3D Simulated Experience of Schizophrenia

Kristin Bell who we discovered on YouTube last month has joined our team as a video reporter and video blogger. We enjoyed her positive and clear communication in the video blogs that she's done in the past, and so we thought it would be great if she could apply those skills to helping us. Kristin is doing well in controlling her schizophrenia and taking medications, getting therapy and getting a lot of family support - all of which are helping her in coping with the disorder. These are the approaches that all the researchers we've talked to have said are good ways to manage schizophrenia so as to maximize recovery. Kristin will be focused on helping us find new videos on the Internet that are highly educational and related to schizophrenia (as well as finding positive video blogs from other people who have schizophrenia), and will also be doing a weekly video blog herself. Kristin is happy to get your emails with questions or comments - you can email her at the following email address: schizhelper@gmail.com Please let her know what you'd like to see covered in her video reporting.

I've found a video on ABC's website, which I think does a decent job of giving people who don't suffer from schizophrenia a look into what those of us that do suffer from it experience. The video is a 3D simulation that mainly focuses on the hallucination symptoms of the disorder and the whole experience provides visual (seeing), auditory (hearing) and olfactory (smelling) examples.

You'll have to bear through a few seconds of advertisements to watch this video, but it is pretty interesting. Apparently, the drug company Janssen has developed this 3D simulation experience for police and mental health care workers, to give them some idea of what schizophrenia is like. The goal is that by watching this video, police and mental health care workers will have a better understanding of how to help people with schizophrenia in real life situations.

I think it would be pretty cool if every city could have one of these contraptions to train people with, because I think it would be somewhat effective in sensitizing people to what it might be like to have schizophrenia.

I know I have personally been in situations where mental health workers and the police have been completely baffled about what was going on with me and how to properly help me, because I was acting so oddly.

What would really be awesome would be if they had this thing outside a grocery store or something so everyone could try it out. Now THAT would really increase awareness about schizophrenia in a BIG way!!!

To Watch the Video on ABC's Site--Enjoy!
Learn More About Janssen's Creation of the Simulation

Kristin Bell's Video Blog

November 30, 2007

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