Do you know what schizophrenia is? Schizophrenia is defined as a mental disorder that affects how an individual thinks, feels and behaves. This week I had to watch a video about looking through the eyes of a man with schizophrenia and how he perceived things in everyday life. I was shocked when I watched the film, because it was like I was perceiving things from man starring in a horror movie. The man in the video,heard voices, that were never actually there, constantly telling him what to do and other voices telling him to do the exact opposite. The man also hallucinated that he might have performed a crime, heard voices telling him not to trust anyone, that people were after him because of his action, illusions telling him he was worthless, and viewing the food that he had in front of him as toxic.

At the end of the video it became obvious that the man kept hearing and perceiving things that were false when a woman entered the house and erased the tension that had built up during the film. This woman was pretty familiar with the man and this became apparent when she told him that he forgot to take his medicine, if her ordered pizza had arrived, and that he should to let sunlight enter the dark house. This house was kept dark to add to the effect that the situation was more frightening than it actually was when the curtains covering the windows parted and sunlight entered the house revealing a bright and sunny day outside. Once all of this had taken place the house and the situation did not seem frightening any to me any more.

I was frightened through most of this film because it reminded me of a horror show and those always get on my nerves. Though I am not an expert on individuals who have schizophrenia, this video reminded me of numerous cases that I see in fictional television shows and movies. Compared to how I typically see schizophrenia in the media, this video portrays my viewpoint on them really well. By this I mean a dark room, voices from people that are not actually there telling the man many different things, constant negative comments being directed at the man telling him he is worthless, and someone else in the film saying that the schizophrenic individual forgot to take their medicine. Yes, this video shocked me but the reason why it truly shocked me was because at the beginning of the video it said that the symptoms that I will experience in the video represents a compilation of a range fo sensory occurrences as reported by actual patients, meaning that people with schizophrenia could be living in a horror film every day.

Do you know what schizophrenia is? Schizophrenia is defined as a mental disorder that affects how an individual thinks, feels and behaves. This week I had to watch a video about looking through the eyes of a man with schizophrenia and how he perceived things in everyday life. I was shocked when I watched the film, because it was like I was perceiving things from man starring in a horror movie. The man in the video,heard voices, that were never actually there, constantly telling him what to do and other voices telling him to do the exact opposite. The man also hallucinated that he might have performed a crime, heard voices telling him not to trust anyone, that people were after him because of his action, illusions telling him he was worthless, and viewing the food that he had in front of him as toxic.

At the end of the video it became obvious that the man kept hearing and perceiving things that were false when a woman entered the house and erased the tension that had built up during the film. This woman was pretty familiar with the man and this became apparent when she told him that he forgot to take his medicine, if her ordered pizza had arrived, and that he should to let sunlight enter the dark house. This house was kept dark to add to the effect that the situation was more frightening than it actually was when the curtains covering the windows parted and sunlight entered the house revealing a bright and sunny day outside. Once all of this had taken place the house and the situation did not seem frightening any to me any more.

I was frightened through most of this film because it reminded me of a horror show and those always get on my nerves. Though I am not an expert on individuals who have schizophrenia, this video reminded me of numerous cases that I see in fictional television shows and movies. Compared to how I typically see schizophrenia in the media, this video portrays my viewpoint on them really well. By this I mean a dark room, voices from people that are not actually there telling the man many different things, constant negative comments being directed at the man telling him he is worthless, and someone else in the film saying that the schizophrenic individual forgot to take their medicine. Yes, this video shocked me but the reason why it truly shocked me was because at the beginning of the video it said that the symptoms that I will experience in the video represents a compilation of a range fo sensory occurrences as reported by actual patients, meaning that people with schizophrenia could be living in a horror film every day.

Do you know what schizophrenia is? Schizophrenia is defined as a mental disorder that affects how an individual thinks, feels and behaves. This week I had to watch a video about looking through the eyes of a man with schizophrenia and how he perceived things in everyday life. I was shocked when I watched the film, because it was like I was perceiving things from man starring in a horror movie. The man in the video,heard voices, that were never actually there, constantly telling him what to do and other voices telling him to do the exact opposite. The man also hallucinated that he might have performed a crime, heard voices telling him not to trust anyone, that people were after him because of his action, illusions telling him he was worthless, and viewing the food that he had in front of him as toxic.

At the end of the video it became obvious that the man kept hearing and perceiving things that were false when a woman entered the house and erased the tension that had built up during the film. This woman was pretty familiar with the man and this became apparent when she told him that he forgot to take his medicine, if her ordered pizza had arrived, and that he should to let sunlight enter the dark house. This house was kept dark to add to the effect that the situation was more frightening than it actually was when the curtains covering the windows parted and sunlight entered the house revealing a bright and sunny day outside. Once all of this had taken place the house and the situation did not seem frightening any to me any more.

I was frightened through most of this film because it reminded me of a horror show and those always get on my nerves. Though I am not an expert on individuals who have schizophrenia, this video reminded me of numerous cases that I see in fictional television shows and movies. Compared to how I typically see schizophrenia in the media, this video portrays my viewpoint on them really well. By this I mean a dark room, voices from people that are not actually there telling the man many different things, constant negative comments being directed at the man telling him he is worthless, and someone else in the film saying that the schizophrenic individual forgot to take their medicine. Yes, this video shocked me but the reason why it truly shocked me was because at the beginning of the video it said that the symptoms that I will experience in the video represents a compilation of a range fo sensory occurrences as reported by actual patients, meaning that people with schizophrenia could be living in a horror film every day.

Do you know what schizophrenia is? Schizophrenia is defined as a mental disorder that affects how an individual thinks, feels and behaves. This week I had to watch a video about looking through the eyes of a person with schizophrenia and how he may perceive things in everyday life. I was shocked when I watched the video, because it was like I was looking through the eyes of a man who was living in a horror movie. The man in the video, whose eyes I was looking through, had voices that were never there constantly telling him what to do and other voices telling him to do the opposite. The man also kept thinking that he did a crime and that people were after him because of it, heard voices telling him not to trust anyone, illusions telling him he was worthless, and the food that he had in front of him was toxic and would kill him. Overall, the man kept hearing and perceiving things that were false, the house he was in was kept dark to make the situation more frightening when it was a bright and sunny day outside. At the end of the video, a woman came into the house and erased the tension that was built up during the video. She told the man that he forgot to take his medicine and to let sunlight enter the house, and once that happened the house did not seem frightening any more.

This video frightened me because I am not a fan of horror films. Though I am not an expert on individuals who have schizophrenia, this video reminded me of numerous cases that I see in fictional television shows and movies. Compared to how I typically see schizophrenia in the media, this video portrays my viewpoint on them really well. By this I mean a dark room, voices from people that are not actually there telling the man many different things, constant negative comments being directed at the man telling him he is worthless, and someone else in the film saying that the schizophrenic individual forgot to take their medicine. Yes, this video shocked me but the reason why it truly shocked me was because at the beginning of the video it said that the symptoms that I will experience in the video represents a compilation of a range fo sensory occurrences as reported by actual patients, meaning that people with schizophrenia could be living in a horror film every day.

I had a childhood friend with schizophrenia, we lived next door to each other and spent quite a bit of our summer together, we would play in the park together until he moved when I was 15. When I first met him I was 13, he seemed to have something causing him some distress and wouldn’t tell me his name. My parents had invited him and his family over to have dinner with us to welcome them into our neighborhood. I had never really known what schizophrenia was before I met him. Once him and his family came over I could tell there was something off before the meal even started. He looked as if he didn’t trust anyone and he could barley stomach the sight of his food. Half way through our meal he shot up out of his seat and screamed “I’m not with them.” after that he started breathing really heavy and his parents and my parents went into another room and talked. Him and I sat at the table alone together. He slowly started whispering something to me over and over again, I could not understand what he was saying. I asked him to speak up but he wouldn’t. I decided because he was in my house I should do more to make him feel more settled. so I got out my seat and walked over to his side of the table. I don’t think he took my attempt to calm him down as a kind gesture. As I got closer his eyes lit up with what I assumed to be fear. I placed my hand on his shoulder and just as I was about to speak he grabbed the butter knife we had been using to butter rolls and slashed through my arm, and his whisper grew to a scream. I could understand what he was saying now. “you’re one of them, I know” He wouldn’t stop yelling after he cut me. I was shocked to say the least. I couldn’t understand why he had hurt me when I was trying to ease him. The commotion startled my parents and his. I was surprised to see that no one was upset with him. They left right then. later that night my parents explained to me what he was going through. Apparently he had recently been diagnosed and the new medication wasn’t going over very well, still I had no idea the ins and outs of what a schizophrenic person is actually experiencing. I think this video does a good job at illustrating the perception of some one with this illness. I was able to forgive him once I learned he didn’t actually want to hurt me, he had no choice he is schizophrenic, he is sick. I think the media does a good job at portraying the difficulty of living with this illness, but at the same time the media harms the perception of these mentally ill people because more often than not they are portrayed to be dangerous and hopeless doomed to be lost in their mind.

Elyn Saks is an incredibly accomplished woman with a resume that absolutely astounds me. In addition to receiving her law degree from Yale, she is a professor of multiple subjects, is associate dean of research at USC, an honorary Doctor of Law, and received the “Genius Grant” which she used to create the Saks Institute for Mental Health Law, Policy, and Ethics. Elyn also happens to suffer from chronic schizophrenia, a mental illness characterized by its hallmarks of delusions and hallucinations. The stereotype associated with the illness is one of an unaccomplished individual, institutionalized or otherwise unaccomplished, and—indeed—this is the prognosis doctors gave her when she was first diagnosed.

It’s then fitting her proudest accomplishments is staying out of psychiatric hospitals for thirty years; however, this isn’t to say her life was a walk in the park. For instance, the way she describes her experiences throughout law school are recounted in a horribly visceral way. I felt like I was experiencing her delusions of having murdered millions of people or her hallucinations of men with knives right alongside her. All of this while getting a law degree, too. (I can barely make it by with depression—I can’t even fathom something of schizophrenia’s scale.)

Graphic too were her descriptions of her various hospitalizations. On one occasion, she was forced onto a metal table and strapped to it until she was completely immobilized. Later, she was involuntarily hospitalized. On another occasion, Elyn was left up to twenty hours in restraints despite posing no harm—which she rightfully deems a form of dehumanizing torture since you are disregarding a human being’s volition. As a result, she naturally wanted to be rid of her illness and began quitting her medication because “the less medicine, the less defective,” but this only led to a direr psychotic episode, after which she acknowledged the illness was not something she could continue to hide from. This is a critical moment in any mentally ill person’s life since I think it the choice to tackle the problem head on instead of dance around its edges.. From personal experience, the mind responds better to a good slap and challenge than hesitance. Commitment is needed.

Elyn asserts her success is due to three factors.

First, she’s the recipient of excellent treatment, going to psychotherapy four to five times a week for the past few decades.

Second, she’s been blessed with an extensive network of close, supportive friends and family members who are aware of her illness. This reportedly gives her a depth to life and aides her through the rough patches.

Third, she cites a supportive workplace which embraces her needs and offers intellectual stimulation. Again, from personal experience, having a workplace be responsive to your concerns is incredibly validating, releasing a huge amount of pressure.

Despite this, Elyn didn’t disclose her diagnosis to the public until fairly recently due to the fear of the illness’ extremely negative stigma. Rightfully so since schizophrenia is one of those very, very misunderstood mental conditions. Many people automatically go to slasher-films or psychological thrillers which feature (misrepresented) characters with disorders alluding to schizophrenia. Indeed, my idea of the typical person with schizophrenia’s life comes from two sources: my grandma’s adult daycare business and the 2009 movie, The Soloist. In The Soloist, for instance, a man with schizophrenia drops out of Julliard after a series of psychotic episodes and is left to roam the streets until a journalist discovers his talent and tries—rather unsuccessfully—to get him back on track. This paints people with schizophrenia in a very helpless light, as if they had little willpower or choice to do much of anything and were instead completely consumed by their psychosis. My concept of this certainly wasn’t aided by spending part of my childhood around my grandma’s daycare business. The idea behind it is families send their mentally incapacitated adult sons or daughters there whenever they need a break for the day. It’s a beneficial thing for both parties, but it unfortunately means my perception of those with chronic schizophrenia was skewed since we typically only received those with severe, untreatable psychosis. This TED Talk really helped open my eyes. What an incredible woman.

Sources:

Elyn Saks. (2016, January 29). Retrieved May 12, 2016, from http://gould.usc.edu/about/contact/faculty/contactinfo.cfm?detailid=300

Elyn Saks: A tale of mental illness – from the inside [Video file]. (2012, June). Retrieved May 12, 2016, from https://www.ted.com/talks/elyn_saks_seeing_mental_illness?language=en

The typical format of shows like My Strange Addiction, Hoarding: Buried Alive, and Intervention include the introduction of a mentally ill person with a problem. After a reveal of how dire their need for help is–because usually a relationship is on the line–a specialist is brought in to address the individual, and the audience is left to watch the drama unfold.

Who yells at who? Who breaks down first? Will they ultimately change? Will they not?

As a kid, my mom ate this stuff up. I’d occasionally watch them with her on humdrum Saturday mornings, lounging around with a grilled cheese and TLC’s tag lines playing in the background. I never really liked them, however. They made me feel funny on the inside and a little more than guilty for peeping in on something I thought should be private.

The assigned video made me remember why I wasn’t fond: everything, even the altruism displayed, felt either insulting or artificial.

For instance, the video follows the aforementioned format. A man struggles with his hoarding addiction. He has a girlfriend who’s naturally dissatisfied and is considering leaving him despite still feeling attached. A behavioral therapist and a professional organizer are brought in to help solve the “problem,” camera crew in tow. Little progress is made in six weeks when he halts the cleaning up process. To me, this enforces the negative stereotype of the mentally ill being stubbornly “unfixable” (as if it were their fault) even when the resources to “get better” are made plainly available. It’s not that simple. Emerging from a mental illness, especially one as long-held as this man’s compulsive hoarding, is a back and forth system full of advances and setbacks over years which a television show can’t possibly capture. Another thing television shows can’t possibly capture is the emotion behind the mental illness. Despite one or two vignettes where the individual recounts the trauma rooting a disorder or venting about how difficult life is in their shoes, only superficial attention is given to their torment. It doesn’t show the sleepless nights of pacing back and forth, listening to little voices in the back of your head, or anything past what’s necessary to evoke pathos in the audience. Such a simplification is frustrating, creating the same two dimensional figureheads of mental illness created by a poorly done horror film’s “psychopath.”

Second, the visual styling of the show made me queasy. Conducted in the same format as reality television about rich families, Hoarding: Buried Alive once more downplays the severity of these mental disorders. To no fault of the audience, we’re led to view these people as nothing more than intriguing cases for our pleasure, entertainment. The handheld camera zooming in, the intermittent interviews, the background music, and advertising all evoke memories of Keeping Up with the Kardashians  or–even worse–since it equates making over someone’s house to making over someone’s mind–Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. (Click the links for examples.) It’s grossly corporate for something which should be honestly portrayed as a call for awareness.

The most perturbing thing, however, was the advertising used in the video. For instance, blurbs would pop up over its course–Twitter posts made by someone I assume is part of the production team. They end with “#Hoarders.” While this is a reference to the show’s name, the concept of someone using a word associated with legitimately mentally ill people in the same way as “#fashion” or “#like4like” horrifies me on a personal level. Can you imagine a depressed person flicking through the internet for relatable content and instead coming across a post advertising a show on TLC with the hashtag “#depressed”?  Additionally, the My Strange Addiction webpage baits audiences with the headline “You Won’t Believe How Strange These Addictions Are.” While I admit it’s a part of our inherit psychology to be fascinated by The Weird, it doesn’t mean we should go ahead and exploit living, breathing people with such a sterile glove.

Basically, I’m saying is if you want to see something strange, go ahead and take a tour of Ripley’s because–believe it or not–mental illness isn’t entertainment.

Sources:

Schizophrenia is a mental illness causing a set of negative, positive, and cognitive symptoms; however, the hallmark characteristics the disorder calls to mind are the positive symptoms, hallucinations and delusions. Hallucinations involve the introduction of non-real elements into a person’s perception of reality. These can occur in all the different senses. Some, for instance, will smell strange odors or feel bugs crawling on their skin–though the most common hallucinations are auditory and visual. Delusions, on the other hand, are false beliefs a person is convinced are certainly true. With schizophrenia, these are typically preposterous and paranoid. Many schizophrenics believe the government is out to persecute them.

Since these symptoms appear in media, we often have preconceived ideas about what constitutes a schizophrenics mind. Graduate student Alexandra Logan refers to thriller movies such as Black Swan, Shutter Island, and Friday the 13th, saying these movies support negative stereotypes like “people with mental illness are violent, unpredictable, untreatable and… evil.” While I can’t say I personally have this point of view, I can say I love thriller movies and sadly have rarely considered this harmful perspective.

Through watching a video  attempting to accurately portray the positive symptoms of schizophrenia, I sought to gain a new understanding of how a schizophrenic individual might see the world during a psychotic episode. The scene opens with a regular, domestic day bathed in tranquility. Then, steadily, voices begin to creep into the audio. They call me worthless and lazy, taunting and telling me I’d be better off dead or how to never trust anyone, even the pizza delivery boy at the door. Food is poison. Medication is poison. The weather is out to get me. After a while, an eerie sensation begins to sneak up o me, and I realize how difficult it would be to disobey these voices because of how sure, how commanding they are. As we learned in previous units, humans are hardwired to go along with an authority figure’s commands even if we believe them to be morally reprehensible as demonstrated by the Milgram experiment in which an incredibly high percentage of adults “electrocuted” a (thankfully nonexistent) opponent on the command of a researcher. This video reminds me not only would I be pressured into doing the same, but how frustrating a life lived like this would be. If you ignored the voices, you’d get in trouble as perceived by your reality. If you listened to them, you’d consider yourself a monster.

How overwhelming. I understand the high suicide rates associated with schizophrenia on a first hand basis now.

Additionally, the video caused me to consider how difficult social situations would be when your sense of reality is so shaky. Never knowing when a person’s actions are a hallucination or due to a delusion would make it almost impossible to trust anyone. I was also alarmed by the lack of safe space to retreat to. During a psychotic episode, nowhere is safe, not even when you close your eyes.

Sources:

I chose to do the first option and watched the video simulating what it’s like to be a person with schizophrenia.  Watching that video was a very surreal experience for me. I don’t know how I would be able to deal with those complications in my everyday life.  From the negative voices in my head telling me that I’m worthless and that they hate me to the paranoia with normal things such as the pizza guy or my coffee, I honestly don’t think I would be able to function whatsoever. There are a number of movies that are centered around characters with schizophrenia and they are portrayed usually as tragically sad with some characters being redeemed in the end by their “gift”. Many movies and TV shows portray schizophrenia in a comedic way though. These characters usually deal with voices in their heads too but instead of being hateful like the ones in the video, they tend to cause the character to do something hilarious and crazy. Or other times they are seen walking around and talking to themselves or inanimate objects causing comedic  discomfort to the other characters of the show. These portrayals, in my opinion, take a lot of the seriousness of schizophrenia away. I know that until I took this class, I had never really given much thought to what it would be like to be schizophrenic. After reading more about it in the book and watching this video, I have a much clearer understanding of schizophrenia and the effects it has on people’s lives. I think the media really needs to work on how they depict people with schizophrenia. By downplaying the symptoms and making them seem humorous and harmless, many people never even realize the gravity of what people with schizophrenia go through every day.