It's hard to talk about, but the effect someone with mental illness has on those around them can be difficult to say the least. It's complicated, and sometimes messy, but it's real. So, this week on the podcast, Kody and Kit tackle this topic: how their schizophrenia spectrum disorders has affected those around them. Once again, hard to talk about... but important to acknowledge. 

Enjoy the episode and let us know what you think! If you're new here, welcome to Schiz & Giggles, a weekly podcast hosted by mental health advocates Kody Green and Kit Wallis that focuses on all things mental health through lived experience, humor, and a hint of science! 

Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: we are Schiz and Giggles on both platforms

YouTube is @schizandgiggles for the video version of the podcast

This week on the podcast, Kody and Kit talk about relationships. Whether it's romantic or platonic, it's still more complicated with a schizophrenia spectrum diagnosis. Kody talks about his experience with relationships as someone with schizophrenia and Kit talks about hers as someone with schizoaffective disorder.

Both hosts have a lot to say about relationships, so enjoy this episode and let us know what you think! 

Follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: we are Schiz and Giggles on both platforms

YouTube is @schizandgiggles for the video version of the podcast

It’s a pretty common activity to google a mental disorder if one is curious, diagnosed with one, or know someone with a condition. So, this week on the podcast, Kody and Kit tackle answering the most common questions about schizophrenia according to Google! This is a longer episode than usual, but a lot gets covered so enjoy it and tell us what you think!

There are a lot of myths out there about schizophrenia spectrum disorders, and this week Kody and Kit bust five of them! Both hosts have dealt with these myths in their own way, with Kody offering a perspective as someone diagnosed with schizophrenia and Kit offering hers as someone with schizoaffective disorder. Myths can be… interesting at times, and also sometimes frustrating.

So enjoy the show and tell us what you think!

Kody and Kit get a lot of questions as schizophrenia spectrum disorder advocates, so what are the most common ones they receive? This week on the podcast, they will be answering that question… by answering more questions! Kody and Kit each brought their top five here to the show! So, settle in as questions get answered, and maybe you’ll learn a thing or two because the answers might not be what you think.

#podcast #schizophrenia #schizoaffective #mentalhealthavocate #qanda #mentalhealthawareness

College/University is a tough time for anyone, but it’s especially tough when mental illness is involved: specifically, schizophrenia spectrum disorders. So, this week on the podcast, Kody and Kit tackle each of their college experiences and the roles their disorders played. Kody speaks about how living with schizophrenia in college challenged him, and Kit discusses her battle with schizoaffective disorder and how it challenged her.

Enjoy the show!

Negative and cognitive symptoms are some of the worst parts of schizophrenia spectrum disorders but not everyone knows about them! This week, Kody and Kit are here to change that, to explain what negative symptoms are, what cognitive symptoms are, and talk about what each of those looks like.

For example, both do experience a lot of similarities! Kody (who has schizophrenia) talks about his struggles with memory and Kit (who has schizoaffective disorder) shares her experience with the same issue! But it’s more than that, and that’s what this episode is about.

Peer support is a topic that has come up a few times on the podcast so far, and it’s important to actually bring up what makes someone a good peer support person! So, this week on the podcast, Kody and Kit go over their top green flags that let them know someone is a great and supportive peer. Kody talks about how peer support from those also with schizophrenia was a huge thing for him. On the other side of the coin, Kit talks about how many of her peers don’t have schizoaffective disorder and how that’s worked for her.

The green flags Kody and Kit mention might be new to you, or they might not. Either way, let us know! And if you have one of your own green flags that is different than the ones mentioned in the episode, drop it in a comment!

It’s been a few weeks…AND WE ARE BACK! This week on the podcast, Kody and Kit return to discuss burnout, but also self-care from two perspectives. The first is self-care when it comes to being mental health advocates and the second is just… from the viewpoint as people who are mentally ill! One of the hardest things about preventing burnout is knowing when not to do things, to slow down and try to relax, and finding that balance is hard. And self-care does play a massive role in managing the symptoms of schizophrenia spectrum disorders and life in general. So, today’s episode is about all of that, and hopefully you enjoy it!  

This week on the podcast Kody and Kit talk about travelling while managing mental illness, specifically medications, sleep, and other preparations. Kody has done many domestic flights within the US, and has found fantastic success with long-acting injectable (LAI) medication to manage his schizophrenia on frequent trips. Kit on the other hand, still takes all her medications orally so she talks about how she manages that while travelling internationally with schizoaffective disorder. Kit talks about time zones and how they affect her treatment, and Kody speaks on how he used to keep track of medication on trips before starting an LAI.

Sleep is also talked about, as sleep plays a major role in keeping symptoms under control, specifically if someone has bipolar symptoms like Kit! Together, they tackle what it’s really like to travel with a schizophrenia spectrum disorder to give those listening hope that they can do it too!