I’ve read a post on PsyForums where a teenager was wondering if he had SPD. A nice, definitively on the good side of the fence young man (not saying that because he is obviously a bit introvert). Made me wonder how many people think they could have a SPD…
So here is how schizoid I am (again it’s just me) so you can compare:
Outside of the medical interdependences shown previously, SPD and its syndromes are also typically misinterpreted by the general population.
Schizoid v/s schizophrenia: Only thing they have in common is their Greek roots. “schizo” meaning “split”. Other than that they have nothing in common, The schizoid is “split from the society” when schizophrenia is “split from reality” ( the fantasizing part of the schizoid does not even compare to schizophrenia, the schizoid never doubt for a minute that he is day dreaming and nothing of it is real). I have read an interesting post where someone suggested to change the term schizoid to “souls of solitude”. Not very clinical, but very poetic indeed.
Introverts (it’s not just the schizoids) are egoist and narcissist: Faceit the general population thrives in an extrovert society, so as soon as you look at your shoes and keep quiet you are egoist (for not sharing your life), if on top of it you seem the slightest at ease being alone (like the schizoid will) then you are a self absorbed narcissist. Funny when medically, the narcissism disorder is actually an extrovert behavior… Those are more due to ignorance and vocabulary misunderstanding than anything else but they were worth mentioning as they do sent the wrong message about introverts.
Introverts are always shy / timid: Seems obvious right? Yet it is not ALWAYS true. Shy and timid people are not necessarily introverts either… An introvert is someone interiorizing things, bottling up things tightly inside (could be feelings or emotions for the schizoid, could be fears for the paranoid, or delusions for the shizotypical) but not necessarily himself. Yes in most cases an introvert will display shy or timid like behaviors, but not always. Which bring me to the last part.
The “secret schizoid”: Shattering some bases of the DSM-IV-TR and ICD-10 heavily focusing on the avoidance and reluctance side of the schizoid towards the external world and interpersonal relationship, the concept of “secret schizoid” (I like to call it “the social schizoid” or “The ubber impersonator”) first rose in the 40’s while a study conducted by psychologist Fairbairn made him cross path with a diagnosed schizoid showing sign of nothing less than “impressive social contacts”.
Who is that “secret schizoid”? Well it is a schizoid who mastered his tools of defense mechanism to a whole new level. He can actually “act” like social, appear socially appealing, and even engage in group activities… But the toll to pay is heavy to achieve the level of detachment implied (trust me on that one: The show is good, but don’t try to get backstage).
Note from the author: Instead of detailing all the personality disorders, I opted to make an exert of them. If you are interested in having more details, I did link each disorder to its Wikipedia definition.
There are 10 personality disorders medically recognized (There is more personality “Types” and “character” disorders) and they are split into three categories. From reference to the SDP, I will put in RED the symptoms NOT associated to SDP (others could be seen or otherwise mislabeled like being SPD traits due to the introvert/odd/not social aspect of SPD, but the RED ones are exclusives).
The cluster A (odd, eccentric) personality disorders:
| Personality Disorder |
Signs and symptoms may include |
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A pervasive distrust and suspiciousness of others such that their motives are interpreted as malevolent, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by four (or more) of the following: |
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a pervasive pattern of detachment from social relationships and a restricted range of expression of emotions in interpersonal settings, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by four (or more) of the following: |
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Schizotypal personality disorder A pervasive pattern of social and interpersonal deficits marked by acute discomfort with, and reduced capacity for, close relationships as well as by cognitive or perceptual distortions and eccentricities of behavior, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by five (or more) of the following: |
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The cluster B (dramatic, emotional) personality disorders
| Personality Disorder |
Signs and symptoms may include |
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Histrionic personality disorder a pervasive pattern of excessive emotionality and attention seeking, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by five (or more) of the following: |
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Narcissistic personality disorder A pervasive pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behavior), need for admiration, and lack of empathy, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by five (or more) of the following: |
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Antisocial (formerly, sociopathic) personality disorder This disorder is characterized by a long-standing pattern of a disregard for other people’s rights, often crossing the line and violating those rights. This pattern of behavior has occurred since age 15 (although only adults 18 years or older can be diagnosed with this disorder) and consists by the presence of the majority of these symptoms: |
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Borderline personality disorder A person who suffers from this disorder has labile interpersonal relationships characterized by instability. This pattern of interacting with others has persisted for years and is usually closely related to the person’s self-image and early social interactions. The pattern is present in a variety of settings (e.g., not just at work or home) and often is accompanied by a similar lability (fluctuating back and forth, sometimes in a quick manner) in a person’s affect, or feelings. Relationships and the person’s affect may often be characterized as being shallow. A person with this disorder may also exhibit impulsive behaviors and exhibit a majority of the following symptoms: |
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The cluster C(anxious, fearful) personality disorders:
| Personality Disorder |
Signs and symptoms may include |
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This disorder is characterized by a long-standing and complex pattern of feelings of inadequacy, extreme sensitivity to what other people think about them, and social inhibition. It typically manifests itself by early adulthood and includes a majority of the following symptoms: |
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Dependent personality disorder a pervasive and excessive need to be taken care of that leads to submissive and clinging behavior and fears of separation, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by five (or more) of the following: |
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Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder a pervasive pattern of preoccupation with orderliness, perfectionism, and mental and interpersonal control, at the expense or flexibility, openness, and efficiency, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by four (or more) of the following: |
Attention: Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder is not the same as obsessive-compulsive disorder, an anxiety disorder that shares some symptoms but is more extreme and disabling. |
Note from the author: For more clarity I will leave this section “dry” as these are factual information fetched over the Net and in several publications, the need to comment on it is great but I shall do it in another section and/or a blog entry to avoid confusion.
The Schizoid Personality Disorder (SPD) is a personality disorder characterized by a lack of interest in social relationships, a tendency towards a solitary lifestyle, secretiveness, and emotional coldness. SPD is reasonably rare compared with other personality disorders. Its prevalence is estimated at less than 1% of the general population (1993).
There are two main diagnostics criteria commonly used by psychologists to identify SPD: the ICD-10 (From the World Health Organization) and the DSM-IV-TR (a worldwide manual used by analysts to diagnose mental disorders). The later seems to be the more commonly accepted as the “standard” worldwide.
According to the ICD-10, schizoid personality disorder is characterized by at least four of the following criteria:
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ICD-10 criteria |
| Emotional coldness, detachment or reduced affection. |
| Limited capacity to express either positive or negative emotions towards others. |
| Consistent preference for solitary activities. |
| Very few (if any) close friends or relationships, and a lack of desire for such. |
| Indifference to either praise or criticism. |
| Taking pleasure in few, if any, activities. |
| Indifference to social norms and conventions. |
| Preoccupation with fantasy and introspection. |
| Lack of desire for sexual experiences with another person. |
The DSM-IV-TR, defines schizoid personality disorder as:
A. A pervasive pattern of detachment from social relationships and a restricted range of expression of emotions in interpersonal settings, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts, as indicated by four (or more) of the following:
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DSM-IV-TR criteria |
| almost always chooses solitary activities |
| has little, if any, interest in having sexual experiences with another person |
| neither desires nor enjoys close relationships, including being part of a family |
| takes pleasure in few, if any, activities |
| lacks close friends or confidants other than first-degree relatives |
| appears indifferent to the praise or criticism of others |
| shows emotional coldness, detachment, or flattened affectivity |
B. Does not occur exclusively during the course of schizophrenia, a mood disorder with psychotic features, another psychotic disorder, or a pervasive developmental disorder and is not due to the direct physiological effects of a general medical condition.
Note: DSM-IV, which is an earlier version of DSM-IV-TR, does say that a person with Schizoid Personality Disorder may feel sensitive to the opinions of others and may even feel lonely but cannot do anything about the loneliness due to the disorder.
If you want to dig deeper than those mere definitions, you can start with Wikipedia, and you can stick with this site, for real life insights.
It is against every single one of the fibbers in my being to express myself other than thru art or fiction. And as I wrote those very lines, my mind is pushing me to stop. Getting me reasons to actually quit, do something more pleasant, eat, get a candy, watch an episode of something, finish my book, anything but writing this… Just go back into my shell.
So why am I doing it? Because I want to prove myself I can? That will be peachy isn’t it? Little introvert trying to prove himself he is capable of expression into the world, reach at long last the realms of the society he’s been trying to be a part of for so many years, can he make it? Will he succeed in his wonderful lovely race for the truth??… (it’s so wet and beautiful, I am actually shivering, sadly I have to break the show as it is time for the advertisements)…
Back to reality: Truth is I know I can do it, I already do know myself extremely well. (Something being an introvert gives you is plenty of opportunities to reflect upon yourself.) So I have nothing to prove to myself, and even less to society. In fact, this site is simply: My ultimate tool!
Don’t you see? Well It’s obvious: “Look, I am so sensible, naked in front of all those strangers, all diminished, vulnerable…” And yet I so don’t care! (can’t touch me) Yes, this is gonna be my ultimate defence mechanism!
If you haven’t done so already, I encourage you to read the Disclaimer section. Never forget that I am lacking the most basic emotions most of you are feeling every day. So my endeavour with that site might bring me “too far” (for your point of view) and hurt some people. And I can’t really apologize for that either, since I honestly don’t care and don’t see the point of lying about it.
Evidently the most related thing about the author is that he is schizoid. But that does not define me as a whole. Believe it or not being schizoid is just a part of who I am. I am not arguing that it is a very important part and that a lot is rooted by that, but all schizoids are not the same and it will be very restrictive to think that because some people share a common cell in a table printed in some shrink books, that they will all have the same personality… Particularly in the case of schizoids, for whom uniqueness is of the essence.
So that you better understand the blog and my thoughts it is of importance that you understand what the Schizoid Personality “Disorder” (SPD) is. Only then will you comprehend my specificities. Like the fact that I am married, very rare for schizoids, especially male ones. And not just married, but being with my special someone for now over 14 years (hands up for her being able to endure my lack of emotions) take that you “cannot sustain a close relationship for long period of time” shrink definition, I guess you did not think that it takes two people to have a relationship, and I found the one that can sustain it. 
Of course being schizoid for as long as I have been (well really since always probably, thought you cannot be diagnosed a schizoid until after the end of childhood, when your psyche is suppose to be conform to the society standards) comes with other personality traits. Without being full blown “disorders”, my being schizoid comes with a side of Shizotypal, Anti-social, and Obsessive-Compulsive behaviours.
| Paranoid | || | 10% |
| Schizoid | ||||||||||||||||||||||| | 92% |
| Schizotypal | |||||||||||| | 46% |
| Antisocial | |||||||||| | 34% |
| Borderline | |||| | 18% |
| Histrionic | || | 10% |
| Narcissistic | |||| | 14% |
| Avoidant | |||||| | 22% |
| Dependent | || | 10% |
| Obsessive-Compulsive | |||||| | 26% |
I am really not one to put people into tables, but I have to admit this one is pretty accurate. I guess it will be the object of a post to explain it fully. (added post here: “I have to admit“)
Yet again I am more than just the sum of those personalities. For example I am French AND Canadian (do not understand “French Canadian”). Having dual citizenship is merely relevant, but actually having lived into two different societies (and different they are, even if both occidental) is the kind of experience shaping a mind differently.
Take also into account that I have a daughter born (September, 2000) and raised in Canada (Ontario).
The ethnicity, age and sex are also important factors; I am Caucasian and born in December, 1970 near Paris (France). As for the sex, well you should already have understood by now that I am a male.
Finally: I did some things that might not seem very schizoid of me at first glance (being a journalist or a trainer or working in a shared office). Especially if you are looking for some kind of an archetype of schizoid. Know that I do not have Avoidant Personality (often associated with Schizoid Personality) which makes a big difference, and as always, I truly believe that life experience is full of surprises, it brought me in those places, which I hated, but I survived it. Plus, over the years I mastered a few neat tricks, I have my ways around people.
I don’t think the work you do define who you are, quite the opposite actually. Currently, I am a System Engineer (a geek that so happened to be able to do geeky things for a living).
Name is irrelevant (see if I care about prenominology) but I guess you might think it’s nice to know each other, of course I don’t, but hey, I can abbey by your rules… Name’s “Jack” or “Jacques” if you prefer the French touch.
A few weeks ago, as I was emerging from the basement, I heard my seven year old daughter ask my wife, with a little voice: “Pourquoi papa il me parle pas? Il est en colère? Il m’aime plus?” -> “Why doesn’t daddy talk to me much? Is he angry? Doesn’t daddy love me anymore?”…
And now your first insight in my schizoid mind:The whole “no feelings” thing the “oh look at me I am so tough being completely shielded from emotions” shit… It’s completely false! As a matter of fact it is quite the opposite: I DO FEEL, OH I DO FEEL SO VERY MUCH!! And I bet anyone reading this that I feel a 100 times more deeply than you’ll ever do (well maybe not for fellow schizoids who dug deep enough into themselves to understand what I am talking about).
Why do you think I block it, why do you think I distance myself from it: Because it is so very painful, no strike that, so very DANGEROUS. The pain I could take, but my heart stopping pounding, or my brain exploding, that I can take it only once… And that is exactly what letting a flux of emotions entering or leaving me without proper checking, compartmenting and selecting will do to me!
Here the trade’s secret of the day: The coldness is pure defence mechanism to battle my oversensitivity… So when my daughter said that to my wife, I felt it, I felt it good… Until I discarded it half a second later.
Yes, I do feel, but punctually. And when I do, it better be short. (Maybe more details later, can’t right now)
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