AS vs. psychosis

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I have been seeing a psychiatrist for some time now, and last session he concluded with just what I have known myself for quite a while, mainly that I have many traits that indicate Asperger's but not a definite one that gives a clear determination of this condition (by which I presume he refers to me being devoid of any anger).

What I didn't know is that I'm apparently on the verge of being psychotic as I have some serious misconceptions about reality. However, he wouldn't put that label on it because I'm very rational and discount all my own irrational (i.e.unempirical) thoughts.

The nature of my "psychosis" is that I get random thoughts about things I ingest containing poison (a notion I reject), feeling surveillanced, and a permeating inkling that all of reality is staged and everyone knows something I don't. As far as I know none of these "delusions" effect my behaviour, and they are all unempirical so I don't consciously heed them.

How am I supposed to interpret this when there are both AS and slightly psychotic traits present but not a definite trait that completely determines either one?

I'm afraid he won't give any definite diagnosis at all because he's too uncertain about my condition, yet he says I'm so socially deficient that I need years of therapy.
In conclusion; therapy is terrible, befuddling and it's stealing all my money.

Psychosis would be not just having random nonsense thoughts,
but losing the ability to recognize random nonsense thoughts
as incorrect, if they are, and believing what you can't even prove
to yourself and another person. Reality testing is proving to yourself,
skeptically, a strange idea that seems unreal to most people.

It is ironic that if you believe something that nobody else does,
even if it is true, without any proof to yourself and another person,
it is still a delusion, based only on random thoughts, not even observation.

Let any Psychology experts correct errors in my post.

I think your shrink is right to hold off on diagnosis--yours is a complicated case, and if I were him I'd be waiting for more information, too. At this point, it could be anything, or multiple things. For that matter, he might just have to throw up his hands and put a bunch of "NOS" (not otherwise specified) labels on you, and basically take things as they come along. Mental health diagnoses often don't fit very neatly into categories, and it looks like yours is one of those cases.

Immediately saying you need years of therapy, though, seems to be jumping the gun to me. If he doesn't know enough to determine a diagnosis, he shouldn't be guessing at how long you'll need treatment, either.

You seem to have relatively good insight. That's a positive sign. It means you can check your own thoughts to see whether they're logical. So I don't see where he's getting his "years of therapy" from, at least at this point. If you turn out to need medication, you might need regular visits for that; and I don't doubt you'd need to talk to somebody for a while in order to learn whatever you're missing... but most of your learning, you'll do outside of therapy. This is coming from someone who's currently in therapy, and trust me, I know.

I have what people always say are delusions (I have been diagnosed as having schizoaffective) but like you they don't really affect my behavior. I am not going around in tinfoil or anything like that to prevent people from reading my mind. I can't do anything about my psychic powers and the power of influence. I can't do anything about the government being after me, I don't strike people that I might think are government agents. They mainly use me (or going to use in the upcoming world war 3) and not out to outright kill me or arrest me. I believe bullies are out to kill me from all over the world (this is triggered by how people have treated me on the Internet so I don't think its really classified as a delusion). It was a different story when I went completely psychotic though. At that time I thought there was a satellite that would shoot lasers at me so I walked in weird patterns even in public. Sometimes when the gov or aliens gave me commands like freeze in one position I would do that. Then I used to cut myself as punishment for causing disasters all over the world and cutting devices out of my arms. I don't do that now because I know my parents would immediately put me in the hospital for the slightest cut. Once I had such incredibly bizarre delusions that it became suspicious to outsiders that I would even believe this stuff. I mean at one time I believed I had the world's most powerful bomb in my neck that could destroy a country and had a jet pack built into my back. That is when I had a bad reaction to a medicine. I had other bizarre delusions as well. I realize the stuff I believe and believed are weird to outsiders but the current ones I still believe but no longer act on. I mean how in the heck can I prevent world war 3 anyways? I have had positive delusions as well like thinking I was going to make hundreds of millions of dollars and going to be world famous and change the world. I enjoyed those! The worst part is when reality sets in! I mainly have the so called delusions rather than constant voices in my head. It is good that you have some insight that your thoughts are delusions. I realize that I have had delusions in the past.

Your "psychotic" features sound like not uch more than two steps beyond what I have, which is a skeptic streak which has me constantly second guessing and double checking everything I know or believe or get told to see does it hold up. Which is a strong prosurvival trait in a scientist, as I have told my brother who denies I am a scientist and who also lacks the trait.

For what it's worth, I was just reading up on Schopenhauer's life - sounds as if he was just about where you say you are.

I have to say, one of the things I am most skeptgical about is the value of analysis - especially open ended "let's see how things are when you reach 90" analysis.

I remember when my Psychosis was at it's worse, in the Spring of 98. I was going around the factory, telling all my work friends, that I was going to lose 40 lbs and become the next Ray Davies. (I weighed 165 lbs at the time). and I'm also 5ft 8. I was also asking everybody for their phone #s and asking them, if they'd like to go for pizza, or to the bars, with me. I also thought that all of the East Indian women at my job were leaving Canada, because I wasn't setting a good example for them, besides, they've immigrated into Canada, not England. I was also going around the factory, telling everybody, that I'm not a racist.

I was put on Paxil for Depression, and Risperidone for Psychosis. My mum really let me have it, as far as my reality was concerned, right down to which Kink I was and am really like, that I don't go around, asking for phone #s, and telling people that I'm not racist, when they already know, that I'm not. She was also down on me, for telling the whores that I hung out with, during the break times, that I did not want sex, that's when she mocked me, for "Coming pretty close to Mick Avory." "But I thought I was like Ray Davies, mum!" I didn't actually give the response, but I was thinking it in my mind, as clear as a bell. I was also thinking in my mind, "Turn me into Austin Powers!" My mum told me that I'd better get my act together, or else my dad will turn me into Austin Powers.

It was a real gong show.

The contrast is that now, with just the AS and Depression, I have more of a concept about my reality, these days. I'm facing up to my reality, and accepting myself, as God intended for me to be. This is me with the AS, without the Psychosis. I've picked up where I left off, in 1996, but with more of a heightened sense of reality.

Psychosis (from the Greek ψυχή "psyche", for mind/soul, and -ωσις "-osis", for abnormal condition) means abnormal condition of the mind, and is a generic psychiatric term for a mental state often described as involving a "loss of contact with reality". People suffering from psychosis are said to be psychotic.

People experiencing psychosis may report hallucinations or delusional beliefs, and may exhibit personality changes and thought disorder. This may be accompanied by unusual or bizarre behavior, as well as difficulty with social interaction and impairment in carrying out the daily life activities.

"Psychosis" is a very broad term and no longer used in psychopathology. It is still referenced in theoretical psychology because many of the theories we still learn were written decades ago.

I had to chuckle at the thought of a shrink suggesting years of therapy. You don't say...

Socially deficient may not be able to be fixed by therapy, if it's AS variety.

I think a healthy dose of skepticism is appropriate.

You definitely have paranoias and your therapist is probably worried you are in the early stages or at a high risk of developing schizophrenia. Its good that you are aware that your ideations are unfounded and irrational, but they are still worrisome due to there pervasiveness. I am curious how old you are and how you would characterize your history of, and current social adjustment. Your choice of words and ability to describe your feelings also worries me. My advice would be to stay in therapy; sometimes it takes some shopping around to find the one whos best for you.