At work, you pretend to be on the phone to avoid being seen ignoring office chit chat or worse still getting roped into the chit chat

oh yeah that is me for sure. I loathe chit chat. I wish people would just say what they need to and then go away. I am not into small talk. In fact the less talk the better. And isn't the The Stand a work of Utopian Fiction??

I find it interesting that despite being formally diagnosed with schizoid personality disorder when I was 12-years-old, and having that diagnosis confirmed again and again over the years, I was able to work as a counseling psychologist on the Behavioral Health units of a huge university medical center here in St. Louis for over 35 years. I think I was drawn to psychology in the first place because I was fascinated by the behaviors of other people, and I was looking for an explanation for some of the things they said and/or did. Despite years of on the job research, I still find that a lot of human behavior is totally illogical and makes no sense at all.

I, too, love my privacy, and I go out of my way to be alone. I don't consider myself to be hermit, I just prefer my own company to that of others. I have a very active life (surfing the Internet, watching the T.V., reading, listening to good music, and exploring my spirituality). I simply prefer to be left alone. I have about 6 or 7 people I speak with on a somewhat regular basis, but always by phone. I don't allow anyone to intrude on my privacy and seclusion.

During the years when I was working, I did a lot of research on schizoid personality disorder, and learned that not too much is really known about it. What they do know is that it exists on a continuum that runs from schizophrenia on the severe end to schizoid personality disorder on the mild end. In between these two extremes are many of the disorders which Darko referred to above (paranoid, avoidant, and schizotypal personality disorders). There is some scientific evidence that this disorder has a genetic basis. If that's true, it certainly helps explain why we rarely, if ever are able to change our lifestyle. There is also some research evidence that a class of medications called S.S.R.I.s (Prozac and the like) can be extremely helpful in dealing with the more radical symptoms of this disorder.

I agree with Divine Exile that this is usually not a problem or "disorder" for most of the folks who have this condition. The "problem", if one exists, is with other people who continue to try and get us to extrovert ourselves. Being outgoing and extroverted is simply not us. As a matter of fact, some years ago, I discovered two (2) personality inventories that convinced me that I was perfectly normal, although a member of a pretty small group of people. These tests are NOT psychological inventories necessarily, but basic tools for personality typing. I found them both to be quite interesting.

The first test or inventory was something called the Myers-Briggs Type Inventory (M.B.T.I.). Based partially on the work of the early analytical psychologist, Carl Jung, this inventory describes people as being in one of 16 personality groups, or personality types. This inventory has been used by the military since the early 1940's as a part of their assessment process for new recruits. There are hundreds of references to this inventory on the Internet, so you can easily learn more about it if you are interested.

The M.B.T.I. basically measures folks on four scales, with each scale have two extremes. For example, the first scale is introversion vs. extroversion. Folks with schizoid personality disorder are extreme introverts. That puts us at odds with most of the population, since about 75% of the people out there are extroverts. The inventory then goes on to take a look at how your take in information. Are you a sensor (trusting what you can see, hear, taste, smell, and feel), or are you intuitive (relying more on hunches and gut feelings). I'm an intuitive, but most people (75% or so) are sensors. So, when you factor in the introversion with the intuition, you find that I am only like 6.25% of the general population, and this only includes the first two sets of scales. When you work through all of the scales, you find that I am similar in personality type to only 2% of the men in the general population, and 1% of the women. Everyone with schizoid personality disorder finds himself in the same boat. We are all parts of one or another of the smaller personality groups or types. But even though there aren't many of us, we do still fit somewhere on the spectrum of normal personalities. There is still a personality type with our name on it. Discovering that I was normal, based on the M.B.T.I. went a long, long way to explaining for me why I always felt so different from the other kids when I was a child.

If you are interested, the other personality inventory is something called the Enneagram. This inventory has an entirely different history and background, and describes personality in a somewhat different fashion. However, the same information is used for this inventory as is used for the M.B.T.I. It might be interesting to take this inventory along with the Myers-Briggs to prove to yourself that you are not "sick", "abnormal", or "crazy". You will find your personality type listed right along with other personality types. The only difference will be that membership in your personality grouping will be much smaller than membership in other groups.

I think it's important that folks look at this schizoid thing not as a disorder so much but as a really elaborate and involved ego defense mechanism. People develop this type of personality orientation because they have endured horrendous forms of child abuse, abandonment, and neglect. They become schizoids to protect themselves, pure and simple. It is a very logical, understandable, and predictable choice, given their life experiences. So look at it as a way of adapting and staying alive, not as any kind of real disorder or dysfunction. Give yourself credit for surviving, and accept yourself as the miracle that you really are!

You always wanted to disappear to some foreign country, preferably in an English countryside, far removed from your immediate family, and anyone who knows you, and you are absolutely sure you will be in a happier state than the one previously left behind. :)

I couldn't remember if I signed up for this group or not. Thanks for inviting me. :)

You don't take lunch until 2:00 because that's when the breakroom is empty.........

When you take a weeks vacation so you can stay home and read.......

When you go outside on a rainy day...

You know you're schizoid when ...
. your favorite card game is solitaire.
you never take the guided tours unless there is no other option.
you would rather laugh at people than laugh with them.
you don't give people your phone number often enough to be able to remember it.
you discontinue phone service because you don't need it.

I had to have surgery and they insisted that I have someone drive me home.... I had to take a cab.... then I had to take a cab back the next day so I could get my car..... Someone should start a service for Schizoids... like "Rent a Friend" for those times when it would be easier than trying to explain... a place that would provide "personal references" for job applications and other such services where knowing another person is mandatory....

You know you're schizoid when ...
you get annoyed because your best friend wants to hang out with you.

I have the greatest bestfriend.... she lives 6 states away and even if I don't answer the phone for 6 months she still thinks I like her.

You know you're schizoid when
- you decide to skip your support group meeting because someone else might be there
- you accidentally discover your condition is pronounced as SKITS-oyd rather that SHIZ-oydor SHITS-oyd, because you overhear somebody talking to somebody else about you

You know you're schizoid when
- you would rather read yesterday's bumper stickers than today's best-seller
- you go to the library because you like telling people to shut up, even though you have to do it nicely

You do your grocery shopping at 3am so you can have the store to yourself.