When Perception and Reality are Not in Balance

This article offers practical advice. I liked it.

It's like the philosopher George Berkeley said, "The world is in the mind, not the mind in the world". We all live in a world of our making. That is why two people who grow up in the same family under almost the same conditions see the exact same events differently. This can be a comforting thought at times, and maybe not so comforting at other times. We seek to be understood. When we are not understood, it is painful. But at least realizing our worlds are seen differently can help us not hurt so bad when we aren't understood and also when we can't understand someone we love.

The real problem is getting them to a provider. They quite often aren't willing to go. My mother had severe mental problems when I was a teenager and there were a few times I literally would order her into the car and drive her to her doctor and she would do it because she became quite docile during her episodes. But my mother-in-law is quite opposed to being medicated -- we've withheld visiting her and allowing her to be around her grandchildren to get her to comply to a limited extent, but even that is difficult.

Reality is perceived differently by everybody, even those who are not mentally ill have different ideas about what is or is not real. Good article.

This is a very good and informative article.

It is sad when people need to be involuntarily held. If you must do this to a loved one, please make sure you know of a good facility ahead of time. Many professionals are incompetent, callous, selfish, apathetic, and/or abusive. Be an advocate and ensure patients' rights are respected. Look up the laws in your jurisdiction concerning volition and choice, informed consent requirements, standards for release or continued holds, etc. Being involuntarily held, especially in some facilities, can make the sanest person go crazy within 24 hours. That's the last thing someone having a psychotic episode needs.

Most people are not taught about invalidation, which is a very important subject. Most people are emotionally abused and abusive to some degree and think it is normal.

If someone is perceiving physical reality differently, but still rational, working them through logic and providing science-based evidence may help them rethink objective facts. You should pay attention to their views as well, not just to argue against them, but to think about them. Sometimes a large mental shift enables someone to have more accurate, not less, ways of seeing things. It can be frustrating to have these written off as "s/he is just crazy" on top of having to deal with being mentally ill. Being correct and being mentally ill are independent of each other, and people are both to some degree.

Whether or not someone is responsive to objective facts and reasoning, it is important to express understanding of their subjective feelings and opinions. These are things that objectively are neither true nor false, eg "This is scary" or "That statue looks ugly." In fact, it is objectively true if they say "I find this scary" or "I think that statue looks ugly." Never invalidate someone's feelings. Not only is this emotionally abusive, you are setting yourself up to be in denial of reality yourself!

Pay attention to the person in need. If you want to help, do what helps them, not what you think "should" help, not what you think would help you. Sometimes physical touch is comforting and a hug is exactly what they need, and holding their hand and physically guiding them when moving can make all the difference. In other cases, even a light touch on the arm can feel very painful and seem terrifying. Likewise, arguing politely but confidently about facts can restore some assurance that the world isn't as horrible as it feels at the moment, but often it will be alienating, especially when a person is unable to separate "s/he disagrees with me about these facts" and "s/he hates me and is not on my side" in their mind.

If someone has repeated episodes during which they are irrational, discuss their desires and choices when they are rational. Where would they like to be hospitalized? At what point do they think they should be hospitalized, how far gone do they have to be? How does different medication make them feel, and if one medication stops working, what do they think should be tried next? When they make statements during their episodes, which are likely to be consistently true and should be taken at face value, and which are things that they consider "not really themselves"? When the medical profession is involved, advance directives can be helpful.

Speaking from experience, I would strongly agree with the article, but from my experience of being hospitalized for depression and having a roomate with schizophrenia, I'm really not sure where you go from there. The patient was in the hospital for a couple of days and then discharged out onto the street. In this instance she was where she needed to be and was put on medication but who is watching out for her? Or making sure she's okay? So in this case what is the answer? I have seen this happen to a few patients.

Never invalidate someone's feelings.I would strongly agree with the article, but from my experience of being hospitalized for depression and having a roomate with schizophrenia, I'm really not sure where you go from there. Likewise, arguing politely but confidently about facts can restore some assurance that the world isn't as horrible as it feels at the moment, but often it will be alienating.If you must do this to a loved one, please make sure you know of a good facility ahead of time. Many professionals are incompetent, callous, selfish, apathetic, and/or abusive. Be an advocate and ensure patients' rights are respected.

the article that u are viewing is quite infomative and seems good aswell.

I liked it! It gives a little insight to other people's behavior, especially how you might respond best to it.