a week's progress, objections to genetic theory of 'schizophrenia'

This past week I continued meditation, once a day for 20 minutes, affirmations, 2-3 times a day, and my dream journal. Some nights I did a gratitude list. I smoked 15-20 cigarettes a day. I drank one cup of coffee a day.

last week's progress--

• medication: continued taking one 10 mg Abilify in the mornings
• sleep: averaged 9.6 hrs. a night
• exercise: walked 3 days, lifted weights one day
• diet: decided to eat when hungry, stop when full
• weight: 158 lbs.
• mood: ok all mornings, but one down, one anxious

I've noticed that before I have had an 'episode' or extreme states of mind after I stopped taking medications in the past I have become obsessed with someone or something. I remembered a psychologist I had in 1986, before I had trauma, suggesting I may have OCD,
so I looked into that to see if it may be a problem. I have concluded that I don't have that, as I don't really have the ritualized behavior that goes along with that, though I do have recurrent obsessions. I talked with my husband about getting therapy for this, but we decided that he will continue to act as my 'therapist' for now. It is good, however, to recognize that obsession often precedes a psychotic break for me.

There are various problems with many accepted genetic studies of 'schizophrenia'. While genes have often been implicated in 'schizophrenia', there is controversy as to whether this is a genetic 'illness' or not. Some say genes combined with environment is the cause; some say environment alone is the cause. Often it is said that genes merely provide a predisposition to 'schizophrenia'. The studies are not definitive, it turns out.