A recent New York Times series on living with severe mental illness (Lives Restored, Nov. 25, 2011) includes a piece on a man with schizophrenia who has suffered delusions that are one symptom of his illness.

Rather than relying solely on medication to manage these delusions, he has examined them for their ‘themes’ and found meaning in his delusions. This discovery has given him some ideas for shaping his life in ways that help to manage his delusions and make his life more satisfying. A major theme of his delusions was a need to help other people. Caught up in a delusion, he would imagine himself responsible to save the world. By identifying this theme and using it to shape his life, he has pursued volunteer activities that engage him in helping people. He writes letters championing causes and pursues other forms of activism. Doing so has reduced his experience of delusions.

In more traditional thinking about treating delusions, the content of those delusions was considered irrelevant and the goal of treatment has been to eliminate the delusions. This man’s experience points in a different direction – toward mining delusions for meaning that can then be applied in one’s life and become the basis for healing. He is now able to work as a computer programmer and has married. Giving that impulse an avenue in reality has helped keep his delusions at bay.

He also takes medication and practices personal routines, and he meets with other people struggling with severe mental illness to share his own experience and hear about theirs. The article describes his life from his days being bullied on the playground, through his years at college, the onset of his illness, and his treatment experiences up to the present.