Quotes About Schizophrenia: Revealing Thoughts About A Misunderstood Disorder

With its potential to severely distort a person’s awareness of reality and ability to function in daily life, schizophrenia tends to attract both curiosity and fear. Hearing firsthand from people who have experienced this mental illness or spent their careers researching the disorder may help to dispel the ignorance, confusion, and stigma that sometimes arise in discussions of psychosis. The following quotes about schizophrenia may offer an informed perspective on a disease that many people struggle to understand. 

We’ve included quotations about the science of schizophrenia as well as the experience of its symptoms and the stigma faced by those impacted. There are also several quotes offering hope and inspiration for those who have received a schizophrenia diagnosis. Schizophrenia can be treatable, and symptoms are often effectively managed with the proper support.

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Living with schizophrenia disorder: Hopeful quotes about schizophrenia

People may hold a variety of stigmatizing beliefs about schizophrenia, but a particularly common one may be the notion that someone with this illness will never be able to live a functional or fulfilling life. The following quotes may help to dispel this myth.

“I needed to put two critical ideas together: that I could both be mentally ill and lead a rich and satisfying life.”

— Elyn R. Saks

Despite her diagnosis of schizophrenia, Elyn Saks went on to become a lawyer, professor, and legal scholar who currently works to advocate for the rights of people with mental illness.

“Yes, my schizophrenia is a life condition, but I do not see my schizophrenia as a life sentence.”

— Bethany Yeiser

Like Elyn Saks, Bethany Yeiser is an author and mental health advocate who has experienced the positive effects of schizophrenia treatment. Yeiser is the president of the CURESZ Foundation, which works to improve the understanding and treatment of schizophrenia.

“In my opinion, our health care system has failed when a doctor fails to treat an illness that is treatable.”

— Kevin Alan Lee

Lee is the author of The Split Mind: Schizophrenia from an Insider's Point of View, which details the author’s experience of schizophrenia and suggests ways to improve how this condition is treated. 

“I didn't consider myself a drifter; I was just a victim of schizophrenia. I had gone 10 years without getting any kind of treatment. Once I accepted and cooperated with the treatment, I started to beat the illness.”

— Lionel Aldridge

A former professional football player who developed schizophrenia in his 30s, Lionel Aldridge made a significant recovery with the help of medication and therapy. He has served on the board of the Mental Health Association of Milwaukee and worked as a speaker for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). 

Schizophrenia quotes about what it’s like to have a mental illness like schizophrenia

Imagining what psychotic symptoms are like can be difficult if you’ve never experienced them. The following quotes from people who’ve been diagnosed with schizophrenia may provide some insight into this experience.

“Well, for the past 40 years I’ve had auditory hallucinations in my head, all day every day, and I can’t get them out. Every few minutes the voices say something derogatory to me, which discourages me a little bit, but I have to be strong enough to say to them, ‘Hey, would you quit stalking me?… Don’t talk to me — leave me alone!’”

— Brian Wilson

A famed musician and founding member of the Beach Boys, Wilson has been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, a condition that has features similar to both a psychotic disorder like schizophrenia and a mood disorder. 

“One of the central difficulties of living with schizophrenia is the inability to anchor oneself in one's own body.”

— Esmé Weijun Wang

Esmé Wang is the author of The Collected Schizophrenias, a book of essays exploring both her own experiences with psychosis and the ways that society views people with the condition. 

“It started carefully and gradually, and I almost didn’t notice. It was like a nice summer day when the fog slowly creeps over the sky.”

— Arnhild Lauveng

A clinical psychologist who was hospitalized for schizophrenia as a teenager, Lauveng wrote a memoir about her recovery journey. Her quote here may refer to the experience of the schizophrenia prodrome, a preliminary stage of the disorder usually dominated by changes in mood, function, cognition, and behavior before severe psychotic symptoms appear.

“As well as being one of the worst things that can happen to a human being, schizophrenia can also be one of the richest learning and humanizing experiences life offers.”

— Mark Vonnegut

Pediatrician Mark Vonnegut was first diagnosed with schizophrenia and later with bipolar disorder. He’s written several books charting the course of his recovery.

Quotes about schizophrenia stigma and madness

Negative attitudes and treatment from other people can significantly reduce the quality of life in those living with schizophrenia. The quotes below address the pervasive stigma associated with this disorder.

“Sympathy for those afflicted with schizophrenia is sparse because it is difficult to put oneself in place of the sufferer. The whole disease process is mysterious, foreign, and frightening to most people.”

— E. Fuller Torey, M.D.

A researcher and psychiatrist with a long career focused on schizophrenia, Torey has worked to demystify this illness by calling attention to its potential biological causes.

“Perhaps we are the real experts in schizophrenia. Ask us. Involve us. Acknowledge us. We can offer hope to others who are trapped in the snares of this illness. We can show a light on the path toward recovery.”

— Andrew Dugmore

The founder of a charity focused on the power of nature to improve mental health, Dugmore has spoken out about the value of paying attention to the firsthand experiences of people with schizophrenia.

“A primary feature of the experience of staying in a psychiatric hospital is that you will not be believed about anything. A corollary to this feature: things will be believed about you that are not at all true.”

— Esmé Weijun Wang

In her writing on schizophrenia, Wang frequently discusses the ways that people with mental illness can be marginalized by society, including having their perspectives and insights treated as unreliable.

“My good fortune is not that I've recovered from mental illness. I have not, nor will I ever. My good fortune lies in having found my life.”

— Elyn R. Saks

This quote from Saks may express the idea that the worth of a person with mental illness does not need to be defined by their progress in recovery. 

Quotes about the science of schizophrenia

These words from researchers and treatment providers who have studied schizophrenia may shed light on little-known features of this challenging mental illness.

“Schizophrenia doesn’t discriminate. It can strike the Ivy League-bound high school valedictorian or the star athlete as much as it can the impoverished kid from a broken home.”

— Jeffrey A. Lieberman, M.D.

While the disorder appears to have a strong genetic component, schizophrenia remains difficult to predict. As this quote from psychiatrist Jeffrey Lieberman indicates, schizophrenia can affect people in any segment of society. 

“In a California sample, people were more likely to describe their voices as intrusive unreal thoughts; in the South Indian sample, they were more likely to describe them as providing useful guidance; and in our West African sample, they were more likely to describe them as morally good and causally powerful.”

— Tanya M. Luhrmann and colleagues

In their paper on how psychotic symptoms vary from place to place, Luhrmann and her fellow researchers provide evidence that cultural factors may exert a strong influence on how hallucinations are perceived by those who experience them.

“We are more than just our genes. We are, in some way, a product of the people who surround us — the people we’re forced to grow up with, and the people we choose to be with later.”

— Robert Kolker

Robert Kolker is the author of Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family. This book describes a family’s traumatic experience with schizophrenia and how their mutual relationships were interwoven with their mental health. 

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Therapy can offer new perspectives on mental health, schizophrenia, and schizophrenic stigma

If you’re interested in learning about schizophrenia due to concerns about your own mental health, discussing with a therapist may be helpful. An experienced counselor may offer insight into your thoughts and feelings while suggesting evidence-based ways to manage any difficulties you’re experiencing. A therapist can diagnose you and direct you toward additional resources to learn more about schizophrenia and how to manage the condition. 

For those who aren’t sure where to get started with mental health care, online treatment may be a convenient option. Locating a clinician with relevant experience is often easier when you can work with them over the internet. Online therapy also offers more ways of contacting your therapist, through phone, video, or live chat sessions. 

Online therapy may make it easier to cope with worries, fears, and stressors, and could also be useful if you’re experiencing schizophrenia. Some researchers have found that internet-based therapies can relieve symptoms of psychosis, such as auditory hallucinations and impaired social function. However, some individuals experiencing psychosis may need to seek in-person care.