Has anyone ever been misdiagnosed a mental illness before?
606858
Yes. My bipolar aunt was diagnosed with schizophrenia and as a result she was on the wrong meds for years. This was back in the 1970s and my doctor tells me that this particular misdiagnosis was not uncommon at that time.  No doctor is perfect, after all.
1018843
Yes, their was always voices in my head, but then i was diagnosed with schizophrenia.lol
869500
No test like that is hugely accurate.... so I wouldn't suggest worrying about it.\n\nThen again, I wouldn't suggest worrying about it even if it was. If you still have full reasoning capability and can function like a normal human being (get the opinions of peers) then there isn't really much of a problem.... no matter what conditions they say you have. \n\nLike I said though.... those things aren't exactly the be-all and end-all of mental condition diagnosis.... Forget about it if it suits you.\n\n[Incidentally... some of those tend to be... mutually exclusive.]
318699
(Paranoid) Schizophrenia
432994
If the mental illness has a significant neurological basis, then it may be possible, but in general, no.  This may change over time as psychologists/neurologists better understand what to look for.  For Example, it theorized that psychopaths show decreased levels of functioning (blood-flow based) in the amydgla or emotion center of the brain.
982238
no such correlation to mental disease
709587
Yes, it can be just as bad, or even worse than, a physical illness.\n\nSome mental illnesses are related to chemical deficiencies.  If the person takes the right supplement, the mental illness goes away.  If they stop taking the supplement, the illness can come back.  so in that case, the mental illness has a physical cause - so I guess you could say it is a physical illness, in a way.
654799
Sometimes to remember things you may think out loud, but talking to someone that does not exist might be signs of a mental disorder.
1117951
Only a qualified mental health professional could answer that one for you.  Online diagnosis is dicey.
451581
a friend of mine was wrongly committed to an institution. he told me that the electric shock therapy that he received would render him unable to talk, he could hardly move afterwards, they woke him up every morning at 5 and strapped him to a chair and shocked him. His family would come to visit in the afternoon, he would sit in a chair unable to talk to them, unable to sit up straight, they would ask the doctors what was wrong with him, the doctor would shake his head, and they would walk away and cry and he would cry. \n\nI feel deeply sorry for anyone who has undergone this sort of thing.
386205
Yes.  It is called a "working diagnosis."  \n\nIt's their educated best guess.
1008128
Unfortunately this happens all too often particularly within the field of psychiatry. Psychiatry is an extremely inexact science and in many cases doctors are only able to find a diagnosis is through trial and error.  This process really sucks for those of us being experimented upon.\n\nI saw my first shrink in fifth grade.  From that time on I was in and out of doctors' offices with all kinds of diagnoses.  When I was twenty years old I finally landed in a psychiatric hospital.  I was fortunate that I've landed in a hospital with an excellent psychiatric staff that was knowledgeable in psycho-pharmacology.  This is not the case with all psychiatric hospitals and sadly we have to go through the same trial and error with doctors that they have to go through with our medications. Even after I received what I believed to be the proper diagnosis it took another ten years before they found a medication cocktail that treated my symptoms without killing me with side effects.\n\nI am so sorry that you'd have to go through this very frustrating experience.  The best advice I can give anyone in this situation is to be as much in control of your own treatment as possible.  That means reading up on every pill they give you, reading new research on your diagnosis and never assuming that doctors are gods. I suggest www.medscape.com for research on medications. It may take you some time to learn all of the appropriate terminology but nobody knows your body better than you do.\n\nKnowledge is power make sure you have plenty of it.
1117594
Your 3rd what?  In any case, some people may make it up, but even then that means that there is still a mental illness at hand. You could have the genetic traits for bipolar disorder within you for years until they are triggered by something and then you need treatment. Mental illness is real. Unfortunately, some do believe as you just said and think it's a fairy tale. I'm here to tell you that it isn't. Those people don't help the situation either. They need an education on the facts about mental illness and what it does to people. I hope that things start to look up for you, keep up with your treatment and don't let the naysayers in.
230330
I live with schizoaffective disorder, which is a diagnosis that shares symptoms with both schizophrenia and depression.  In regards to your question, I would say that the INSANE usually do not know they are crazy.  To be considered clinically insane, your symptoms have to be quite severe.  \n\nI don't think I'd qualify as insane at any point in my life, however I did spend about eight months in a "waking dream."  At no point during this time did I stop to think something may be wrong with me.  I have met others with similar experiences who told me that they ended up walking into an emergency room saying there was something wrong with their brain.\n\nWith schizophrenia and related disorders, most bot not all people have a symptom known to mental health professionals as "lack of insight."  When this symptom is present, it means precisely that the person has no idea that what they are experiencing is not real.\n\nI hope this answers your question.
844667
Its a really scary thing to tell them, I was diagnosed at 16 and was so scared my parents would be disappointed (I was so wrong, they were and are great) The way I did it was brought home some information from the hospital about bi polar and left it for them when I stayed at a friends place, when I got home we had to have a big talk, but they had time before I came home to read about it, and I had time to work out what to say, its kinda cheating though.
836524
No. how could someone become mentally ill FroM tHe iNtErNet!?!?\nhe he he, i mean, ahhh i went outside 3 days ago to get the newspaper!! *Breathing hard*\nand and.. i feel FINE!!!\nRAWR
515189
It would be unethical for a psychiatrist to not tell you your diagnosis. What meds are you on? Based on what you said, you may have schizophrenia or bipolar with psychotic features. It's rare to have both Bipolar and Schizophrenia, as many symptoms overlap. However, if many people are telling you this and you generally trust them, then they are probably correct. Maybe see another psychiatrist and psychologist for a second opinion. Those disorders are largely neurologically based, so take the meds!