At 18 I had my first "episode." Before that I had symptoms though. In large groups I thought people's laughter was directed at me (laughing at me). I behaved strangely.
I was put on meds, but stopped them shortly after leaving the hospital. I had a second episode about a year later. That time I stayed on the meds.
I gained a lot of weight and I was miserable. The negative symptoms were devastating. I was always tired. I couldn't keep my eyes open and some times I'd fall asleep in the worst situations (like at work).
I looked into natural treatments to counter the hair loss caused by my meds. And I thought if it those natural treatments worked for the hair loss, surely they'd work for my illness.
So I spent a few months just adding b vitamins, flax seed oil, and other supplements. But none of them "did it for me." I later heard about niacin. Bought Dr. Abram Hoffer's book "Healing Schizophrenia: Complementary Vitamin & Drug Treatments." It had all the info I needed to start taking niacin.
I started on the niacin, and almost instantly I noticed benefits. After a couple weeks on the full dose, I was a different person. I found a better job, and started the specific carbohydrate diet.
It helped, but it also wasn't "the magic bullet" I was looking for. Just like the b vitamins, and flax seed oil didn't do it for me, the same is true for SCD.
However I found out about raw paleo, and suddenly my world had changed. I started eating raw, and for the first time in years I started having an active sex life. I felt much better.
How ever it was short lived. As per the recommendations of users on the forum I stopped my supplements when I started raw paleo. And within 2 months I had relapsed and lost my good job.
Lesson learned though. RPD minus the supplements doesn't do anything for me. I spent a few months eating raw and had no "real" results. However when I restarted the supplements with some raw foods, the results were better than supplements + strict SCD. Raw animal foods have real healing abilities.
So soon I'll be on my supplements, and eating a raw version of the SCD, which I feel is the most effective thing I can do for myself.
I've also gotten some friends in the south florida area who are facing different health problems to try my version of raw paleo, which I think is pretty cool.
