BALTIMORE, Mass. (Ivanhoe Newswire)– Schizoaffective disorder is a frightening condition for those struggling through it, and the loved ones around them. Some people have hallucinations or delusions, and many also have the highs and lows of bipolar disorder.
Hard to believe that this vibrant woman was at one time so ill experts said she would be institutionalized for life. In her twenties Tina Collins began to have frequent hallucinations.
“Features would change until it evolved into a full, demonic hallucination,” Tina Collins told Ivanhoe.
It took 20 years and 30 medications before tina was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. Characterized by symptoms of both bipolar disease and schizophrenia.
Twenty-five years later Tina delivered a Ted-X Talk detailing her quest to get better.
“I found a psychiatrist and a therapist who also agreed with my diagnosis but believed my condition could be managed with medication and therapy,” explained Tina Collins.
Tina’s therapist convinced her to try a dating website.
“Really it was less about romance and more about learning how to move through the world again. And then I met Dan, the nicest person in the world,” shared Tina Collins.
They fell in love and married.
“And he moved into the house with me, my schizophrenia, and my Greek mother,” chuckled Tina Collins.
Tina says she feels compelled to share her story.
“I’m here to say I’m no longer a victim of schizoaffective disorder. I am a survivor of mental illness,” emphasized Tina Collins.
As many as one in two hundred people in the United States develop schizoaffective disorder at some point in their lives. No one is completely sure what causes the condition to develop, although having a relative with the condition increases the risk.
Sources:
https://www.mirecc.va.gov/visn22/Schizoaffective_Disorder_Veteran_and_Family_Handout.pdf,
Contributor(s) to this news report include: Cyndy McGrath, Producer; Matt Kirk Manson, Videographer; Roque Correa, Editor.
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