"Its intransigence is essential to its tragedy. It is a sickness that by its very nature resists treatment. “Last night while I was live,” he said in one video, “somebody kept trying to convince me to go to the authorities, go to the hospital, talk to somebody in real life. It's like, you sound like a Fed.” Everyone who tries to help is in on the conspiracy."
Definitely agree that this is one of the most tragic aspects of psychosis. My best friend struggles with paranoid schizophrenia (friends since we were 13, developed it in his mid-20s) and one of the most tragic aspects is that he can become paranoid about people or individuals just as they seem to be benefitting him. For instance, a few years back he joined a community group of other people with autism, which got him out of his flat and talking to like-minded individuals. The group seemed to be really helping him with his mental health. Then, seemingly abruptly, after a couple of months or so, he read into a joke/ film reference one of the people at the group made, which he took as evidence they were a conspirator and, after that, would never go back.
I count myself very fortunate that he's only once or twice believed that I was part of the conspiracy and that this did not last long. I do worry that the death of one or both of his parents might trigger a retreat into complete alienation even from me however :(
"Its intransigence is essential to its tragedy. It is a sickness that by its very nature resists treatment. “Last night while I was live,” he said in one video, “somebody kept trying to convince me to go to the authorities, go to the hospital, talk to somebody in real life. It's like, you sound like a Fed.” Everyone who tries to help is in on the conspiracy."
Definitely agree that this is one of the most tragic aspects of psychosis. My best friend struggles with paranoid schizophrenia (friends since we were 13, developed it in his mid-20s) and one of the most tragic aspects is that he can become paranoid about people or individuals just as they seem to be benefitting him. For instance, a few years back he joined a community group of other people with autism, which got him out of his flat and talking to like-minded individuals. The group seemed to be really helping him with his mental health. Then, seemingly abruptly, after a couple of months or so, he read into a joke/ film reference one of the people at the group made, which he took as evidence they were a conspirator and, after that, would never go back.
I count myself very fortunate that he's only once or twice believed that I was part of the conspiracy and that this did not last long. I do worry that the death of one or both of his parents might trigger a retreat into complete alienation even from me however :(