Objective Schizophrenia 101, page 5

Hello all-

I hope this is the correct forum for this post, as I really need advice. And to anyone suffering from this horrible illness my heart goes out to you and your stuggle. Both my parents suffering from the same delusions/paranoia how is this possible?

I have been reading posts on this site for several years now and I have to say it's an amazing site. I am very open minded I pretty much believe ANYTHING is a possibility. Between Aliens, reincarnation, government conspiracies, Atlantis, etc. However what I am experience with both my parents has left me at a loss.

Let me give you a brief background. I have 4 siblings of which one is suffering from schizophrenia now for about 9 years. It hit him while he was 22 in college. He was completely ok prior to this and my whole family to this day have no clue what brought it on. He has a very severe case by the way. Believes he was Jesus Christ, Abe Lincoln and can time travel right in front of me or travel to mars by closing his eyes, hears voices, sees things that aren't there, etc. Shortly after he was diagnosed we found out my great grandfather.. who we were told died early, had been committed to a mental institution as well. I read his diagnoses and same exact symptoms as my brother. Thought he wife was trying to poison him, took different ways home every day because he thought people were following him, etc.

I tell you this brief background to let you know I am pretty aware of the symptoms although years ago I had no idea what happened to my pour brother. Now, both my parents are 60 and still married. My mom although we love her so very much, all my siblings have always felt as we have grown older she is has some type of paranoia/depression however no where near as bad as my brothers. She has no friends and this dates back to childhood, always finding things wrong with potential friends, burnt many bridges with her mother, sister etc. It's always everyone else.. not her. If that makes sense. She hasn't "worked" since she was 24 however raised us as out father only worked.

My father has always been a stable person. Made some good money over the years, we grew up far from rich but well off. I mention this because I think this may be leading to the breakdown. Like many in the country, my dad has lost a lot of money recently and has been laid off and can not find work. However it should be noted my dad through out his life has made at times very very good money, then make HORRIBLE financial mistakes. So that being said he has lost a lot, financially over his lifetime due to poor choices on his part.

I am going to try and be brief because I need help and hope someone reading this can help:

My parents moved into an apartment about 4 months ago due to them having to foreclose on their home. However once settles this is when the bizarre begins to happen. My mom almost right away begins have conflicts with the "lady upstairs". Everyday she calls me "She is making loud noises all through the night to get back at me for playing the piano". Mind you my dad did find a job briefly during this time, so my mom was always home alone. So my dad I believe in the beginning just took her word for it, then maybe got "sucked in"? I am not saying some things didn't go on, maybe they really didn't get along. But then it gets worse, they believe they start to tell me that when my mom leaves to go to the store she comes back and things are moved around. So it's the "lady and husband up stairs breaking in to move things to terrorize her". So, my dad changes the lock, of course "they" still find a way in according to my parents. All in the small fraction time they aren't home and all to move a towel around or take a picture. They begin telling me her whole back story as well as the husbands. Mind you, this isn't actual, just what my parents believe to be true. Many other things went on for months but too much to type. If you want to know I will gladly share.

So, finally they snap. They just leave! We help them move, and my mother goes to stay with my grandmother and my dad stays with me so I can help the move. During this time, my dad who I always have valued his financial advice and who never opens up with emotions kinda breaks down and as we are grabbing a bit to eat just opens up that he cant believe this is what his life has become, all the money his pissed away on poor choices, having to rent at 60, having to borrow money from his children. That can take a toll on a man.. I nor by siblings truly believed what happened, we felt it wasn't true however we gave my parents the benefit of the doubt and hoped the move would be a cure all.

Ok, flash forward about a month. We get them moved in, they get settled. Boy was I mistaken. I find out Friday my dad spends $1000 to put in a security system. It turns out they believe.. wait I'm sorry, they "know" the old neighbors knew I was going to see my mother on mothers day and followed me(over an hour)to find out where they live. They hired the "Arabs" who lives below them to break in and begin to move everything around again. My dad's check book was missing, things being moved etc. Mind you all this still going on AFTER(like I told my dad it would)they put in surveillance and an alarm Friday. So it's the attic they tell us, the Arab's are sending their small child through the attic to move things around to make "my parents out to be crazy" as my dad tells me. My dad tells me this is what mentally ill people do(referring to his old neighbors). So today they had the attic investigate and boarded up, and of course nothing was there. Tomorrow he is having the place "swept for electronic devices", they believe this is how they know when they are gone to sneak in.

There is no rationalizing with either they are convinced this is all happening and true. At this point all of use are so frustrating because no matter what they will keep making reasons for how they got in. This is obviously part of the delusion. I said to him today, ok after the sweep of devices and being you have surveillance, an alarm system the attic boarded up if nothing is found will you promise me you will let this ok. He said yes at the point he would have to.. then of course what I expected "Until it begins to happen again". It's obvious, no matter what it will happen again because their minds are not thinking rationally.

So I gave you the briefest summary I could I am sorry it is pretty long still. I am asking for help or advice on how to handles this. Is it possible that two people, can experience the exact same hallucinations and delusional stories?? Both believe it all to be true? Has anyone experienced this before?

As I said I am very open minded however I can not see how any of this can be true. Mind you, all the "breaking in" is done to just move a thing or two. Or take a picture of mu nephew because "the lady is jealous she doesn't have one" according to my mother.

I believe my mom started this in her mind, my dad would get it second hand. Kinda agree with my mother because he didn't want to argue. Then over time between the stress and depression my dad had to obviously be feeling, he is having a mental/nervous breakdown. My last question, if they are suffering fro a form of paranoid schizophrenia how does my family convince them to get help?

One more question actually. Could there delusions actually be happening? And if so why would people want to go to such lengths to torment them?

Thank you in advance so much.