Paranoia

Hypervigilance

• paranoia is a form of mental illness; the cause is thought to be internal, eg a minor variation in the balance of brain chemistry

• is a response to an external event (violence, accident, disaster, violation, intrusion, bullying, etc) and therefore an injury

• paranoia tends to endure and to not get better of its own accord

• wears off (gets better), albeit slowly, when the person is out of and away from the situation which was the cause

• the paranoiac will not admit to feeling paranoid, as they cannot see their paranoia

• the hypervigilant person is acutely aware of their hypervigilance, and will easily articulate their fear, albeit using the incorrect but popularised word "paranoia"

• sometimes responds to drug treatment

• drugs are not viewed favourably by hypervigilant people, except in extreme circumstances, and then only briefly; often drugs have no effect, or can make things worse, sometimes interfering with the body's own healing process

• the paranoiac often has delusions of grandeur; the delusional aspects of paranoia feature in other forms of mental illness, such as schizophrenia

• the hypervigilant person often has a diminished sense of self-worth, sometimes dramatically so

• the paranoiac is convinced of their self-importance

• the hypervigilant person is often convinced of their worthlessness and will often deny their value to others

• paranoia is often seen in conjunction with other symptoms of mental illness, but not in conjunction with symptoms of PTSD

• hypervigilance is seen in conjunction with other symptoms of PTSD, but not in conjunction with symptoms of mental illness

• the paranoiac is convinced of their plausibility

• the hypervigilant person is aware of how implausible their experience sounds and often doesn't want to believe it themselves (disbelief and denial)

• the paranoiac feels persecuted by a person or persons unknown (eg "they're out to get me")

• the hypervigilant person is hypersensitized but is often aware of the inappropriateness of their heightened sensitivity, and can identify the person responsible for their psychiatric injury

• sense of persecution

• heightened sense of vulnerability to victimisation

• the sense of persecution felt by the paranoiac is a delusion, for usually no-one is out to get them

• the hypervigilant person's sense of threat is well-founded, for the serial bully is out to get rid of them and has often coerced others into assisting, eg through mobbing; the hypervigilant person often cannot (and refuses to) see that the serial bully is doing everything possible to get rid of them

• the paranoiac is on constant alert because they know someone is out to get them

• the hypervigilant person is on alert in case there is danger

• the paranoiac is certain of their belief and their behaviour and expects others to share that certainty

• the hypervigilant person cannot bring themselves to believe that the bully cannot and will not see the effect their behaviour is having; they cling naively to the mistaken belief that the bully will recognise their wrongdoing and apologise

Mental illness

Psychiatric injury

• the cause often cannot be identified

• the cause is easily identifiable and verifiable, but denied by those who are accountable

• the person may be incoherent or what they say doesn't make sense

• the person is often articulate but prevented from articulation by being traumatised

• the person may appear to be obsessed

• the person is obsessive, especially in relation to identifying the cause of their injury and both dealing with the cause and effecting their recovery

• the person is oblivious to their behaviour and the effect it has on others

• the person is in a state of acute self-awareness and aware of their state, but often unable to explain it

• the depression is a clinical or endogenous depression

• the depression is reactive; the chemistry is different to endogenous depression

• there may be a history of depression in the family

• there is very often no history of depression in the individual or their family

• the person has usually exhibited mental health problems before

• often there is no history of mental health problems

• may respond inappropriately to the needs and concerns of others

• responds empathically to the needs and concerns of others, despite their own injury

• displays a certitude about themselves, their circumstances and their actions

• is often in a state of disbelief and bewilderment which they will easily and often articulate ("I can't believe this is happening to me" and "Why me?" - click here for the answer)

• may suffer a persecution complex

• may experience an unusually heightened sense of vulnerability to possible victimisation

• suicidal thoughts are the result of despair, dejection and hopelessness

• suicidal thoughts are often a logical and carefully thought-out solution or conclusion

• exhibits despair

• is driven by the anger of injustice

• often doesn't look forward to each new day

• looks forward to each new day as an opportunity to fight for justice

• is often ready to give in or admit defeat

• refuses to be beaten, refuses to give up