What does 'SPD' mean to you?

What do you believe should be the fundamental diagnostic criteria for someone with Schizoid Personality Disorder? I’m not asking for the regurgitation of a list of symptoms that were agreed upon by a bunch of so-called professionals to persuade a psychiatric board of trustees. I’m asking you, as an individual who believes you suffer from the disorder, what separates you from those who don’t.

The diagnostic criteria are written from an outsider’s perspective. The people who decided what is and isn’t a “personality disorder,” it’s safe to assume, do not suffer from these disorders themselves. No matter how much they may delude themselves, psychiatrists cannot truly get inside the mind of another person. Ergo, for them to label a group of people who share varying degrees of similar symptoms as suffering from the same disorder is flawed, to say the least.

For example, some professionals will say that Schizoids have absolutely no desire for any form of social interaction, while another may say that Schizoids, in fact, want to socialise but feel unable to do so. Some say Schizoids are completely asexual, others will say otherwise.

As insiders, what’s your personal opinion?

I think it is an obvious state of low emotional energy under the hood, that is underpinning the whole set of behaviors.

It is similar to depression in behaviors moving one to show a lack of interest. Is it a coincidence that these two conditions look similar?

What makes it a spectrum is having more to less "pyschic" energy.

Some here in the forum enjoy nothing, making no difference in what they do, and others just do not get much out of social interaction in terms of bonding.

I think you could easily say it is an under aroused brain - not depressed per se - but being stuck in neutral land.

Some here enjoy activities but everyone seems to lack being motivated to get into the social emotional bubble, because it cannot motivate a lazy brain here. It's the same with depression in normal people as there is no social reward for them in this vein, either.

All in all i think you would see blunted emotions in every case of SPD. Imagine an SPD- ite in social interaction and watch their expressions when people talk to them. What is incoming is not arousing emotionally in the fullest extent. It's tiny in terms of reflexive actions.

What i find interesting here is that it starts with social anhedonia and can stay in this arena, or move into other things as well.

I'm married myself and so are others here. Some even have their own kids who are diagnosed, and others are far less social and completely asexual.

You could pick through the DSM criteria and exclude " has little little interest in family and or few friends" and uncheck that box and that would undermine my idea here, but i think they just fall into these behaviors - not hunting and seeking these out - as almost everyone does.

It looks like a brain caught in an inability to be aroused externally by things, causing one to intellectualize the world vs. feeling the world.

I.e., You do not feel as first-line (consciously), and then think second, and parse those emotions, and go back to thinking again, like people usually do. You think through everything without feeling much in schizoid mode.

Aikenhead wrote:What do you believe should be the fundamental diagnostic criteria for someone with Schizoid Personality Disorder? I’m not asking for the regurgitation of a list of symptoms that were agreed upon by a bunch of so-called professionals to persuade a psychiatric board of trustees. I’m asking you, as an individual who believes you suffer from the disorder, what separates you from those who don’t.

I believe these professionals started the same way except they have numbers on their side. Trying to narrow down a personality based on people's personal interpretation is not an easy task. Throw in some comorbid issues and it becomes very difficult to pick out what belongs to what. It makes sense for specific naming to be going away. It's much easier to say someone has a personality disorder and then list their most prominent traits and severity of their maladaptive behavior. It could also be due to me being PD-NOS.

EasyasPi wrote:I think you could easily say it is an under aroused brain - not depressed per se - but being stuck in neutral land.

This is interesting, though the argument could be made that schizoids have an adequately aroused brain, whereas most people in developed societies have over stimulated brains thanks to the constant bombardment of information. Perhaps it’s just me, but every newer generation seems to be more emotional and neurotic than the last.

All in all i think you would see blunted emotions in every case of SPD. Imagine an SPD- ite in social interaction and watch their expressions when people talk to them. What is incoming is not arousing emotionally in the fullest extent. It's tiny in terms of reflexive actions.

Yes, this appears to be the one thing that most people agree on concerning SPD.

iabsurdlyexist wrote:I believe these professionals started the same way except they have numbers on their side. Trying to narrow down a personality based on people's personal interpretation is not an easy task. Throw in some comorbid issues and it becomes very difficult to pick out what belongs to what. It makes sense for specific naming to be going away. It's much easier to say someone has a personality disorder and then list their most prominent traits and severity of their maladaptive behavior. It could also be due to me being PD-NOS.

I agree, which is probably why the very idea of labelling someone with a “personality disorder” seems unnecessary to me.

Aikenhead wrote:I agree, which is probably why the very idea of labelling someone with a “personality disorder” seems unnecessary to me.

It's necessary for treatment.

iabsurdlyexist wrote:
It's necessary for treatment.

This. The label is more for the person treating the patient than anything. There are too many labels that come very close, but have completely different treatments needed.

SPD to me, means one who detaches from society for their own benefit. Did not read original post.

This is my version of SPD. The bits in red are where I differ. If one or more word is underlined that means to only take out those words of the trait.

https://i.imgur.com/Fsc5XzS.png

Aikenhead wrote:For example, some professionals will say that Schizoids have absolutely no desire for any form of social interaction, while another may say that Schizoids, in fact, want to socialise but feel unable to do so. Some say Schizoids are completely asexual, others will say otherwise.

As insiders, what’s your personal opinion?

Here's how I see it. Lots of those traits that I do have reeeeaaaallly grate at me. When things get tough I act more and more schizoid and that over time can include things that I marked out.

I go into HUGE denial in order to become that way. Personally I think that's mostly what being schizoid is (for me at least). Sorry but I feel I must list traits to explain it best. For me it isn't one easy summarized thing unless I leave what I feel are important things out.

Me in stressful I dun' wanna deal with it times-

Compliant- "Me sure do whatever. I don't care."

Stoic- *Thinks to self that even if I don't feel emotional I should go out of my way to not show emotion, so others don't worry or fuss over things, or things get prolonged* I don't really bother with this much more in the same way. My boyfriend however has Asperger. Funny thing is he doesn't often catch facial cues, but he knows my other tells I didn't know I had. Now I check those tells.

Non-competitive-I lack motivation around half the time anyway and don't want drama. Screw that.

Lacking assertiveness- I don't have this issue.

Feeling inferior to the outside world- I'm an extrovert trapped in an introvert. You do the math. It's like being a caged animal for me.

Cynical-More off than on. I wish I were less so.

Inauthentic- I have a flat expression. I suppress my emotions to the point where I don't feel them when face-to-face with people, yet am wanting to be around them. If I am around them I don't feel and look bored. It sucks.

Depersonalization-practically what I do 100% of my time.

Alternating between robotic and full of fantasy...hi I'm also bipolar. The meds help here. I even started displaying emotion with them.

Hidden grandiosity- meds helped

Withdrawn- If I am forced to be around people I try my best to find some out of the way area to hang. I may watch tv in another room even if I don't care what's on. Often I'll be on my phone. I've sent myself texts before pretending I was busy with a client so as to not have to socialize. Pro tip text in another language.

Aloof- Once again meds helped me.

Impervious to other's emotion-again meds helped me chill here, but yeah when going through bad situations I learned the hard way that displaying/feeling emotion doesn't help, so I did my best to cut that out.

Afraid of intimacy- I hate it, but yes this is true.

Exquisitely sensitive- Ok this one has been an illusive lil sh!t for me. I have memory issues with things I dislike noting. I'm real quick on the draw to shut things down, but I'm telling you now before something dumb happens and I DO shut down becoming an android that I do in fact feel quite a bit. I go into such deep denial that I really believe that I haven't felt for ages random feelz that I totally have. Thing is I shut it down before I can really get a big "taste" of the emotion. Generally it has to feel real too.

Ever seen the BBC Sherlock? Mycroft's character in the last episode got me bad. Actually that show hit me quite a number of times. Anyway, point is Mark Gatiss in my opinion played an excellent schizoid character in that role. In the last episode he showed emotion in a few certain extreme circumstances, but would quickly gather himself and go back to being as unemotional as possible. In the end his brother seemed to act like he'd never seen him like that and mentioned how he actually might be much more sensitive of a person than he ever thought.

Deeply curious of others-I wish to be a normal extrovert.

Hungry for love- yup.

Envious of others spontaneity- Depends. Normally no unless in a super schizoid state. Then I wish I could be my normal self in at least the sense of having motivation to do things I want.

Needy of involvement- extrovert

Capable of excitement with carefully selected intimates- I like this one, though it's likely how I get through having a lack of intimacy.

Prefer solitary job/activities- I prefer it in the sense that others=stress if it's a constant. I wish it wasn't

Marginal or eclectically sociable in groups-yeah I hate this

Vulnerable to esoteric movements owing to a strong need to belong-yup

lazy and indolent-only in a bipolar low

lack of clarity in goals-meds help

weak ethnic affiliation- yup who cares?

Usually capable of steady work-yup, but I don't like that rate at which I work. I could put more effort into my job, but the pressure to do things just so gets at me.

quite creative- sure why not? I assume this is subjective.

Capable of passionate endurance in certain spheres- I know this person I have to look out for because he loves to hear me rant about things, and will attempt his best to get me on an old lady tangent.

Asexual/free of romantic interests/adverse to sexual gossip-normally no, but in extreme schizoid form I have a shot libido around people. Not sure about if I do the covert side more during those times, but I know I do them when I'm "less" schizo anyway. I figure less stress of people around when I can't handle them help for obvious reasons.

idiosyncratic moral and political beliefs-again feels subjective.

tendancy towards spiritual interests-I do on occasion get OCD with this, but hate it and don't believe in religion

Moral unevenness/vulnerable to odd crimes-again feels subjective

Absent minded, engrossed in fantasy, vague and stilted speech, alternations between eloquent and inarticulate-meds all the way baby! Helped so muuuch.

Autistic thinking- I'm not sure if this means like compulsiveness or like black and white thinking. Compulsive yes for me, black and white no.

Fluctuations between external reality and hyperreflectiveness about the self-yeah

Autocentric use of language-yes I sound like a near-narcissistic twat.

My version of SPD is having a flattened cognition underpinned by flat emotions. It permeates me in every sphere.

If a nuclear bomb went off and i saw the flash i'd run to the basement in hopes it was at least several miles away so i could make it down stairs before the 700 mph shock wave blasted through.

But i think i wouldn't be shaken up in horror about it. Deaths are at least that way for me aka funerals.

One of the reasons why i refrained from single dating was i look bored and uninterested, but really interested inside my mind. And that demeanor drags others down, and i really dislike that. Not that i feel out of place too much, but it's for the sake of them.

I could never feel excitably happy, i'm just sort of here. It feels like cognitive laziness.

I remember being told i give off the vibe of " don't touch me" or "you are Ok over there and i'm Ok over here." That was many moons ago. I was unaware of this actually, until someone pointed it out, and it then had a resonance when i thought deeply about it.

All in all i hung with friends here, though.

Today I still feel an "aloof trigger" but i learned how to control it.

I'm not sure why the unwelcome mat pops out when someone approaches me, but i can control the trigger and turn it around. Strange indeed.

It's always a split between my emotions and intellect.

I work hard and everyone knows it, i've been called "industrious,"
but there is no desire for the hunt. If it comes my way i'll take it.

I blare music while i'm driving and being around people is stimulating and i like that stimulation. I slump down being alone.

Extroversion under the hood is dopmaine reward based, and that requires outside stimulation, like myself, as opposed to acethycholine stimulation with introversion, while they think.

I suppose it's possible i'm SPD extroverted. I've heard it this way before in the forum. Extroversion is outside stimulation dependent, and has no connection with people. Socializing is an artifact of the mindset. Introverts are overstimulated from the outside, hence they withdraw and gain energy by reflection via that acet.circuit.

Funny, my daughter a long time ago thought i had some form of autism, and she told my wife that.

What's reaaly under easyPi's hood

SPD? Depression? Anhedonia? Am i pie eyed while writing this? No, i'm not.

^Yup all of that. Very familiar with all (except the wife and kid part).

I can exhibit things like feels towards an event, but it takes a long time to have it really get to me.

I had a therapy session this week which involved my boyfriend. He got really upset and started crying during the session...I didn't.

He wouldn't let the topic go that caused him grief, and I basically made myself really focus on it for hours (he seriously didn't drop it for hours) and figure out that it bothered me too. After that I cried like a lil b!tch for what felt like an hour. No low bipolar depression or anything. Actually genuinely cried and felt and all that sh!t. Btw it was weird as f#ck. That was the longest I've ever genuinely cried for possibly years without it being due to bipolar chemical issues.

I've done the same thing with "normal-strong happy feels" too, but again it takes ages.

In the nuclear bomb scenario. Pff! Do what you gotta do, and be bored till it's done.

The tl;dr version of what happened in therapy was related to me dismissing my emotions through a tooooon of both little and huge events. The time my boyfriend nearly dies in a car wreck this year and I was more irritated that through social obligation I wasn't supposed to be working be I should clearly be in shock. The way I dismissed his emotions multiple times over the course of this year taking charge due to me not being able to handle emotional conversation. The fact that I often forget entire times (I can only assume out of extreme denial) due to not being able to handle the event. How he's out of work, and I don't really ask how he is and such. How I don't "care" when he compliments me or goes out of his way to take care of me knowing that I likely will either have memory lapses or not have enough motivation to do it myself.

Jeez that was longer than I wanted, but sadly there was more. The fact is I can't typically allow myself access to any of that. I hate it. I know all he does for me, and do appreciate it, but most of the time I have such a weird panic of "being bothered to show/have others see"

Another part is I've barely ever been around people and frankly always feel out of place in social culture. I never was shown how to properly express myself, and all I know is to not be as over the top as my parents and ex husband were.

My boyfriend is in the same room as me right now, and doesn't know I'm actually quietly crying right now. Gonna go take a shower...