Many people have plenty of misconceptions when it comes to what it's like to have psychosis. People tend to assume that just because it has the prefix "psycho," it automatically means that I'm a psychopath. In reality, this is not the case. Psychosis is a mental disorder in which thoughts and emotions are so impaired that contact tends to be lost with external reality. Psychopathy, however, is a personality disorder which consists of a lack of empathy, impulsivity, recklessness, callousness, and lying. While the words do sound the same, assuming that they are the same only adds to the dangerous stigma and stereotypes about those who really do have psychosis.

Since psychosis can often make one lose touch with reality, experiencing it is like being a child with an overactive imagination. It leaves me only with the vivid thoughts, feelings, and visions my mind thinks up. Thanks to my psychosis, I've been a Broadway star with many Tony awards, a world famous model, and a known human rights activist who has done so much to normalize queer culture and disabilities in society. I am also still friends with people that I would like back in my life again. Without psychosis, art would not be as interesting and fascinating and imagination would run dry.

That is not the only pro when it comes to living with psychosis. With all of those images in my head, I have an image of what I want and will work for those things. I tend to write down all the images that I have in my head to keep track of them since many of them has to do with what I want for my future, so I can find ways to achieve them. If images in my head are hallucinations, I write them down too so I can have ideas for a potential story.

Being a psychopath means that you have a lack of morality and empathy, but having psychosis does not. Many people with psychosis, including myself, have high empathy and morality, and just because there are people that we hate like everyone else does, doesn't mean that we would want anything bad to happen to them. Would I still need help to get myself back to reality? Absolutely. Obviously, having psychosis, like all other mental illnesses, is not all sunshine and flowers. But, also like all other mental illnesses, assuming the absolute worst when it comes to psychosis can affirm the stigma and can discourage them to get the proper help they need.

Psychosis rarely gets talked about when it comes to mental health awareness, and one day I would like to change that. Many people who have it are still embarrassed to talk about it or seek help for it because there is so much stigma surrounding psychosis. I hope that talking about these issues will one day be as normalized as talking about other mental illnesses such as anxiety and depression are starting to become. This can also help people who do live with psychosis to get the help they need and live better and more successful lives.