DL, tell me about schizotypal personality disorder

Also, people with the disorder tend to recognize their thinking is disordered, to a greater or lesser degree

Bump

I've wondered before if this label applies to me. I think all of society may have inched that direction over the last couple of years.

You have it Op. Go to a hospital & turn yourself over to the care of professionals.

MARY!!!!!!!!! r4

It's also known as Datalounger's Disease

I know someone who has been diagnosed with it, I question whether it's really a separate disorder from other ones. She's so heavily medicated she's basically not there anymore.

It seems to be schizophrenia without delusions, i.e. just being a weirdo. I think social isolation and nasty, cold parents who treated her like a servant are what did her in. She was fine until she was in her early twenties.

Also, she has endless joint and bone density problems now that have to be coming from all of her psych meds.

Jeffrey Dahmer was diagnosed with this.

Really, r9? Interesting.

R10 Yes, and by more than one psych, so it wasn't just a lone diagnosis. Have a look at his 'altar' drawing for example.

It looked okay until I got to the skulls.^

Give us some specific, real life examples of your behavior that match up with the list of symptoms, OP

My father was this. Could you not?

“schizophrenia without delusions”

I always that that the delusions were the qualifiers the disease.

But I do think there is something that has all the paranoid, disorderd stuff and not actual delusions. They are usually a big mess and but not quite full blown psychosis. Sort of right there at the edge.

Interestingly, r15, WHO categorizes schizotypal as a schizophrenia spectrum disorder, rather than a personality disorder

I'll reply with some specifics tomorrow

r13, finally offering a real answer. In response to the diagnostic criteria listed above:

[quote]Being a loner and lacking close friends outside of the immediate family

I have definitely been a loner since elementary school. I cannot maintain friendships, either because of jealousy and paranoia, or lack of interest. My only real "relationship" occurred in my mid-20s. It lasted around three months and ended when my paranoia and jealousy became too much for him. Basically, a straight friend from college visited him and slept on his couch for the weekend. I know it was stupid, but I was convinced they were going to fuck, and that was the last straw -- I got dumped. I've had a few fuck buddies over the years, but I've always been single. Never see myself partnered.

[quote]Flat emotions or limited or inappropriate emotional responses

I'd say that inappropriate affect applies to me more than flat emotions

[quote]Persistent and excessive social anxiety

Yes, I am very uncomfortable in a wide variety of social situations, and my anxiety doesn't go away even around people I've known a long time.

[quote]Incorrect interpretation of events, such as a feeling that something that is actually harmless or inoffensive has a direct personal meaning

Since I was an adolescent, I have found certain events have personal meaning when, in fact, they are meaningless/random, and I have made significant life choices based on these events

[quote]Peculiar, eccentric or unusual thinking, beliefs or mannerisms

I have always been eccentric and held weird beliefs. When I was 12 -- which, interestingly enough, was also when I had my first depressive episode -- I made the terrible mistake of disclosing some of these beliefs to a group of classmates. It ended very, very badly for me. I was already an outcast, but when they saw this "crazy" side of me it made it infinitely worse. In that moment I knew that something was wrong with me, with the way I thought saw the world and interpreted events, and I kept a tight lid on it. I remember looking at my mom's old nursing school textbooks in our basement trying to diagnose myself. My general weirdness has led me into a lot of interpersonal difficulties over the years.

[quote]Suspicious or paranoid thoughts and constant doubts about the loyalty of others

Yes -- see example above. This also caused a lot of problems with my PhD advisor (who had issues of his own). I am very paranoid about people's true intentions and it ruins friendships.

[quote]Belief in special powers, such as mental telepathy or superstitions

Interestingly, on principle, I don't believe in these things in the general populace. I think psychics are frauds. But I do think I have possess some "special powers", so there you have it. I've also thought I may be the reincarnation of different people from the past (which, yes, I know is crazy)

[quote]Unusual perceptions, such as sensing an absent person's presence or having illusions

Maybe, maybe not. This isn't a big one for me. Sometimes when I do things, I imagine that other people are watching me.

[quote]Dressing in peculiar ways, such as appearing unkempt or wearing oddly matched clothes

Not really.

[quote]Peculiar style of speech, such as vague or unusual patterns of speaking, or rambling oddly during conversations

This is hard to judge, as I'm the one who's doing the talking. It may also be related to hypomania in my case.

Wait I'm so confused because aren't those the same traits as asperegers. I'm not saying your austic OP, but I thought schizoid personality was something different.

R18 None of that really makes me think you're schizotypal. For me, the odd beliefs and oddness is key. Why did you not tell us the details of those things?

If you seek his monument, look around.

r19 schizoid personality disorder is different from schizotypal personality disorder

[quote]Why did you not tell us the details of those things?

Because I already know they're bizarre. I don't need strangers on the internet telling me my beliefs are nuts. They're also mine -- my disordered thinking, my weird fantasies, etc. I like to keep them private.

R23 Strange for an anonymous thread where you're trying to convince us that you're schizotypal. It makes me think that you're probably not really and that you don't have anything much.

Why so trollish, r24?

R25 Fascinated that you see me as 'trollish' when I'm just trying to understand why and how you're schizotypal. If you have to resort to ad hominem insults instead of explaining adequately what does that say?

OP hang in there. You’re probably right you know yourself best. And if you’re able to realize your patterns then you’re in a good place.

I see these types around over the years. They don’t have delusions per se. But they are disordered and carry around a bunch of writing, notebooks, magazine clippings or todays equivalent would be storing thousands of files and links on their PC. They will often print them out and have reams of paper and folders everywhere.

They vary from suspicious to full blown paranoid. From messy and talkative to writhing and espousing from their own hand-written bibles.

I’ve even seen some with a mild version of this. Slightly off, just a little odd. To full blown cray cray.

So there must be a spectrum, with hallucinations as the more extreme side of the spectrum.

Did something happen to you OP? Did you have a traumatic childhood or adolescence?

Do you feel like you were born this way?

Bear in mind that OP says he has been treated for bipolar. So he has been diagnosed with bipolar. This could just be a crazy, manic-type of episode.

R27 Note that OP never said anything that suggested that he is like those types you mention...

I was adopted, r28, which causes its own set of issues in childhood.

My birth mother is very intelligent but also nuts. (I've only met her a couple of times.)

R31 You're bipolar, not schizotypal, aren't you?

Has r32 been diagnosed as an asshole yet?

Retired psych nurse here. The DSM, the diagnostic 'bible' tries to take something as complex as human behavior and shove it into distinct defined categories. Then classifies a PORTION of these behaviors as illness or at least maladaptive. How ill? often determined by how much intervention is required to keep the person functional- thus the distinction between psychosis and the walking wounded.

You can wrap yourself in a label but what good does this do other than isolate. There is no prize/reward in a label. Try thinking of yourself in terms of behavior/emotion. What of me creates friction with the world. How can I be myself and navigate society. What do I want to change and what am I pefectly happy with about myself.

Finally look around. Almost everyone has something off about them or a wound they protect or defenses so tight nothing real squeaks through. You are just a human.

What’s the difference between bipolar and this? Would like to hear some clear distinctions.

My take is that the mania and sometimes psychosis from bipolar is only episodic and with this it’s all the time but otherwise there is a lot of overlap.

R33 An asshole who points out the truth. OP has said nothing to suggest that he is schizotypal.

Thanks, r34. That was very helpful.

Do you carry around a bunch of papers Op? Is your desk real cluttered and are all your clothes wrinkled and covered in lint balls?

Do you draw out endless diagrams and descriptions?

Do you miss a bunch of spots when you (are required to) shave?

My mood swings are episodic, r35, but my oddness, lack of close friends, and general interpersonal difficulties are not.

Also, my weird thinking/ideas are unrelated to manic or hypomanic episodes, as far as I can tell.

R9, and Aspergers!! Which I believe is the main condition that shaped his psychopathy

OP, based on the number of times you've replied to yourself, I think you should focus on your own disorder(s).

Where have I "replied to myself," r42? I've either responded to other posters or offered clarification on my own comments

Sounds like most magates.

Back in graduate school for an art therapy degree, we had to make presentations on one or two patients each semester. I had this one patient on the locked psychiatric ward for a few days. He would draw on white paper, only using black and red markers. He was an art therapist's dream. He'd draw people hacking each other up, and blood spurting everywhere. There was some light symbolism thrown in too (Roman numerals and stuff). Then he'd crush the pictures and throw them in the trash, and I'd take them out.

As I remember, the guy was perfectly nice, though probably sedated. I don't know what his sexual preference was (that wasn't really on my radar back then and I don't remember him displaying it one way or the other). Clearly he enjoyed my attention because I'm sure it was fun to see me wide eyed and trying not to respond to the mayhem in the drawings. The people were mostly stick figures, if I'm remembering correctly.

The doctors had him diagnosed as mentally retarded (MR, that's what we said back then. Now I guess it would be an intellectual disability. I don't know, I dropped out of the business). It didn't seem to me that that was what was going on. The presentation went over well, with my instructor showing the class how this guy's drawing of a character jumping off of a cliff did not indicate MR. (It had to do with the way the patient had drawn the character, maybe facing down.) Everybody liked the crazy art, which did slightly resemble Jeffrey Dahmer's diagram. My instructor floated the idea of a schizotypal diagnosis.

So, clearly, this guy wanted attention and connection on some level. I do think he was drawing what he knew would grab my interest the most. (On one level the art was hysterically funny.)

Interestingly, I ran into the guy while walking through a parking lot later that year. We were alone and I thought my life could end right there. We acknowledged each other and that was that.

I have no idea if the OP is schizotypal or not. OP, you sound as though you do fit the diagnosis from what you are telling us. But also in a fairly functional way, as another poster said. You lean that way but are generally able to function in day to day society, right?

Social anxiety is caused by not fitting into your group. Usually because of low intelligence,gay,ethnic,ugly or bad at sports ,psych disorder,etc. Anybody who lists social anxiety as a diagnostic criteria should be punched.

Does it cause behavior like this?

OP here, almost a year later.

Interestingly enough, I had surgery when I was very young to correct strabismus (in my case, constant exotropia), and there seems to be a genetic link between constant exotropia and schizophrenia.

so you had crazy eyes.

so, yeah, you are crazy.