“Pathetic noise” severe and enduring mental disorder

[wombatsandaplant]

I dunno, I just feel so flat and blahhh. I got a support letter for esa a week ago from my psychiatrist and it says ‘so and so has a severe and enduring mental disorder’. It’s left me a bit lost. Has he changed my diagnosis and doesn’t want me to know. Has he diagnosed me with schizophrenia. It’s been mentioned before but previously on letters he wrote persistent delusional disorder. So hence my wondering. I know you guys have less clue than me, so I’m not asking you guys. But I wanted to write something down.

Also I’m finally at a place where I have sort of reasonable insight. So I can see how incapable I am. And how much this has effected me. It’s three years since I got ill, I thought I would be better by now. I’m now worried I’ll never get back to what I was. I don’t know. Sorry.

Oh love, sounds like you are having a tough time. Can you reach any mental health services for a chat about this?

Thanks, I’ve got my psychiatrist appointment tomorrow. Meant to mention that but I forgot. So I’m going to ask him about it.

Asking about it would be a good idea. I hope they can put your mind at rest. I’m sure you are far more capable than you give yourself credit for, and there’s always hope for improvement. It can be quite a shock to see something like this written about yourself so be gentle to yourself too.

I work in mh so hope it’s ok to comment. S&E is usually a clinical way of acknowledging the seriousness of your experience and the impact it has for you rather than a diagnosis in itself. It’s often a term used to support applications for pip /esa as it’s making it clear that you are coping with a significant experience that will
Impact on your daily life (as often PIP ect seem to assume anything less than S&E means that it has no impact on you at all).
What it doesn’t mean is that you are incapable or will not get better. It’s a medical term that acknowledges the severity of challenges you have overcome and that you are still doing so due to your strength.