My experience of physical health checks for severe mental illness (SMI)

Andrew Voyce, who has a diagnosis of schizophrenia, shares his experience of why an annual physical health check has really made a difference to him, as part of our campaign with our NHS Sussex colleagues.

Some background about me - I am now 73 and I developed schizophrenia, a severe mental illness (SMI), when I was first at university, so a long time ago. I mixed in with the wrong people, drug takers, who rather than wanting to build new world were hell-bent on taking whatever drug they could find. I developed paranoia at lectures, so ceased attending and eventually failed my final exams.

Then followed 17 years in and out of mental institutions, where they never got my treatment right, and I became a revolving door patient.

After this pattern I eventually got good care from the mental health system, and have been on a recovery journey for 34 years. I am particularly pleased to be independent and a tax payer. How has this come about? A key is the right medication that I am prepared to take as the side effects are acceptable.

One of the side effects of my medication is that my appetite is increased and I can put on weight. Many people don’t like the way that information is kept on them, but I think it’s magic that information related to my weight can be found from several NHS sources, and used to help me.

When I have a health check, my height and weight are measured to give body mass index (BMI). I am happy to take steps to keep my BMI in the ‘healthy’ range. Because of the increased appetite with my medication, it is helpful to know when my indicators have gone into a ‘bad’ area, and I am always willing to take action. That’s usually around my diet and keeping up exercise.

On one occasion where my BMI was in an unhealthy area, and my blood sugars were verging on pre-diabetic, I used an NHS app called Oviva. This not only monitored my diet, which helped me, but I learned a lot about the Eatwell Plate of a balanced diet, the 5-a-day fruit and veg, and the ‘traffic light’ system of food ingredients. All of this was very helpful and useful to follow. Now I also use the Patients Know Best app for appointments and documents.

My consultant psychiatrist wrote to my GP in 2009 and requested bi-annual blood tests. This was one of the first initiatives to monitor my physical health. When my cholesterol was too high, I was informed and lost weight and altered my diet.

I did not find the process of arranging a health check to be stressful. It was helpful to have the sympathetic attention of my consultant who explained that indicators like cholesterol can be monitored and that it would be good to take preventative measures to avoid possible physical health issues. I was confident that it would be good to be told in advance if there were issues with my physical health.

The actual procedures were straightforward. The blood test was not too painful at all. The blood pressure measuring device also is not too uncomfortable. All I need to do is find the time once a year to have a check and I am happy with that. I look on the health check as good for my wellbeing, as is the medication I take which gives me a sense of reality. I look on these things as a package together.

Luckily, I have also given up smoking. Many people with schizophrenia are smokers, and I was lucky that patches and acupuncture together worked for me, so I quit in 1998. I’m glad I did, it’s made me healthier and made my life more enjoyable. But I know that will be a hard ask for many.

So, knowing that the average life expectancy for a male with schizophrenia is 60, I am happy indeed to be a male with schizophrenia aged 73. Physical health checks have been really useful and helped me to change to the guy I am today.

Thanks for reading this.