Imagination or Voices: Schizophrenia and It's Friends

 Schizophrenics are some of the most interesting people. They suffer from delusions, paranoia, and the everyday problem of hearing things that are not there. Schizophrenics can be either quite difficult to manage because the symptoms are so severe or they cannot be treated because the progression is consistently changing. Although you can medicate most mental disorders, Schizophrenics are very clever and know how to hide their medication from the doctors or from loved ones and continue to express their symptoms.

 In most fictional stories and movies, there is always something about one particular character that seems to create some form of interest among the audience. In many movies like Friday the 13th (1980), Donnie Darko (2001), Sucker Punch (2011), and Black Swan (2010) express some notion of schizophrenia. For some people it could be that the voicing that occurs in the first Friday movie is some notion of schizophrenia, but the clear case of schizophrenia would be commonly found in Donnie's condition in seeing the image of a bunny costume who calls himself Frank or Babydoll who dreams she is in some form of Wonderland where she must fight in her own fantasy until she is able to find peace inside her mind.But all these are notions of schizophrenia.

 Some symptoms of schizophrenia would include and are not limited to: hallucinations/delusions, disassociation in thinking/speaking, depression, drug use, and anxiety disorders. A common indicator or a mental instability would be the common drug use found in people who suffer from bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, and schizophrenia. Some of the common drugs most people use to calm their manic states are: cocaine, heroine, PCP (angel dust), opium, alcohol, and tranquilizers/sedatives. All of these drugs affect the portions of the brain that release pleasure chemicals (Dopamine) and the fight or flight response (Adrenaline/Epinephrine) to calm their states of anxiety or manic so that they can function normally.

 So whenever you think you're looking at a weird movie with an indie feel and there is some hidden function behind it, like the lobotomy operation in Sucker Punch, and all of a sudden you're transported to a world within a world, a mind within a mind, and then you realize you just had a mental trip. Keep in mind that a schizophrenic is not the lightest at heart. If you know someone who suffers from schizophrenia or have a genetic link to the disease, I suggest you get treatment or some form of therapy done quickly before it gets worse. A mental illness is just as powerful as anyone who is in control of your life, take care of yourself and your mind, it is a powerful weapon. Tune in next time for the final chapter of the movie blogs.