Psychologists Anonymously Open Up About The Funniest And Most Moving Things Patients Ever Said.

#1

"People don't do drugs to feel good. People do drugs to feel less bad."

#2

A child with autism who was struggling with her difficulty making and keeping friends: "It's okay if I don't have any friends. Having friends makes you happy but it doesn't make you a good person. You know who was really popular? Hitler."

#3

A patient recovering from body image issues told me:

"We spend our whole lives trying to get to a certain place or acquire certain things so that we may be happy. But true happiness is when you realize you are never going to get to that place or that even when you do you will still be dreaming of a new place or new things. So happiness has to start now, with what we have." Basically, sums up the whole message of therapy for me to be honest.

#4

I was interviewing a bi-polar patient. I asked him how he would describe himself:

"An altruistic lover of truth and beauty". I then asked him how others would describe him: "Bit of a c*nt probably".

#5

Had a client with general anxiety disorder. She explained the feeling:

"It's as if you've tripped and the moment where you don't know if you are going to catch yourself or not. That's how I feel all day."

#6

56-year-old alcoholic:

"I feel like a ghost, walking around unseen in the backdrops of these other happy lives."

#7

"My arms miss you." Ten years old Autistic boy asking for a hug.

#8

"I like you Jace, I don't care what my voices say about you," said by a client with schizoaffective disorder.

#9

From a patient with Bipolar at a nursing home I worked at, when talking about how arbitrary the diagnostic guidelines can be:

"I don't take my meds to fix me because there's nothing wrong with me. I take them because everyone else is crazy and I need to fit in."

#10

"Imagine if every small decision felt like it had life or death consequences." Describing living with an anxiety disorder.

#11

"I don't wanna kill myself. I wanna kill the part of me that wants to kill myself."

#12

"Feeling pain is better than feeling nothing."

#13

The 8-year-old who thought he was a screwdriver -- and spent all day every day twirling.

#14

Psychiatric nurse practitioner here. I have an excellent one, a drawing a patient with schizophrenia gave me one day -

edit: i'm very glad so many of you appreciate this.

2nd: thanks for the gold, anonymous redditor. :)

3rd: scanned it in for those who would like a higher quality look - you can see he drew it on the back of a superman logo coloring sheet, and the masking tape from hanging it on a window facing outward:

#15

I've told this story before but it had a huge impact on my outlook of life. I used to work at a group home for adults with mental disabilities. One woman in particular was just a genuine angel. Always positive, outgoing, friendly, hard-working, and just absolutely a pleasure to be around. One time we were at the store and these two teenage boys started laughing at her and whispering loudly about the retard. I was getting furious but she just turned to me and asked if I wanted a bag of skittles. When we left the store I mentioned how well she handled herself. She just looked over at me and grinned and said: "I could see you getting mad. I thought maybe skittles would make you feel better." She's got a far better grasp of how to live than I ever will.EDIT: Thanks for the gold kind stranger! I declined the offer of the skittles. She worked very hard for a tiny paycheck each month but it made the gesture that much more thoughtful.

"I could see you getting mad. I thought maybe skittles would make you feel better."

#16

I'm a recovery specialist, and one time my client said:

"I guess I missed the transition from when the ground was lava and imaginary friends became schizophrenia"

That broke my heart.

#17

"She forgot to bring my headphones and I'm the one who's crazy!"

Yelled by a psych ward patient at the end of visiting hours. His wife brought him an iPod and forgot the headphones. Everyone laughed - patients, visitors, staff. The goodbyes that night were a little less sad for a change.

#18

Been in the field for a few years now...people diagnosed with mental illness are some of the most brilliant and misunderstood individuals in our society. I have seen profound moments of insight, from people who self-harm describing the way they feel like a sponge and absorb the world's pain, to straight up geniuses who just couldn't find socially acceptable ways to contribute to the world. Many of them are bursting at the seams with incredibly complex world views, creative expression, and truly original perspectives, but often lack the ability or support to thrive.

It's a real shame we don't have more respect for our 'mentally ill' fellow humans. I am convinced they hold keys that could radically impact our societies for the better.