"John Kline is a good friend of mine, who I met through the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Connection Support Group program. We've been facilitating a local NAMI support group together for years. He has a captivating story of experiencing Bipolar I, psychotic breaks, and what emotional recovery looks like. He also tells the story of his prolific career as a paramedic, and how his experience of bipolar shaped his career and his personal life."
"I was diagnosed as schizophrenic when I was 18 years old, during my first semester of college when I was brought home after having a psychotic break. I was slipped some LSD in my beer when I wasn't looking. In the emergency room, I was comatose, basically: I didn't know who I was or where I was, and when my mom finally got into the room, I don't even think I recognized her."
John Kline experienced Bipolar I with psychotic breaks beginning as an 18-year-old when an LSD-laced beer precipitated a severe episode that led to an initial schizophrenia diagnosis. He remained on antipsychotic treatment for about four years before re-diagnosis with Bipolar I. He has experienced partial breaks—periods of significant dysfunction that did not always require hospitalization—and has a prolific career as a paramedic during which manic states sometimes aided first-responder performance. The diagnosis has carried stigma, yet persistence, passion for a calling, and emotional recovery enabled sustained work and hope for better seasons ahead.
Read at Psychology Today
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