[science_guy (OP)]

ok... I don't know where to start here...

first, I need to explain a little bit of background about this... I am very worried here.

I have recently entered into a relationship (a wonderful person, I assure you) with somebody who has not had the best of times in her life.  She's the first person who'll tell you that she has schizophrenia...  She tells me that before she had met me, she used to repeatedly delve into masochism and attempted suicide, but the only reason she is still alive today is her insanity...  Apparently, this... this mind she refers to as "he" would always stop her whenever she almost killed herself.  This same "he" is the one that she always says hates me, as if "he" was an imaginary boyfriend or something...

I never took this seriously, until just last Saturday she was telling me more about it.  I told her to tell "him" that I'm very grateful for his saving her, and meant it slightly in jest, as it was all still a joke to me.

a few minutes after, a text message came in on my phone, the format enlarged and italicized.  the message was "I was Not saving Her for you!".  It seemed... full of malice... I was filled with dread when I read that message... just a few seconds later, another text came in, her continuing the conversation.  I ignored it and asked her if she knew what she had sent before... she took a long time answering, and when she did, she showed that she did not remember sending the message, and she was disoriented... the message she sent right then was garbled, as if she was dizzy...

It honestly scared me, I was freaked out so much that I couldn't think straight... I am trying right now to deal with something I don't understand, that could directly affect the safety of somebody I care about...

What is schizophrenia, exactly? how does it work?  I need to know these things... anything i don't understand is something i want explained... and this defies all logic that I can pin to it...

does anyone at all know what's wrong?

[Chemistry4me]

Schizophrenia is one form of psychosis. It develop when the person is under stress or anxiety. Schizophrenia usually begins with colour and sound distortions. As the illness progresses, the sufferers may begin to think that they’re being followed or watched. The most common symptom is to hear voices. Often the voices will tell the person to do something. Some people may believe that this is the voice of God or the devil.

[Chemistry4me]

Traditional approaches to treating emotional trauma include:
-talk therapies (working out the feelings associated with the trauma)
-Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) involves changing one's thoughts and actions, and includes systematic desensitization to reduce reactivity to a traumatic stressor
-relaxation/stress reduction techniques, such as biofeedback and breathwork
-hypnosis to deal with reactions often below the level of conscious awareness
There are also several recent developments in the treatment of emotional trauma. Depending on the nature of the trauma and the age or state of development at which it occurred, these somatic (body) psychotherapies might even be more effective than traditional therapies. Some of the new therapies include:
-EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprogramming)
-Somatic Experiencing
-Hakomi
-Integrative Body Psychotherapy

[Chemistry4me]

Just remember that anyone can become traumatized. Even professionals who work with trauma, or other people close to a traumatized person, can develop symptoms of "vicarious" or "secondary" traumatization. Symptoms should be taken seriously and steps should be taken to heal, just as one would take action to heal from a physical ailment. And just as with a physical condition, the amount of time or assistance needed to recover from emotional trauma will vary from one person to another. Hopefully, this will help.

[RD]

Chemistry4me has omitted to mention the mainstream therapy for schizophrenia: anti-psychotic medication.

Is schizophrenia inherited?

Although one in every hundred people in the general population will get schizophrenia at some point in their lives, this rises to one in ten for people with an affected parent, brother or sister, and one in two for those with an affected identical twin. Because identical twins share identical genes, other, non-genetic factors must also be involved. Scientists have located genes that are altered in schizophrenia, but do not yet understand how they interact with each other or with environmental factors.

http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/exhibitions/brain/51.asp

So schizophrenia is strongly genetic.

[RD]

I am trying right now to deal with something I don't understand, that could directly affect the safety of somebody I care about...

What is schizophrenia, exactly? how does it work?  I need to know these things...

This is a UK site on understanding schizophrenia ... http://www.mind.org.uk/Information/Booklets/Understanding/Understanding+schizophrenia.htm

[science_guy (OP)]

ok, finally found some time to reply.

but anyway, i've calmed down quite a bit since, and can now think objectively about this... sort of...

the site on understanding schizophrenia helps somewhat, but I am still stuck on what to do about it.

Traumatizing experiences can cause it?  then i'm suprised that this isn't causing ME to develope schizophrenia, a little humor in that somewhere, i'm sure.

So I guess what I am going to do is find the source of this... and seperate what she believes to be fact from what actually is fact.

this is infinitely complicated by the fact that she believes that all the voices she hears are real, independant minds, existing on some other planet.  She believes that she once was one of them, and thinks she can remember a violent death, after which she was given "another chance at life", and born on earth.  I'm having a bit of trouble seperating what she tells me into fact and fiction, but some things are a little obvious, others seem like truths as she sees it.

how do you reccomend proceeding?