Two questions... ?

[Karmachameleon]

Strange occurrence.  Oddly enough my ex's ex girlfriend heard about my traumatic breakup and reached out to me on Facebook and we have been messaging.  Our experiences are similar.  HOWEVER, I just found out from her that his official diagnosis is "Borderline Paranoid Schizophrenia".  She accompanied him to his Psychiatric appointments and saw the official paperwork with his diagnosis and also spoke to his therapists.  (He was not receiving any medical or psychological attention for the 3 years we were together.)  I googled it and didn't find much.  It seems that a lot of sites feel that these two things don't really exist simultaneously or else there is a misdiagnosis because the symptoms can be similar.  She said he was on anti-psychotic drugs after his diagnosis when they were together and he was regularly seeing a therapist, but the therapist constantly made him mad for telling him like it was and it didn't help at all.  I know that he isn't on any medication now except for sleep and high blood pressure.  So, question number one is can you be BPD and schizophrenic at the same time, and if so, what is likely to happen to him now without therapy or medication?  He is approaching 40.  My second question is (I am technologically challenged) how do I switch boards?  I originally said that "Healing" was my home board, but clearly I am still at Leaving/Detaching.  I tried, but couldn't figure it out.  (BTW, I'm blond.  Sorry!  )   

[maternal]

You are so cute!  I don't know how to switch boards... .but I think you have to go somewhere in your profile or settings.

Is it possible that the diagnosis of Borderline is not the same as the Borderline we are familiar with in the diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder?  Perhaps that diagnosis technically means that he is on a "borderline" of paranoid schizophrenia?  I am not anywhere near a medical professional or someone who could figure that one out for you, but it's the first thing that came to my mind.

[Karmachameleon]

I thought the same thing, too, but he is soo BPD.  I mean, ALL of the criteria and not just the minimum for a diagnosis.  Plus, he has a lot of paranoid delusions and makes up crazy stories and believes them.  And hears voices and has psychotic episodes where he destroys anything and everything in sight.

[Karmachameleon]

I should also add that on top of that he is a raging alcoholic. 

[maternal]

Well, dang!  That has got to be the suck!  I can't even imagine a) suffering from such things, or b) suffering via relation.  Wow.

That is rough.  Be good to you, momma.

[Karmachameleon]

Luckily for me when we broke up he had to move to another state and live with his family because he can't hold a job or keep a roof over his own head.  So the distance is comforting.  But he is posting on Facebook how awesome his life is now and how wonderful it is to be with people who "truly care about him" and to "get away from his toxic relationship".  I know it sounds awful, but I keep wishing for him to have one of his episodes so that his family, who he hasn't really been around for over a decade and he always blamed for his problems, would see him for what he really is. 

[maternal]

Luckily for me when we broke up he had to move to another state and live with his family because he can't hold a job or keep a roof over his own head.  So the distance is comforting.  But he is posting on Facebook how awesome his life is now and how wonderful it is to be with people who "truly care about him" and to "get away from his toxic relationship".  I know it sounds awful, but I keep wishing for him to have one of his episodes so that his family, who he hasn't really been around for over a decade and he always blamed for his problems, would see him for what he really is. 

It will probably happen.  Maybe not soon, but it is likely to happen. 

The part I hate most about all of this, is that it is SO hard for me to focus on me yet.  Whenever I partake on some good ol' self-reflection, it always drifts back to him... .and that doesn't help me so much.

[LoveNotWar]

Karma, it's pretty normal to want other folks to see what you had to live with and endure. It's validation right? Plus you can't describe this to anyone who hasn't lived with it. Most folks can't conceive how difficult it is and would think you were making it up. They have to see it to believe it! 

What you describe sounds pretty schizophrenic to me but no matter what you call it, it makes for a difficult partnership! I imagine the alcohol makes treatment impossible.

Did you try the DSM Manual for a definition of the diagnoses?

LNW

[Karmachameleon]

I did look everything up in the DSM manual and to me he really falls more under BPD.  He has 100% of all the criteria.  The schizophrenic behaviors I have only seen when he has been drinking heavily, but never when he was sober.

[bewildered2]

to switch boards you just start posting on the new board.

BPD is a trait disorder and schizophrenia is a state disorder.

a state disorder is something that a person can go in and out of. with schizophrenia this is done with drugs. if a schizophrenic takes his drugs then the schizoid state disappears. if he stops taking his drugs then it reappears. in the uk, one person is killed a week by a schizophrenic who has stopped talking his drugs.

BPD is a trait disorder, and taking medication has no effect.

b2