Prologned Paranoia and its effects

After reading a recent thread by Jaxonroberts about paranoia on ATS. I decided to do a little research into paranoia. I felt this research deserved its own thread because the effects of prolonged paranoia, in my experience and observation of others, can be quite detrimental on people and their loved ones.

Now this first website labels paranoia as a personality disorder. Strictly stating its properties as a mental dysfunction.

www.depression-guide.com...


This second website also states it as a disorder but it goes into more detail about the effects of paranoia to the persons social life.

www.nvo.com...

Now alot of medical Journals classify schizophrenia and paranoia under the same disorder. Paranoid Schizophrenia. I am unsure of whether this is correct or not, as I have seen many individuals in my life who had no symptoms of schizophrenia and all the symptoms of paranoia. I also do not believe most cases of paranoia to be a psychological disorder, either.

Take our ATS members for example. Most here with paranoia problems developed the issue simply from reading too much doom and gloom about TPTB.

Here we have the definition of paranoid schizophrenia
www.mayoclinic.com...

I tend to disagree with the definition a little, from my own personal beliefs point of view that is. A distorted reality? Reality is what we all make it, is it not? Even so, the paranoia aspect is there and seems to be on the rise in America. Not just ATS.

Some psychologists, such as Freud (the father of modern psychology) go as far as to say that paranoia is usually associate with a massive suppression of homosexual tendencies (which i tend to STRONGLY disagree with).

From what I can see. The effects of Prolonged paranoia can be devastating. In every interpersonal relationship that you can forge, you risk losing that person as your friend/spouse. It causes (in most cases) violent outbursts at the ones who, more than likely, do not deserve it.

Freud=
en.wikipedia.org...

[edit on 14-7-2009 by Mr. Toodles]

What I see sometimes rampant on some otherwise very informative threads here (I included some good and sane ones in my friends' list) is the mechanism of shadow projection, in the Jungian sense.

The Shadow is an archetype, it is all you do not want to be. My shadow could be an uneducated street bully who lives in dirt and watches pornography for example. The better I think I am the worse my shadow will be painted.

Jung's first example was Nazism. German nationalists projected all their specifically unwanted traits upon Eastern European Jewry. To be accurate, this is mass shadow projection - SP with negative transcendence.

If your universe contains a manipulative dark force - work with it. It is you in another guise.

Paranoia is the result of unchecked shadow projection.

That is why I found reading Insider's thread at GLP so interesting - for conspiracy buffs like me. Insider simply shows you our other side. By our people I mean ATS-ers who do not simply bow their heads to governments and churches and gurus - which is a good thing. (Not Hidden Hand, though, although he was also over shadow projections as a writer nevertheless he seeded much incorrect information in my current opinion.)

This is psychology well tested over seventy years. Rough, isn't it?

Hey, been wading around ATS for a few hours and it's nice to see a well thought out and researched thread.

Freud is debatable as a reliable source, there are many in the academic community of the opinion he would seek out cases to prove his theories. whilst discarding those that didn't... Although, I think he did have some good ideas, I'm tending to think he was a bit of a "glamour-whore".

www.personalityresearch.org...

There are many other critical articles on Freud, but I'm a bit lazy tonight.

Personally, I think we're talking two different ideas of paranoia here. There's the psychoanalytical and then the laymans' terminology and I think (hope) the ATS-related paranoia is more a general unease on the part of most of us users. We're living in strange times, seemingly the poor getting poorer, society more dangerous, unhappy and polarised, diseases, pollution, airplanes falling out the sky, the list goes on and on and on (and I've got a bad back).

I think, unfortunately that paranoia is symptomatic of our stressful lifestyles, seemingly it's a dog eat dog world out there, I do know of examples of bosses that are playing upon peoples financial worries o get them working harder, longer etc, which puts you under a constant feeling of stress and fear.

reply to post by Kokatsi


I agree with the shadow theory. I, myself have had dreams of meeting myself and trying to run away from me. Only to realize that I cannot escape what I have tried so hard to hide. We cannot escape the darkness that is within, but we can deal with it in a better and more productive way.

reply to post by jokei


I never agreed with most of what freud said. Just kinda put that in there for a bit of humor.

[edit on 14-7-2009 by Mr. Toodles]

What about different. Is it possible that everyone is just different and handle their problems differently. We are a society of Labels. If we see 2 things that are similar we label them the same. It is up to each of us to find the answer to our own problems. If seeing therapists helps, do it. But to rely on someone else for your survival is either very trusting or very stupid.

reply to post by Conclusion


Most everyone deals with problems in their own way, yes. But obsessive behavior is the same for almost anyone. The constantly thinking the next person around the corner is going to grab your throat is not a good thing. And in some extreme cases, people cannot handle that much stress (self inflicted or not) and just lose their minds, kill a few people, blow up a building or jump off a bridge.

Dealing with problems in your own way and being insanely paranoid are two totally different things.

reply to post by Mr. Toodles


I'm not sure if everyone's got the intent of your thread, so I'll ask...

Are you suggesting there's a level of paranoia here on ATS? ~ if so, I heartily agree there are a lot of threads that descend into people perceiving threats on their psyche almost immediately, derailing the thread into idle pissing contests. (A bit like me with christians/indigos - they grind my gears).

OR, are you worried that you're paranoid and that perhaps the climate here is non-productive?

OR, have I totally missed something else?

reply to post by jokei


May i ask why you don't like christians/indigo's.

reply to post by jokei


I made this thread because there have been a few others about Paranoia and I thought it would be fitting to make sure everyone understands exactly what paranoia is. As a mental disorder, a trick played on ones mind and the real dangers it can pose if left unhindered. It struck an interest in me because I have been a very paranoid person for most of my life, and most of what is said about paranoia is very true.

reply to post by Mr. Toodles


Ok - just wanted to clear that up as I might've got wires crossed. Admirable of you and entirely relevant to ATS.

May I ask what you're thinking about a public-consciousness of paranoia, it seems society as a whole is becoming very paranoid?

reply to post by Conclusion


If you want to u2u me, I wouldn't want to derail this thread.

reply to post by Mr. Toodles


Good point. As with Labels i think we try to find situations that are similar to ours that we can relate to. But no two are exactly the same, however small the difference. So we tend to accept the symptoms of another as our own. We try to heal ourselves using the method that they use, for some it works for some it does not work.

reply to post by jokei


Good question. Before I answer, I will state that I fully believe in the collective unconscious theory. That all humans are connected in some subtle way. It does coincide somewhat with string theory.

The public consciousness on paranoia? I think we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg right now. Not just on ATS, the whole world and America especially. With the impending collapse of our financial system that will devastate us and directly effect the rest of the Global Economy. Nerves are frayed and most people in this country are scared #less that tomorrow they will lose their job. (assuming they have one)

This ties into the collective unconsciousness. As individuals become increasingly paranoid, that thought pattern is transmitted to the rest of humanity. Whether it is through actual telepathy or just their actions and body language on a daily basis. It all fits just like mass hysteria. One person sees something, the other wants to believe and so they see it too. Chain effect. The paranoia worldwide is snowballing and we can see that in our daily MSM news reports. Crime rate is shooting up. Suicides. Mass murders. Drug and alcohol abuse and related crimes.

You get my point.

I think there are many factors. Heredity in various ways, environment, which also includes food and chemical sensitivities, diet/nutrician, hydration and being forced by family and peer pressures to compete in various ways. I was literally forced to eat the same foods everyone else did at home because we were poor. I often recall getting sick. Toxic families?

Michael Jackson turned ok.......sorta. Some paranoid people are higher functional compared to others. Howard Hughes for instance.

I would think as we progress, genome therapy, functional MRIs etc. can help people deal with these differences, especially before they get older, such as in early developemental childhood. Blood brain barrier also seems to be an important factor.

I've found that sugar and related carbs to be an issue with diet. My other theory is related to gut flora and the inability to break down certain proteins...etc.

It was described to me by one doctor that the longer someone is in this condition, the harder it is, that this part of the brain this paranoia controls or affects is more dense as if a growth or tumor and apparently spreads. Such as with Neurons.

Bipolar has been said to be more commonly undiagnosed, but is my best guess, is due to our system and environment as if slaves.

It was said a few months ago, that there were more suicides, than there were killed in action at some point this year.

My present "medications" psychiatrist, who has claimed to have worked for the V.A. claims it's due to relaxing the intake standards. He also mentions psychosis as if false beliefs are related. ATS can be therapy for certain people. Not that everyone here is happy about that.

David Wilcock also mentions the pineal gland.

www.youtube.com...



[edit on 14-7-2009 by aleon1018]

reply to post by jokei


That is true.

reply to post by Mr. Toodles


Very nice explanation.

I think that a little paranoia is actually healthy.

Healthy Paranoia for Business.

Legendary baseball pitcher Satchel Paige once commented, "Don't look behind you, some-thin' may be gamin'." Had author Andrew Grove, chairman of Intel Corp., voiced this proverb it would have been: "Always look over your shoulder because something is always gaining."

This article makes paranoia something acceptable and actually wise in business, however the psychological implications for the layman or individual especially based on his or her socioeconomic level can be painful and exhausting at best when looked at from the basic psychological profiles of the average paranoid person and the level of misunderstanding from those they seek help from because it is a broadly misinterpreted psychological state that is not only necessary in good measure but lumped together all to often with other factors.

The premise of Grove's book is that being a certified paranoid individual doesn't mean that someone isn't out to get you. Grove believes the "someone" or "something" is often inside your own organization. No, not corporate spies, but critical decision points where technology is a key factor. Grove calls them strategic inflection points.

When you get a hunch or a gut feeling about something that is just not right be it questioning your politicians motives or even your clergy, then it is always the easy way out to call you delusional or paranoid as if that stands alone as a definition that needs no further examination.

Healthy paranoia on the other hand is how we actually survive, how animals and humans have survived against all odds through out history.
When one becomes aware beyond what is percieved as the norm, they can easily be considered in a paranoid state, that is much more comfortable an explanation than to say that the person seems to know about many issues prior to the main stream discovering it such as the decline of the financial markets and the economy.

www.allbusiness.com...

reply to post by antar


You are completely right about the laymans paranoia and average joe. I am talking about the paranoia that people dream about, day dream about, and otherwise obsess over bad things. Almost in a chronic state of worry. In any species on this planet, paranoia is a natural thing otherwise we would have seen the demise of that species a very long time ago. Survival instinct is something of a necessity.

reply to post by Mr. Toodles


Right, and here we sit on our favorite forum, a conspiracy discussion board, BUT, I am waiting for the day when conspiracy theorists are vindicated and I believe we are being more so every day.

To have that awareness of the cosmic consciousness, the global mind and the local mentality, it is part of our evolutionary process and paranoia is going to become even greater as you pointed out with the walls closing in on those that for ever have been wearing blinders to the real situation.

Just as the Monkey began at once to wash her potato in the ocean before eating and thousands of miles away on the same day others also began to do the same, yes we are connected, BUT there is always a balance and those of us who have been paranoid as a defence mechanism or from pure information/truth overloads, will be the grounded ones who say, "Yeah, I knew that, its not as big an issue as..."

Once you face the issue and look at it squarely it looses its power over you. I am talking healthy paranoia that is not attached to other more problematic symptoms.

Clinical paranoia, where the patient is suspicious of everyone and everything, suspecting there is some unspoken, underlying idea that someone is out to "get me" is different from the paranoia we see here on ATS and out in the world. There is a difference between being unduly suspicious of everything going on, and just being suspect about certain problems we see in the world.
Undue paranoia might be someone who thinks the CIA is following him, when the person does nothing that would warrant CIA intervention.
It is my contention that a little paranoia is healthy and goes along way toward keeping you alive. It makes you aware of surroundings, so you are scanning the crowd for anything that might be amiss. It makes you pay attention to the government, and try to get involved.
Now there may be some here on this board that are suffering from clinical paranoia. But most of us just want to air some grievences, have an intelligent discussion, and maybe just find out if there really is a reason for us to be afraid.

reply to post by Mr. Toodles


That's precisely where I was headed with what I said. Funny how when the zebra on the African plains gets healthy paranoia and uses that paranoia to remain alive against all odds, and follows that paranoid feeling, it is no longer a psychosis, it is a life saving choice and deep trust in survival.

Yet in the Ghettos of NYC, it is a psycological condition and considered as posing a danger to self and others, lol.