Chinaboy,
As I understand things, even medical professionals can have trouble distinguishing between the "negative" symptoms of a psychotic disorder and the symptoms of other disorders, particularly mood disorders. Basically, the symptoms of psychotic disorders are divided into those that are considered to be "positive" (phenomena that are present in symptomatic individuals but typically absent in unaffected individuals) and those that are considered to be "negative" (phenomena that are absent in symptomatic individuals but typically present in unaffected individuals). Examples of "positive" symptoms include hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized speech, and some examples of "negative" symptoms are avolition (reduction in goal-oriented behavior), alogia (poverty speech), affective flattening, and social withdrawal. As I understand things, some "positive" symptoms must be observed in an affected individual for that individual to be diagnosed with schizophrenia under the diagnostic manual in the U.S., but I'm not sure if diagnostic manuals used outside of the U.S. follow the same criteria.
As far as diagnosing is concerned, I think that if you have questions or concerns about your diagnosis that the best person to ask is the professional who diagnosed you. I mentioned above that it can be difficult to distinguish between the symptoms of various disorders, and even though there are a lot of knowledgeable people on this board who may be able to provide you with some valuable insights and information, I think that getting a firm diagnosis requires the expertise of a professional.
Tomatheus
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this signature | Show by default | Change to hide (next time)Has an affective psychosis with strong symptoms of fatigue, hypersomnia, and difficulty concentrating
Taking Abilify & supplements