Public Comment

It has appeared in many places, including in a song by famous rock performer Billy Joel, "You should never argue with a crazy man." This is a superlatively apt truism, even while some may find it an amusement. It is not amusing. When you argue with a psychotic person, you could be putting human lives at risk. And if you've been through such an experience, you are not alone. It is a mistake that some law enforcers seem to have made. When they yell orders at a psychotic person, they may get other than obedience, and this may lead to escalation. 

Even if you're trying to have a gentle conversation with a person who seems lost, you should realize that you are not supremely wise enough to do away with the psychosis in another person's diseased brain. The classic mistake of many who believe themselves old and wise is that they can reason with a mentally ill person and impart rational thinking. The young man or woman who is ill needs to be in treatment. This may include medication, in some instances by force. And/or, it may include being in a safe place where the individual is monitored and where they are not exposed to the risks of living in mainstream society while lacking the ability to think clearly. 

Some mentally ill people, not all of us, but some, have the potential to become violent. This could be the result of bottoming out against total despair. Or it could be the result of complete misinterpretation of the data from the senses. 

The last time, measured against present day, that I became psychotic, was in 1996, and it was caused by medication noncompliance. When I was roaming the streets of Martinez on foot, in ninety-degree heat, two middle aged women who were walking spotted me at a distance, and they crossed the street to avoid me. At that time, it was the right thing to do. Back then most people didn't carry cellular phones, and if they'd had one, they might have phoned police. Phoning police is sometimes a risk because cops could do something wrong. This must be measured against the risk of doing nothing. 

You can't reason with a psychotic person because their brain isn't working. 

Once we are medicated, despite the apparent fact that the medication acts on all parts of the brain, the parts of the brain that are in command have shifted. There are many theories about why and how antipsychotics work. Yet, scientists still do not fully understand enough. More brain research is warranted, but funding for this is lacking. When medicated, we have the potential to respond to reasoning, imparted verbally or absorbed through our own senses and thought processes.