His diagnosis was schizophrenia, but this man in his mid forties looked more sad than schizophrenic.  I asked his story. He hadn’t had any of the symptoms of schizophrenia for years; as a matter of fact, he was doing fine; no voices, no symptoms, working as a peer counselor.  But he was sad.

His white hair looked so distinguished; I would have guessed he was a businessman, not a schizophrenic.  But the downcast eyes, the slow shuffle of his walk, told me that sadness had taken over his daily life.  As for the white hair, he told me his hair had turned quickly, at the time of his loss; a story I had heard before.  To me, this was more empirical evidence of the Mind-Body connection — emotions affect bodily functions in a large number of ways. Sometimes we know more about the biochemistry than others, but everything I learn amazes me.

Like many with his diagnosis, he had struggled with relationships.  He thought he had won the game, for he found a woman about whom he cared greatly. Then, she died. Read more on Fighting Grief With Positive Activities…