schizophrenia and the spiritual crisis

[Jhanananda]

Bipolarized: One Man’s Natural Approach to Mental Illness

This sounds like an interesting movie, because the description of this movie supports my own findings regarding the psychiatric community's practice of labeling people as bipolar when they do not fit into the mainstream mold.  If anyone sees it, then please let us know what your reaction is.

[PeacefulDodo]

I think that many things we label as negative, ADHD, Schizophrenia etc are just peoples brains working differently and yet we label them and give them negative connotations and feed them full of medication.  Why not ask and explore what these people may be able to offer instead, i have heard that schizophrenics may be considered shamans in other communitys, the most revered members of the community.  It does seem that if one does not fit into the mainstream mold you are medicated and told to fit in, society really can be toxic, but i refuse to not acknowledge the beauty, teamwork and love that also exists there.  Two sides of the same coin i guess.

[Jhanananda]

Yes, there is quite some herd mentality expressed by the mainstream, and a demand for conformity.  So, we mystics just have to keep our distance from the herd, so that we can make progress into mysticism.

[Cal]

Seems as though they have made a "breakthrough' in linking Schizophrenia as a hereditary disorder. This topic hits a nerve as my father was diagnosed with Schizophrenia, and with studies like these, it makes me a likely candidate for the same. It is only misunderstood. Those, like my own father, who became lost in his delusion, just simply did not know that there was another way. There was never any acceptance for him, nor did he learn how to challenge everything with critical thinking. He never found peace and lived his life medicated and restrained. To me, this was the result of this "disorder" and a twisted society bent on warping everything for gains and control.

http://www.iflscience.com/brain/biological-link-between-genetics-and-schizophrenia-has-finally-been-identified

[Jhanananda]

I am sorry to read about your father being diagnosed Schizophrenic.  Mystics tend to run in families to.  The problem is too few understand what it is to be a mystic.  Perhaps your father was just a misunderstood mystic, in a time when no one understood what it was to be a mystic.

[Cal]

I am sorry to read about your father being diagnosed Schizophrenic.  Mystics tend to run in families to.  The problem is too few understand what it is to be a mystic.  Perhaps your father was just a misunderstood mystic, in a time when no one understood what it was to be a mystic.

I truly believe that he was a mystic. Yet, he certainly did not understand this. I was hard on him and encouraged him that everyone has a choice. I told him he chose to view in the way that he did. At this particular time, I believed that even though I did not like the system, that it was necessary. I told him that if I could continue suffering through it by choice, that he could choose the same. I regret many things about my relationship with him, yet I realize its too late to change anything.

[Jhanananda]

I just read an article A New Target for Treating Mania?.  It states...

Elevated levels of uric acid are implicated in bipolar disorder
Uric acid is almost always mentioned in the context of gout, an inflammatory type of arthritis that results from excessive uric acid in the blood. It may be surprising, then, that it has also been linked with a vastly different type of disease: bipolar disorder. Elevated uric acid has been observed in patients with acute mania, and reducing uric acid improves symptoms. New evidence supports its potential as a treatment target.

Uric acid is a by-product of the breakdown of compounds called purines, found in many foods and manufactured by the body. High levels of uric acid can indicate that these compounds, such as the neurotransmitter adenosine, are being broken down too readily in the body. “Adenosine might play a key role in neurotransmission and neuromodulation, having sedative, anticonvulsant and antiaggressive effects,” says physician Francesco Bartoli, a researcher at the University of Milano-Bicocca in Italy. Bartoli's new study, published in May in the Journal of Psychosomatic Research, examined uric acid levels in 176 patients with bipolar disorder or another severe mental illness and 89 healthy controls. The results show that bipolar disorder was the only diagnosis significantly linked with levels of uric acid. Excess uric acid was found to be linked to male gender, metabolic syndrome, waist size and triglyceride levels.

Beyond the too rapid breakdown of adenosine, other potential explanations for increased uric acid include the metabolic abnormalities often present in people with bipolar disorder and frequent consumption of purine-rich foods and drinks, such as liver, legumes, anchovies and alcohol. Fructose consumption can also be a problem because the sugar inhibits uric acid excretion. Dietary interventions may reduce levels, but medication is typically required if dietary changes are insufficient.

The uric acid link points to novel treatments for mania. In a double-blind, randomized controlled trial reported in 2014, researchers in Iran and Switzerland investigated the efficacy of allopurinol, a gout medication that reduces levels of uric acid, in 50 patients with bipolar disorder during acute mania. During a period of four weeks, subjects received the mood stabilizer sodium valproate—a standard treatment—plus either allopurinol or a placebo. In the allopurinol group, there was a significant reduction in uric acid levels and mania symptoms, and rates of remission were 23 times higher.

In the future, doctors may find it useful to help bipolar patients modify their diet, says study co-author Serge Brand, a research psychologist at the University of Basel in Switzerland: “This approach is timely and is part of the broader research focusing on the so-called gut-brain axis.”

[Michel]

Interesting article, Jhananda. I have mild arthritis in one finger. My diet is very low in uric acid.

[Jhanananda]

Well, it might not be your issue, but I thought I would post the article and see where it goes for you, and anyone else diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

[Jhanananda]

This might be another relevant article to this thread. Antidepressants in Pregnancy Tied to Health Risks for Kids

New findings underscore the challenge of balancing psychiatric needs and potential negative consequences for newborns
By Andrew M. Seaman

(Reuters Health) - Children exposed to a common type of antidepressant in the womb may be at an increased risk of complications soon after birth and years later, according to two new studies.

One study suggests newborns are more likely to need intensive care after birth if their mothers take selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) during pregnancy. A second study finds those same children may be at an increased risk for speech and language disorders years later...

[Frederick]

Did Christianity lead to schizophrenia? Psychosis, psychology and self reference

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4107833/

"Thus when C.G. Seligman, a physician and anthropologist, argued that severe mental illness was unknown in early contact New Guinea except in situations of considerable Westernisation (Seligman, 1929), he was criticised by anthropologists for ignoring psychosis which might be “concealed” in local patterns of ritual performance (apart from the likelihood that any cases of severe mental illness which came to colonial medical attention were only likely to be already in a situation of considerable contact and dominance by the Europeans—and thus “contact” was oversalient). Similar objections make the popular argument that shamanism or possession ritual conceals or “compensates” schizophrenia."

[Jhanananda]

I happen to agree in part with the quote.  However, there are other factors.  The pressure of colonialism could have indeed created fertile ground for psychosis.  Also, belief psychosis is a characteristic of religious devotion; and, because Christianity does not allow critical review, then it is particularly susceptible to belief psychosis.

[roamer]

This is slighlty tangential but I believe that awakening has induced symptoms that resemble bipolar and to a lesser degree mild sociopathy and schizophrenia .  The caveat is I am aware of them and able to ignore them usually, and when I maintain a regular deep meditation practice they dissipate as my mind integrates at a higher level.

I was made much more aware of these issues when working very long periods at night coupled with relationship stress all but squashed the charisms that I had come to rely on for joy.  As I began working through my issues when I had more time to reflect i was rather disturbed at some of the trends that I had noted.

I was managing personal relationships in a non emotional way with an emotional facade because I just wasn't feeling anything and was unable to have any relevant conversations about it.  This just coupled with long periods of nighshift work just shut down any sort of rhythm of normal emotional processing.

All of this may have happened had I not been a meditator but I think actually I would have broke down far earlier before these faculties were able to reach dangerous levels of disintegration (which is I believe a major aspect of schizophrenia).  I also know that my energy levels are elevated from awakening to a degree, I remain conscious more than most people even during sleep.  When not able to deeply meditate and relax and having that energy flowing I feel it exacerbates the issue.

I'll see how well this holds up as I will be retreating and trying to shift back into meditating deeply.  Its really a hard thing to explain, because I can still right and reason coherently but the emotional connectivity and sense of reality often are gone and if I haven't cultivated equanimity errant thoughts will run through my mind.  My feeling is that even if I am able to regain a balance I just won't be able to relate emotionally any more, not without forced effort, maybe I have just slipped into adult asbergian terrain??

[rougeleader115]

I have had many similar fears over the years about my meditation practice, my contemplative blog is proof. But for me, i just took it as disspassion with the external world. It used to worry me greatly at first until i realized i was the only one around ever calm and happy. I realized i did not feel the neurotic urge to do something ALL of the fucking time like this society ingrains in us. That in turn made me realize how much shit we do that will never ever makes us happy, and that most times we choose to suffer ourselves for what ever reason we chose or that society chose for us. So since many people are not even aware the cycles that cause their suffering and do not even care to investigate, then why should i remain emotional charged and relatable when I am in a deepening state of calm and bliss, that makes my life feel more like a dream. So i may not be relatable for your average person emotionally, but i am still very human and can feel many emotions, even if i dont take them so over the top serious like many people do. I just would rather explore the fruits of meditation than help or suffer through every neurotic tendency i see around just because i can relate to it. I hope this doesnt come off as arrogant or uncaring because thats not what I am presenting. Just that you may be different or changing but is it really a bad thing?

Best wishes,
Rougeleader

[roamer]

So i may not be relatable for your average person emotionally, but i am still very human and can feel many emotions, even if i dont take them so over the top serious like many people do. I just would rather explore the fruits of meditation than help or suffer through every neurotic tendency i see around just because i can relate to it. I hope this doesnt come off as arrogant or uncaring because thats not what I am presenting. Just that you may be different or changing but is it really a bad thing?

No it doesn't come off as arrogant to me, and ironically i completely relate.   Severing these ties though is more complex than if I say had a nestegg and was able to just go be a wandering renunciate.  I am dependent on being able to relate to survive in this world if for no other reason to maintain a job.

I don't think the ability to choose to relate or not is bad, in fact everyone here carries so many wounds on so many levels to remain aware would surely be insane.  The issue for me is figuring out how to remain genuine.  I am finding I can't really do this in normal life.  I am the one that bends in relationships and the people I am trying to relate to never get this.  I naively expect reciprocity when its not possible.

I need to come to a better understanding of what the contemplative path means in my life and understand that some aspects of life must necessarily be cut away from even if it means navigating a lonely road.