'Misunderstood', The mental health book that is making waves across borders
BANGALORE, KARNATAKA, INDIA, May 22, 2025 / EINPresswire.com / -- In an unprecedented publishing success, MISUNDERSTOOD – A Guide to Mental Wellness, authored by social reformer and legal crusader Sree Krishna Seelam, has taken the global literary scene by storm, topping the charts across 12 countries, including India, the USA, Germany, Australia, Canada, and the UK, without a single penny spent on marketing.
The book is being hailed as a movement, not just a manuscript.
Rooted in raw honesty, scientific insight, and heart-wrenching real-life stories, MISUNDERSTOOD is more than a guide; it's a revolution in how society perceives mental health.
'This book was born out of silence, stigma, and pain. But it now speaks loudly for those who couldn't. It's my war cry and my peace offering.'
– Sree Krishna Seelam
Sree Krishna Seelam, known for donating all royalties from his bestsellers to social causes, leads the www. wedidit.in Foundation, a volunteer-powered non-profit with over 12,000 changemakers worldwide.
His latest work was co-created by a remarkable team of therapists, clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, educators, and hundreds of grassroots volunteers from rural India to international universities, making it a truly people-powered project.
A Global Phenomenon with Local Roots
The book's record-breaking success, achieved with zero ad budget, reflects not just the need for mental health reform but the collective hunger for empathy, understanding, and truth. Readers from all walks of life have called it 'life-saving,' 'soul-healing,' and 'the first book that finally understood them.'
About the Author
Sree Krishna Seelam is no ordinary writer. With 21 books across law, mental health, human rights, and social justice, he has turned his pen into a weapon for change. An aspiring lawmaker, an advocate for change, and founder of a pro bono legal service brand called www. Middlemen.asia, Sree is on a mission to make the world a better place, one reader, one reform, and one book at a time.
What Makes MISUNDERSTOOD Different?
Backed by clinical insight, real-life suicide cases, and survivor stories
Features contributions from licensed professionals and trained mental health advocates
Every chapter includes practical tools: mental exercises, writing prompts, and daily actions
100% of proceeds support mental health education and suicide prevention campaigns in India
Join the Movement
With mental health issues rising globally post-pandemic, MISUNDERSTOOD has become a call to action. It's not just a book; it's a blueprint for building a more compassionate, informed world.
Readers, professionals, and policymakers alike are invited to read, share, and take part in the mental wellness movement by downloading the book for free from https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DMDTK2R7
Sree Krishna Seelam
Wedidit Foundation
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Is Schizophrenia a Personality Disorder?
Key takeaways Schizophrenia is not a personality disorder but rather a type of psychotic disorder listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders under 'schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders.' Symptoms of schizophrenia include hallucinations, delusions, disorganized thinking, disorganized motor function, and negative symptoms like decreased self-motivation, diminished emotional expression, decreased speech output, social disinterest, and reduced ability to experience pleasure. Unlike personality disorders, which involve long-standing patterns of interactions that impact behavior, schizophrenia involves altered perceptions of reality. It typically presents with psychotic symptoms in adulthood, during the 20s or later in life, with varying frequency and severity of symptoms and episodes mixed with symptom-free periods. Many symptoms associated with mental health conditions can create social isolation, pressure, and a deterioration of relationships. Stigma and fear of judgment may keep you away from peers. Sometimes, the symptoms you're experiencing may contribute to low emotional expression or decreased ability to experience joy through others. Living with schizophrenia can present a number of these challenges, but it doesn't mean you're living with the rigid, long-term patterns of behavior that accompany a personality disorder. Is schizophrenia a personality disorder? Schizophrenia is not a personality disorder. It's a type of psychotic disorder listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5 th edition, text revision (DSM-5-TR), under 'schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders.' Psychotic disorders involve altered perceptions of reality. These experiences make up the symptoms of psychosis, which are key features in all psychotic disorders. Psychotic symptoms include: hallucinations delusions disorganized thinking disorganized motor function negative symptoms What are negative symptoms? Negative symptoms are those indicating a loss of function. They include: avolition (decreased self-motivation) diminished emotional expression alogia (decreased speech output) asociality (social disinterest) anhedonia (decreased ability to experience pleasure) Symptoms of psychosis are primary features of schizophrenia. To receive a formal diagnosis, you must be experiencing delusions, hallucinations, or disorganized thinking for the majority of a 1-month period. According to the DSM-5-TR, schizophrenia typically presents with psychotic symptoms in adulthood, during your 20's, or later in life, depending on your circumstances. Symptoms can vary in frequency and severity and often come in episodes mixed with periods of time where you have no symptoms at all. Unlike schizophrenia, personality disorders don't have to include a component of psychosis. They're identified by long-standing patterns of behavior that impact how you interact with the world around you. Personality disorder characteristics tend to be more long-term and constant. They're often noticed in childhood and become enduring, rigid patterns of thought and action throughout life. Is schizophrenia a multiple personality disorder? In 2008, a survey from the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) found the greatest misconception surrounding schizophrenia was that it involved multiple or 'split' personalities. According to the report, 64% of Americans believe this to be true. Schizophrenia isn't a multiple personality disorder, but symptoms of psychosis can make it seem like someone has morphed into a completely different person. Hallucinations, for example, can mean hearing voices or seeing people who aren't actually there. Talking out loud at a hallucination might make it seem like you're talking with another 'self.' Similarly, delusions can change aspects of your personality. You might have been a long-term advocate of something only to suddenly cast it aside, due to delusion. Schizophrenia can make you — and those around you — feel as though your personality shifts during symptom episodes. In schizophrenia, however, you're experiencing psychosis, not dissociation, which is the mechanism underlying dissociative identity disorder (previously known as multiple personality disorder). It is possible, however, to be living with both schizophrenia and dissociative identity disorder. What's dissociation? Dissociation is a mental escape mechanism that separates you from reality, often brought on by traumatic experiences. Dissociation is one way your brain tries to protect itself by distancing you from overwhelming memories and circumstances. Schizophrenia vs. schizotypal personality disorder Schizotypal personality disorder is considered a schizophrenia-spectrum disorder. 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Schizotypal personality disorder symptoms According to the DSM-5-TR, symptoms of schizotypal personality disorder can include: a persistent belief that everything happening is directly related to you magical thinking that influences behavior and decisions preoccupation with paranormal phenomena bodily illusions atypical perceptual experiences uncommon, sometimes metaphorical, speech patterns and thinking paranoid ideation suspiciousness atypical emotional responses (or lack thereof) eccentric behavior unkempt appearance persistent social anxiety even in familiar company Living with schizotypal personality disorder may come with transient or passing psychotic episodes. These reality lapses can last minutes to hours and tend to be in response to stress. If they occur, the DSM-5-TR states they rarely meet the criteria for an additional psychotic disorder diagnosis. 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Symptoms can include: paranoid thoughts delusions or hallucinations trouble concentrating depression hyperactivity or mania limited attentiveness to personal hygiene appetite disturbance sleep disruptions social withdrawal disorganized thinking or behavior Diagnosis is typically made through a thorough physical exam, interview, and psychiatric evaluation. It's important to rule out any medical conditions or any other mental illnesses like bipolar disorder. Treatments include: medications group or individual therapy practical life skills training Other related conditions Other related conditions to schizophrenia include: delusional disorder brief psychotic disorder schizophreniform disorder
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Seeing a Psychiatrist for the First Time
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