Y'know, folks... It's great to see such concern for this guy's well-being, but might I suggest that a simple instruction to "see a psychiatrist" is actually a bit reckless. I've been to a couple regarding pretty similar circumstances, and it is pretty terrifying when folks are trying to call you insane, and threatening to attack your liberties as a free human being, just because you're sick and want to, need to get better any way you can.
I might ask: If the folks on a drug forum are so stretched to comprehend this far-out but completely genuine subjective experience, and the physical ailments that come with it... Why should a suit-and-tie psychiatrist be anything but confounded and horrified by the end of that consultation? There are really very, very few professionals who can even begin to approach this situation with an open mind... and unfortunately, those who do not can react very unpredictably to the reality of it.
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The subjective experience of this shit is completely absurd, yes; That's simply the fact of the matter. Do not assume that, because an individual is experiencing something that seems to be impossible, that person is not a reasonable, self-actualized human being.
The system is damaged and exhausted to the breaking point, and integrating a broken body into a logical and consistent consensus reality take a lost of energy that simply is not available. Sensory input
is going to be wacky and impossible, Emotions and behavior
are going to be irrational and anxious, and since he has been living with a debilitating, consciousness-effecting illness for the vast majority (if not all) of his life, the symptom
will be nearly impossible to explain in a rational manner.. His senses are compromised, and he has no "real world" to compare it to, having limited experience with what most people might call a baseline state of mind.
We
KNOW we've got serious neurological and health health problems. There's no question about that. Our penises feel like they're tangled up in our thighs and we've got to repeatedly stretch, crack and contort ourselves all day to keep ourselves breathing and sane (to name a few more mundane symptoms). You think we don't know we're not mentally unwell?... Fear, exhaustion and pain have shattered our lives and minds. We're given no insight and limited to no help by those around us who we seek out for assistance; many the most open-minded of them are participating in this thread... And there is not a single person either of us know us who has been through this, who could offer at least the assurance that we're not doomed to an agonizing death no matter what we do. Meanwhile, we're slowly going mad from pain, exhaustion and anxiety with not a damn ounce of energy left, other than a tired and worn out will to live and the hope that there might be something to live for
if we can just f***ing get through this.
We face the bloodcurdling abyss of the unknown every wretched day as we push the limits of our willpower to the mindbending edge to stay conscious, to take each breath, and to relearn to use out bodies again and again and again day in and day out while diving to the depths of our minds and souls to fish out any fragment of a clue, or a glimmer of hope that will get us one more excruciating, godforsaken day on this Earth we love so much that we will drag ourselves through hell time and again to be a part of just for a little while longer... And we don't give up.
I don't think you'll find more peerless reason and determination than that without some good looking... So if the best advice you can muster is "Go see a psychiatrist, you're not well"... Well, thanks for the consideration, but it seems like this guy knows more than his fair share about keeping his head, regardless of the cards life has dealt him. If you really want to help, dig up a reference for a really amazing massage therapist in his area who can keep an open mind, or give him a suggestion that might help him feel better rather than reiterating what he obviously already knows, adding to the mountains of toxic anxiety and tension he lives under all day, every day.
@expandaneum: If you are doubting what's being claimed, feel free to ask for evidence... But do not call an honest man a liar. It would be very easy to furnish you with good pictures of hair follicles split in two or three, as that is a symptom I share. We're all on the same team here... Let's communicate and share, rather than being divided and distracted by rash judgments before we even get started.