way to express yourself and your experiences and let out frustration.

If there’s any places/comfort items that makes you feel safe or safer, go there and use them. If you feel that your hallucinations can’t hurt you in the bedroom, when the lights are on or when you’re under your favorite blanket, go to your bedroom, turn on all the lights and hide under your favorite blanket. It may seem silly, but do what you need to feel safe.

If you’re on anti psychotic medication, take it as prescribed. Anti psychotic medication can often reduce or even control hallucinations.

If you’re not on anti psychotics and your hallucinations are causing you a lot of distress and are impairing your ability to function, consider trying them. They do often significantly reduce psychotic symptoms.

If you have some as needed/emergency medication and your hallucinations are really bad, take your prescribed dosage. It may help on your symptoms.

Auditory hallucinations

If you doubt whether what you’re hearing is a hallucination, try to record it with your phone. If it doesn’t show up on the recording, it isn’t real. If your hallucinations makes it hard for you to hear what’s actually on the recording, play the recording for someone else and ask what they hear.

You can also put on music to test if it’s a hallucination or not - if your music is loud and the voices are still clear, you know it’s a hallucination. Music can also help you distract yourself as it provides real auditory input that you can focus on.

If your voices are mean, imagine that they’re coming from an edgy, pathetic teenage boy who’s doing his best to provoke you by purposely being rude and unpleasant. Mock him (or her) right back and react with as much irrelevance and sarcasm as if it was 13 year old Brandon who was trying to tell you to kill yourself.

Find some real auditory input to focus on to distract yourself and tune out the hallucinations - put on loud music and sing along, listen to a podcast or the radio or call a friend.

If you’re alone, talk back to them. Tell them why they’re wrong and that you won’t be listening to them. Cuss them out and mock them. This will probably not make the voices stop, but it can be a good way to relieve the frustration they cause.

Visual hallucinations:

If you doubt whether what you’re seeing is a hallucination, take a picture of it with your phone. If it doesn’t show up in the picture, it isn’t real.

If you wear glasses, take them off. If what you’re looking at is still clear, it’s a hallucination.

Try to think of your hallucinations as friends. Tell them random shit about your day and what you’re doing and if they’re recurring, name them. Treating your hallucinations like friends will likely make them much less scary.

Tactile hallucinations:

Applying heat or cold can in some cases help reduce tactile hallucinations, so try to take a cold or a very hot shower or apply a heating pack/ice pack to the affected area.

Substituting the sensation you’re hallucinating with another sensation can also help, so try taking tight clothes on or curling up tightly under a heavy blanket. Applying pressure/sensation by touching yourself in the affected areas and otherwise providing a new, real, physical sensation often helps.

Gustatory hallucinations:

Ask someone to taste the food you’re eating - if they don’t taste anything that’s off, you can be sure that the weird taste is only happening in your head.

Eat food with other people. If you’re all eating from the same bowl/menu and nobody else taste what you taste, you can reassure yourself that it’s a hallucination and that your food is fine.

Prepare your food from the bottom so that you know that nothing’s wrong with it.

Olfactory hallucinations:

Ask someone else if they smell it too - if they don’t, it’s likely a hallucination.