Chances are your doctor is confused and doesn't want to admit it, so he just says some things that are confusing to you. The most important thing is that your medication is helping you. If you really want to know maybe you can get a second opinion.

But do you think i'm schizophrenic?

Well, I take risperdal and without it my thoughts jump around a lot, but I never talk to myself. I don't know what you have. Maybe just an otherwise unspecified psychosis? Doesn't sound like classic schizophrenia to me.

Hey Polar Nights, what kind of time frame are we looking at? How long have you been seeing this doc? How old are you, when did you start these odd behaviors?

I’m 31 years old and this started when I was 20, it has been on and off and was not constant throughout the years. I’ve been aware that this happens when I’m really stressed out, but has become a major issue and I’m really afraid about it. I have no delusions or hallucinations. I’ve been seeing my pdoc for about a year. Can this be an early stage of development of schizophrenia? My pdoc has not been able to explain to me why is it that I talk to myself. He just gave me the risperdal and said it would help with my thoughts. When I talk to myself it is usually for short periods of time but it’s disturbing enough for me because sometimes it is so intense that I’m not aware of it sometimes.
Thanks so much for the input and for answering my questions.

So what are you talking *about* - commenting on stuff that's happening to you at that particular moment or is it more like unconnected to that.

Naomi,

Sometimes when i talk to myself it is related to a particular moment but sometimes it is unrelated like a fantasy or something. I don't have much insight into it, but my brother brought it up to my attention and since then i try to be more self conscious about it. I don't know if this clarifies things a bit more for you guys to understand my problem.
Thanks again...

Look at the "look at this sad video" post.
Are you like that girl?

agathe,
No, i'm not like that girl. I just wanted to know if anyone experienced "talking to yourself" like i do and if it's a symptom of schizophrenia because my pdoc doesn't give me any answers about the issue.

hey i talk to my self since i was in highschool now am 30 my uncle suffer from schizoph.... and he killd him self but he only hear sounds. i talk to my self for hours infront of the mirror i imagen that am making some conversations with one or more person i spend sometimes 3 hours talking to my self i never knowtice untile my sister was spying on me and she said ur crazy who ur talking to i can't belive you spend an hour talking to ur self in the mirror some times i get late on my opointments and school because of me talking to myself or i sleep late because of that i don't know if it is normal or not i see people in the subway talking to themself they look crazy i remember one day i was in a bus and i was taling to myself in my mind and sudenly i said something load and all people around me looked at me i was sceared an i shut up and pay attention to wher i am. i know am not crazy i have a bachoulor degree in science ahhh

Look up schizophrenia... do u have any other symptoms. Just talking to yourself doesn't necciseraly mean schizophrenia. I'm a paranoid schizophrenic, but i don't particularly talk to myself, only reply occasionally to the voices that i hear. They aren't me though, so it's not like having a conversation with myself. Do you suffer from hallucinations. If not its likely that it isnt schizophrenia.

Hey Polar, I actually have caught myself doing this. I can't recall when it started though. I remember replaying conversations in my head and I would reply to them out loud in a "better way" or "what I should've said." I am schizo now and if this is a sign, this would've prolly been the first. The reason i cant recall when this started is because i didnt think much of it until i started developing other signs. Then it made sense to me. Just lettin ya know!

-Daniel

A lot of people talk to themselves. Sometimes we are just deep in thought and our thoughts come out in words..I don't think you doctor has any reason to hide your diagnosis from you. If he through you were schizophrenic he would tell you.

I agree, people always think about sometihng, talk in their mind - for example driving down the road, thining "what a beautiful morning, or .. no no no, I am running late for work, hurry hurry. Or when people have road rage - who do they talk to - to themselves too


I wanted to add an interesting thing, while I was on antidepressant, I was also added olanzapine (zyprexa) because back in the day, and even today, for some strange reason it is thought that antipsychotics help people who experience depressive disorders. It actually made me worse; restless, and I had the opposite reaction, I would drive in my car and start singing to the music, go off talking like - "beautiful song, la la la," ..

On the other hand, at times, now, that I do not take that kind of medication, but if I take antidepressant, (which can cause psychotic type of reaction by itself)
I find it natural, to express some thought vocally, especially if I recall something embarrassing from the past, it could provoke me to say, "how stupid". I think it's good not to hold in feelings, writing helps.

Like a flash back moments, if thinks that I once lived through, this dis-inhibition by antidepressant and even antipsychotics can have very same effect. You simple talk out something that you think.

On the other hand, talking for an hour in front of a mirror, I think can be a coping mechanism, past trauma?
Even kids create imaginary friends.

So it is important to exactly see what's going on, what promotes this - what happens before you start doing this, what happens when you do it, and what happens after. It makes natural sense to feel a relief after this, like unexpressed feelings, when you put them on a paper.

Perhaps you can record yourself doing it and analyze it.

The labels of "am I schizophrenic do no good", asking, "do I have some symptoms of schizophrenia" might be better, I think.


Wishing best,

Ed