Recovered, Not Cured: A Journey Through Schizophrenia Book

As a survivor of schizophrenia, Richard vividly depicted his experience. He hesitated before publishment because his writing has exposed too many secrets and weaknesses of his. But after hearing his friend's ex-partner committed suicide because of the same illness, he finally went for it. I am grateful to Richard, because he offers a precious first-hand description of what it feels like to suffer from hallucinations and delusions.
 
A few takeaways:
• Even in a florid psychotic state, a patient can have a flash of insight. Richard describes a few occasions in which he had "a moment of clarity" and thought something was wrong with his mind. Yet such insight is so fleeting. Also, the insight can co-exist with the delusion, even though the two are so logically incompatible. For example, when the author saw a psychiatrist for the first time, he thought the meeting served two purposes: 1) to seek treatment; 2) to show the conspirers what pain they were causing. 
• When someone is in a psychotic state, it's hard to predict how they interpret their family's interaction with them. For example, Richard's mom suggested he slept in the front room so he could not hear the voices outside the window. Richard said his mom's suggestion reinforced his delusion as it made him thought his mom knew the voices were real. I am sure his mom must have also told him a thousand times she did not hear the voices and the voices were not real. Yet the author cherry-picked the words that fortify his belief.
• Richard has a creative mind and an outgoing personality. As a result, he had many friends. During his Europe tour in a psychotic state, he was still capable of making new friends. On the same trip, he started a romance with a girl who would burst into tears for him after knowing his symptoms. It is surprising how the disease can sometimes selectively contaminate part of the mind and keep the other intact. 
• Richard finally sought help after his friend Steve had enough of his freakish behavior and asked him to move out. Seeing his stuff packed, Richard apologized and feebly admitted he needed to see a doctor so that Steve could let him stay. This scene reminded me of discussions on how to persuade patients to seek treatment. It's always hard to weigh the merits and dangers of pressure and coercion. In the end, "it seems that nothing works for everybody and everything works for somebody."
• Even when Richard has recovered to a state to write a well-versed book, he admits he still suffers from residual symptoms. For example, "even nowadays," he could "do with a few more laughs." He also strategically avoids commercial television and drive-time comedy, in case they strike his nerves.
• As someone who is doing digital art for a living, Richard includes many of his drawings in the book. Some of them were done while he was ill and reflect his state of mind. Been through psychosis, he thinks insanity has no help in art. When he was psychotic, he saw wonderful ideas and themes that are unavailable to any other viewer. But now he thinks they are plain nuts.