Do you think I might have Schizophrenia?

I am going to get a professional diagnoses when I start getting health insurance from my new job. But until then I would like to know from experienced people, if it sounds like I might have Schizophrenia.

Symptoms:

1. Seeing flying orbs (almost constantly, more so when I'm under lots of stress)

2. Hearing what I'd like to call "invisible voices" (as in not actual voices, but "outside thoughts" from inside my head that seem to be someone else's thoughts. Usually phrases or sentences that don't make sense such as "have you milked the cows yet?")

3. Paranoid thoughts, usually about people

4. Fear of the outdoors. Wanting to be alone

5. Delusions of grandeur

6. Trouble being motivated

7. Trouble finishing a task

8. Communicating with people from other dimensions (or at least thinking I am?)

9. Hearing messages in random noise such as static, or when something is dropping, breaking, or just making a random sound

10. Seeing objects warping, twitching or breathing

Thanks...

I got the new job because my father works there. Otherwise I have a very hard time finding jobs on my own. The longest I've been able to keep a job was no more than 2 months. And that's if I really try :/
I am 23 years old, I've been experiencing the hallucinations and delusions since I was about 15, and they just keep adding on and getting more severe.
My husband has been diagnosed with Schizophrenia and he is the one that pointed out that I might have it too. I've been researching it for the past year and that's how I got all my symptoms down...
I don't have Schizophrenia in my family history, at least not that I know of, but my father had suffered from what seemed to be Dissociative Identity Disorder years ago, and my mother has severe OCD. If that helps...

The DSM IV (Diagnosis Criterion) states that you must have at least two of the following for at least a month.
1. Delusions (false beliefs)
2. Hallucinations (seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, or feeling things that others would not be able to)
3. Disorganized speech (your ability to be organized here suggests this may not apply to you)
4.disorganized or catatonic behavior
5. lack of emotions, depression, or manic moods

You seem to fit the criterion for a diagnosis. Please get seen soon. There is help out there.

It is a good possibility that you do NOT have schizophrenia. It sounds like you may be having something just as serious though -- A Nervous breakdown. My suggestion would be to go start out at a good therapist and explain the sypmtoms and the way you feel first before hitting the red button. The therapist will give you a sound and accurate opinion and then refer you to a pychiatrist if neccessary. You may be able to work through this with some good therapy and if neccessary medicine.

what you are describing could be schizophrenia,but only a doc can make that diagnosis.schizophrenia can cause a lot of dysfunction in your life,but when a person is on the medication which works best for them,they can function like anyone else can,but it is very important to take those meds,which the doc may want you to take.

If you do have it you seem like a very high functioning individual. It could be just a case of psychosis not full blown shizophrenia. There are many things it could be. I would still contact a psychiatrist not a psychologist as you may need medication. I woudn't try and diagnose yourself based on peoples opinions.

Hey, that's a perfect description of GW!

Just kidding...

That's an incredibly detailed self-diagnosis. I would say yes, quite possibly, except for the fact that you are able to present it all so coherently here.

Yeah those are the symptoms.

Just get help, it must be tough, but you will feel stronger after you talk to a professional

Absolutely. How did you get a job with all these symptoms? I would think they'd be debilitating.

TX Mom

Could be bi-polar disorder

Yeah, I'm no doctor, but it sure sounds like you do. (Try getting help that sounds like really scary kinda)

Maybe. Though I don't like how doctors generalize a person into a "disease" category. You could just have a number of issues, that manifest in a number of ways. I would recommend seeing a psychologist - not psychiatrist, as they will, after about 2 minutes of talking to a person, recommend a drug. If a drug could help, fine, but at least get a less biased opinion.

There's definitely, obviously, something wrong, and you need to address it. That you realize that you're having paranoid thoughts, and that whatever sounds you hear or things you see are products of you psyche, is a good sign. But act fast.

Actually, my daughter had these exact same symptoms. She had low iron and low blood sugar. She was terrified. So, here is what I recommend to you.
Improve your diet. Go to a health food store and get some iron tablets (these are fairly cheap), and take one every other day. If you really want your iron tested, go try to donate blood, and they should tell you your hemoglobin. If it's low, they won't let you donate.
Also, start eating breakfast with lots of protein, and eat a lot of food at breakfast. Eat lots of protein, and not much carbs. For lunch, eat a meal with balanced carbs and protein, and for supper, eat a light meal of carbs and veggies.
In addition, get a good multivitamin, and a Vitamin B complex supplement and take them every day. If you can afford it, try to improve your gut flora. Eat a couple of tablespoons of plain Dannon yoghurt before each meal, and eat plenty of lacto-fermented foods.

Try that, and see what happens. My daughter is proof that these exact symptoms can be caused by low iron and bad diet. She hallucinated, heard voices, was paranoid, and really tired.

Hope you feel better soon!

Yes bunny, those symptoms sound very like schizophrenia paranoia but self diagnosis or diagnosis by a non- professional is dangerous and usually wrong. You don't want a diagnosis of schizophrenia paranoia if you can help it as the stigma involved is a severe handicap There are time criteria for the symptoms and a proper diagnosis takes some time by a qualified psychiatrist. I don't suggest waiting to see a doctor until you have insurance as there are public clinics available at least in the USA. Besides you must be suffering.

If you want to see the case history of a lifetime schizophrenia paranoid go to my profile and read my many answers on schizophrenia. E-mail me with any questions from there.

Good luck in seeking help, good mental health, peace and Love.

You may have schizophrenia, but how severe are your symptoms? Do you have any other emotional side effects, like any emotional extremes? Do you have any family members or a family history with schizophrenia? It definitely could be schizophrenia but any disorder severe enough could cause you to hallucinate (i.e. - people who get severely depressed have hallucinations), and it really could be a number of things. Good luck with the doctor, hang in there. Here's a good site about the disorder that might help. http://www.schizophrenia.com/. This part in particular may help you as well http://www.schizophrenia.com/ami/index.h...

A person experiencing schizophrenia may demonstrate symptoms such as disorganized thinking, auditory hallucinations, and delusions. In severe cases, the person may be largely mute, remain motionless in bizarre postures, or exhibit purposeless agitation; these are signs of catatonia. The current classification of psychoses holds that symptoms need to have been present for at least one month in a period of at least six months of disturbed functioning. A schizophrenia-like psychosis of shorter duration is termed a schizophreniform disorder. No one sign is diagnostic of schizophrenia, and all can occur in other medical and psychiatric conditions.

Social isolation commonly occurs and may be due to a number of factors. Impairment in social cognition is associated with schizophrenia, as are the active symptoms of paranoia from delusions and hallucinations, and the negative symptoms of apathy and avolition. Many people diagnosed with schizophrenia avoid potentially stressful social situations that may exacerbate mental distress.

Late adolescence and early adulthood are peak years for the onset of schizophrenia. These are critical periods in a young adult's social and vocational development, and they can be severely disrupted by disease onset. To minimize the effect of schizophrenia, much work has recently been done to identify and treat the prodromal (pre-onset) phase of the illness, which has been detected up to 30 months before the onset of symptoms, but may be present longer. Those who go on to develop schizophrenia may experience the non-specific symptoms of social withdrawal, irritability and dysphoria in the prodromal period, and transient or self-limiting psychotic symptoms in the prodromal phase before psychosis becomes apparent.