Schizophrenic Inspiration

The history of schizophrenia is a dark and haunting one, as it has been with many other mental disorders. People who suffered from schizophrenia were accused of being possessed by demons and were put away, due to fear. It's dictionary definition reads, "Schizophrenia, also called dementia praecox- a severe mental disorder characterized by some, but not necessarily all, of the following features: emotional blunting, intellectual deterioration, social isolation, disorganized speech and behavior, delusions, and hallucinations." While further researching this topic, I began to think of what positive aspects this stereotypically life destroying illness could possess. Creativity is something abstract, yet beautiful, which individuals seem to appreciate no matter what. People suffering from mental disorders such as schizophrenia, DID and Bipolar Disorder have been known to have episodes of great creativity and many have created amazing works of art during those episodes. 

Louis Wain was an English artist born in the year 1860 and whose life seemed to be a recipe for artistic success. He was born with a cleft palate and his parents were directed by their physician to not allow young Louis to enter school until the age of 10. That alone caused many difficulties for him. Four of his sisters never married, which was rare in those times. His youngest sister was determined insane and was admitted into an asylum. His life seemed very dramatic and different, which seemed like great inspiration for his artistic passion. He married and when his wife became ill they took in a cat who comforted her. He would teach the cat, who they named Peter, many tricks to lift his wife's spirits. He also began to paint Peter and various other cats doing human activities. After his wife's death he published his cat paintings. 

Throughout his artistic career, his paintings show the progression of his mental disorder. While at the beginning, his cat paintings seemed completely normal, they soon became completely erratic and abstract. His cat no longer a cat, but a magnificently colored pattern. He was known to be misunderstood many times, due to his incomprehensible speech. His schizophrenia became so severe that he even began to feel weary of even his sisters. His delusions worsened and he began to walk the streets at night and would also rearrange the furniture while the rest of the family slept. His family could no longer care for him and he was sent to a mental hospital in Tooting in South London, England where he remained for the rest of his life until his death in 1939. Some may say that his disorder may have been completely negative, since it caused him his family and his career, but I believe his condition made his art special. It wasn't simply creativity, it was true talent and inspiration. It is unfair to think though that his inspiration had to come from such a mentally debilitating disorder.

 His work still remains an abstract wonder sought out by collectors. Wain may have been affected by his schizophrenia, but as some may agree, it only made his works of art that much more intriguing.

Bipolar Disorder: Not just a pop song

 

We have all, at one point, heard Katy Perry's song "Hot N Cold", where she talks about a past love, which evidently did not work out due to his drastic change in moods and thoughts. The term bipolar is now used when referring to someone who simply cannot make up their mind. Bipolar disorder is a form of depression and it entails much more than just moods and thoughts and it affects a person's entire life, not just one aspect of it. Bipolar disorder is one of those special psychological disorders which affects both genders equally and which also affects every race alike. About 5.7 million people in the US currently suffer from such disorder. Bipolar disorder is characterized by it's two completely separate poles, mania and depression. An individual suffering from bipolar disorder may seem perfectly happy and extremely creative and confident for a period of time and then become severely depressed and full of extreme sadness for another period.

When thinking of the manic episodes of Bipolar Disorder we may think that the person is super happy and jumping off the walls with joy, but that is not at all the entire truth. Mania is characterized by restless activity, excitement, laughter, self-confidence, rambling speech, and loss of inhibitions. The definition of mania shows just how dangerous manic episodes are. The outward portrayal of mania may cause people to lose their jobs and may hurt their relationships with others. When an individual talks about their manic episodes they refer to them as "a mind running wild". They have many different thoughts and ideas running through their head and they need to focus on what they want to say in order to get a particular point across. It must be difficult to concentrate when you have constant thoughts fighting for your attention. Another dangerous characteristic of Bipolar Disorder is reckless behavior. There are various levels of severity. One side of the spectrum refers to either violent actions or extremely risky activities, such as drunk driving, bungee jumping, or sky diving. The other side of the spectrum includes activities such as going on shopping sprees and spending money that you don't have. These people claim they know the negative consequences to their actions, but their minds keep telling them they need this certain stimulus or item.

 

 

The video above explains the importance in getting the proper medications and also talks about forming a close connection with psychiatrists, who can regulate the episodes brought on by an individuals bipolar disorder. There are treatments available, but when dealing with bipolar disorder a medical professional has to decide which medication is right for each patient. It is very important to identify which episode these individuals are suffering at the moment. Manic episodes require different types of medication as compared to depressive episodes. Lithium and certain anticonvulsant medications are also very common when treating bipolar disorder. Constant sleeping schedules have also been known to help with bipolar symptoms.

 



Bipolar disorder is so much more than not being able to decide on something. There is so much emotional pain and sometimes even physical pain accompanying bipolar disorder. It affects the individual themselves and everyone around them. It is a dangerous disorder which needs to be closely monitored by a specialist. Individuals who believe they are suffering from bipolar disorder should seek help and figure out what is wrong and what they need to do to alleviate some of the pain. There are also many physiological changes that occur when suffering from bipolar disorder, such as the elevation of anxiety, which triggers the "fight or flight" response, which prepares the body physically to either run from a situation or fight. The elongated presence of such a response is not healthy for our bodies and affects us in many ways. This is one of the many reasons why people should seek help and should learn what works to control them personally.

Silent Killer

Stress, in our modern world, is something we just can’t seem to avoid. It seems to come from everywhere and it occurs at various levels of severity. Our body is built to withstand high levels of stress, but despite that strength, there is a limit to how much stress can be received without periods of restoration in between. There are two types of stressors, major and minor, which overtime can lead to many physical and emotional problems. The first would be the minor stressors, which we have termed “daily-hassles”, because they are those irritating events that occur every day at moments we would rather them not. If you are stuck in traffic and are most likely going to be late  for work, if your pet decides to go to the bathroom on your clean floor, and when you think of all the things you have to do today, those are all daily-hassles. The important piece of information to note is that these minor stressors are not only for that particular day. They don't all fade away when we go to sleep at night and get a fresh start in the morning; in reality it carries over and continues the next day. The effects of these minor stressors are something we should not take lightly. We need to realize that the accumulation of every minor event can lead to an actual problem in the future. The second would be the major stressors, which are more commonly known as “major life events”. They don’t occur very often, but have such intense effects that they are equivalent to multiple accumulated minor stressors. These major life events include the death of a family member, unexpected tragedy, the sudden loss of a job, amongst many others. It may seem like there is a big difference between major and minor stressors, but in reality they are both dangerous and will eventually harm our bodies physically.

The following clip explains what stress is and what physical illnesses it causes. The video shows some of the effects which also include concentration and decision making. Long term stress can cause insomnia, sleep apnea, headaches, constipation, upset stomach, high blood pressure, chest pain and even a heart attack.

 

Knowing that stress is so dangerous and hurtful may make us want to prevent any future damage. There are many techniques people can use to help reduce the effects of stress.You can begin by simply breathing deeply. It is physiologically impossible to be stressed while breathing deeply. Other techniques are meditation, calm activities such as walking, knitting, swimming, or reading, a massage, petting your cat or dog, and simply thinking positive thoughts. It is very important to begin to think of the negativity stress causes and start a plan to prevent it or reduce it. It may seem like a difficult or time consuming thing to do, but isn't our life worth it?