the kindness of the paradoxical frog

Several years ago, I was fortunate enough to work with clients at a schizophrenia clinic and they taught me a lot about kindness. It may be somewhat politically incorrect or at least unsavoury to compare people who have schizophrenia to those in the animal kingdom. However, I think it is also an interesting and somewhat logical (possibly unremarkable) step to compare these individuals to the paradoxical frog. One one very basic level, the paradoxical frog is a nocturnal creature and to some degree, since humans are diurnal, we do not understand the behaviours of this nocturnal frog. What happens during those early morning hours remains a mystery to us and in this same way often the behaviour of those with schizophrenia is not well understood (and often not appreciated) by those who have not experienced the disease. In the same way that the paradoxical frog is a paradox, so are those with schizophrenia, in the sense that their experiences defy intuition or logical. For example, hallucinations and delusions are not logical experiences or thoughts; they do not make sense to the casual observer, who may be trying to uncover the rationale behind them. Using this framework or line of thinking, I think its fair to say that in general people with schizophrenia have some similarities to that of the paradoxical frog. But where is the kindness component? Well, let me tell you...kindness was abundant at this schizophrenia clinic. Before heading into this experience some friends told me that it would be a scary experience to interact with people with this type of severe mental illness. Although I did, indeed, find that some of their thoughts were disturbing or unsettling, the people themselves were not scary. In fact, they were some of the kindest people I have met. I think that one of the greatest kindnesses that these people shared with me was actually letting me get to know them and sharing some time with them. Obviously it can't be easy to be in the position of sharing some intimate thoughts or questions with someone new, who has just come in and is expecting to learn from these interactions, but these people did not let this stop them from confiding in me and allowing me to understand their lives; lives that were often not easy. By allowing me a glimpse inside their lives and their minds, I was able to offer them some assistance, under the guidance of my preceptor. Often this assistance was in the form of offering support with daily activities such as money management or learning to eat healthily. Other times it was talking with them and challenging some of their maladaptive thought patterns. These clients, or paradoxical frogs, would often greet me when I arrived into the clinic and we would share pleasant chats about what they were up to. The kindness they demonstrated to me in terms of letting me into their lives for a short time helped me learn a lot about people in general and not just those with mental illnesses. However, in terms of understanding mental illness, this experience did show me that people with mental illnesses are not people whom others should be be frightened to approach. Nor are they, as some people suggest, fragile individuals. Having seen what these people encounter and endure on a daily or weekly basis and the fact that they do so while maintaining a positive perspective, for the most part, and a semblance of typical activities counteracts the idea that these people are not resilient. In fact I believe this people are remarkably resilient and also very kind.