Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby C. Smith » Tue Dec 18, 2018 10:08 pm

According to her Wikipedia page, Rei is categorized as having Schizophrenia. Additionally, Anno has admitted in an interview that he tried to make her a schizophrenic but couldn't. But let's see if Rei really has it, based on the DSM-V criteria (as outlined below).

SPOILER: Show
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, (DSM-V), to meet the criteria for diagnosis of schizophrenia, the patient must have experienced at least 2 of the following symptoms:

A. Two (or more) of the following, each present for a significant portion of time during a 1-month period (or less if successfully treated):

(1) delusions

(2) hallucinations

(3) disorganized speech (e.g., frequent derailment or incoherence)

(4) grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior

(5) negative symptoms, i.e., affective flattening, alogia, or avolition

Note: At least two of the five symptoms must be present for at least one month. One of the two symptoms must be delusions, hallucinations, or disorganized speech.


B. Social/occupational dysfunction: For a significant portion of the time since the onset of the disturbance, one or more major areas of functioning such as work, interpersonal relations, or self-care are markedly below the level achieved prior to the onset (or when the onset is in childhood or adolescence, failure to achieve expected level of interpersonal, academic, or occupational achievement).


C. Duration: Continuous signs of the disturbance persist for at least 6 months. This 6-month period must include at least 1 month of symptoms (or less if successfully treated) that meet Criterion A (i.e., active-phase symptoms) and may include periods of prodromal or residual symptoms. During these prodromal or residual periods, the signs of the disturbance may be manifested by only negative symptoms or two or more symptoms listed in Criterion A present in an attenuated form (e.g., odd beliefs, unusual perceptual experiences).


D. Schizoaffective and mood disorder exclusion: Schizoaffective disorder and mood disorder with psychotic features have been ruled out because either (1) no major depressive, manic, or mixed episodes have occurred concurrently with the active-phase symptoms; or (2) if mood episodes have occurred during active-phase symptoms, their total duration has been brief relative to the duration of the active and residual periods.


E. Substance/general medical condition exclusion: The disturbance is not due to the direct physiological effects of a substance (e.g., a drug of abuse, a medication) or a general medical condition.


F. Relationship to a pervasive developmental disorder: If there is a history of autistic disorder or another pervasive developmental disorder, the additional diagnosis of schizophrenia is made only if prominent delusions or hallucinations are also present for at least a month (or less if successfully treated)
Last edited by C. Smith on Wed Dec 19, 2018 10:38 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Bhorium » Wed Dec 19, 2018 8:05 am

The premise of slapping a human diagnosis on someone who is at least somewhat beyond human is questionable.
Anybody remotely interesting is mad, in some way or another.

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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Reichu » Fri Dec 21, 2018 9:09 am

The Wikipedia claim is unsourced, so forget that. If the interview statement does exist, I'm curious where it's from so I can look at the original wording.
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Shamsiel-kun » Fri Dec 21, 2018 1:48 pm

My theory is that Rei is actually a heavy drinker of medicinal alcohol behind the scenes, who is very good at hiding it. Eva is us witnessing her Delirium tremens increasing from moderately benign to completely bonkers. Besides, the exact nature of the Rei-quarium fluid is not known to us. :emogendo:

TL;DR version: people should not try to diagnose animated characters (or long dead people for that matter) with <insert popular/favourite DSM disorder>. We had the "Rei has assburgers :nyao: /autism"-fad already in the past...
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Nerd King 101 » Sun Jan 20, 2019 6:00 pm

Rei Ayanami is not human and was raised by Gendo and is technically like 4 when the series starts. I think her issues stem from that
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Reichu » Sun Jan 20, 2019 8:25 pm

"Not human" isn't accurate and tells us nothing; the series itself is clear on her humanity. I think her problems can be mostly attributed to a combination of (A) being an ancient alien in the wrong body whose soul has been artificially fragmented, and (B) being intentionally raised in a manipulative and deprivatory manner.
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Ambiant23 » Sun Jan 20, 2019 10:36 pm

I remember the Rei has autism thing. Also Shinji is listed on the wikipedia for fictional bisexual characters

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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Melkor » Sun Jan 20, 2019 11:09 pm

View Original PostAmbiant23 wrote:I remember the Rei has autism thing.


What was the consensus on that? This is the first I've heard of it, but now that I think about it she does seem to display behaviors of someone with autism.

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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Blockio » Sat Jan 26, 2019 6:02 pm

View Original PostMelkor wrote:What was the consensus on that? This is the first I've heard of it, but now that I think about it she does seem to display behaviors of someone with autism.

Doesn't really hold up to scrutiny, the parallels are only surface level
http://forum.evageeks.org/post/871305/Ayanami-and-Autism/#871305
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby C. Smith » Sat Feb 02, 2019 10:37 pm

View Original PostBlockio wrote:Doesn't really hold up to scrutiny, the parallels are only surface level
http://forum.evageeks.org/post/871305/Ayanami-and-Autism/#871305


I heard Rei more likely has Schizoid Personality Disorder.

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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby ShonHam » Sun Feb 03, 2019 5:47 am

Rei's behaviour is a bi-product of her upbringing I believe. If Anno wished to make her schizophrenic, then it seems it remained a concept and nothing more.
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby C. Smith » Mon Feb 04, 2019 3:01 am

View Original PostShonHam wrote:Rei's behaviour is a bi-product of her upbringing I believe. If Anno wished to make her schizophrenic, then it seems it remained a concept and nothing more.


That was his original intent except he didn't know how to write a schizophrenic character properly. Most likely Rei would have hallucinated a lot (she does have at least the flattened emotional affect that most people tend to overlook when they think Schizophrenia), have delusional beliefs and say incoherent phrases.

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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Reichu » Mon Feb 04, 2019 11:37 am

Second request -- any chance we can get a source on Anno's "intent" here?
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Lavinius » Sun Feb 10, 2019 5:50 am

Rei Ayanami has loveleiness.
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Amalgam429 » Sun Feb 10, 2019 10:39 am

I'm with the masses on this one. Rei is another persons soul, combined with a god, inside a lillin vessel. I think it's very unfair to judge her state of mind based on human science. Whatever issues she may have probably relate to state of being rather than anything medical.

Furthermore, if she did have some sort of condition like that, I'm sure Ritsuko or Gendo would've taken note and acted accordingly. The fact that they never focus on any of those symptoms throughout the course of either her arcs or just the main series in general makes me think a medical condition like that was not supposed to be suggested in the airing of the show
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Berserkelion » Sun Jul 12, 2020 10:44 am

View Original PostReichu wrote:The Wikipedia claim is unsourced, so forget that. If the interview statement does exist, I'm curious where it's from so I can look at the original wording.


"tHe wIkIpEdIA clAiM iS unSoUrCeD". No.
The interview for June, "Zanoku na tenshi no you ni", Part II, IIRC. And, IIMN, "Schizo Evangelion" (you, know, "Schizophrenic").
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby orcot » Sun Jul 12, 2020 12:21 pm

Could it be mistranslated from schizoid?
SPD could be a potential fit

Furthermore, if she did have some sort of condition like that, I'm sure Ritsuko or Gendo would've taken note and acted accordingly.

NERV has Always ignored the mental state of it's employees. Look at the conditions Rei is living in. A NERVE employe associated with a known spie adopts Shinji as easly as she adopted a geneticly modified penguin.
In real life Shinji would undergo therapie at least afther each fight even without showing any symptons given the state Shinji is in their would have been a whole team dedicated to his mental wellbeing a team that should allready exist to take care of Rei like how did she live when both arms where in brackets. How did she even enter her apartment how did she dress herself feed herself?
Conditions are so abismal that they genuily do not make sence at NERV headquarters.

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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby Berserkelion » Mon Jul 13, 2020 7:24 pm

View Original Postorcot wrote:Could it be mistranslated from schizoid?

The source, the "Zankoku na tenshi no you ni" interview by JUNE Magazine, mention this famous Anno's quote: "I had intended to make Rei a schizophrenic (分裂症的) character". In Chinese schizophrenia is 精神分裂症. I'm the one who originally edited most of the NGE English (and Italian) Wikipedia page, including that statement. So, no, Anno obviously thought about schizophrenia; of course, Rei is schizoid too, but what Anno originally intended was something else.

So, is Anno's idea well-informed and accurate? In one mail on the old and dead ML, Gwern mentioned an Academic analysis that vaguely compared NGE with Schreber's memories. Schreber was, IIRC, schizo-paranoid. That analysis was not informed about the show and Anno, with very strange assertions and took-for-granted myths reported as facts, but at least intelligent and intuitive. IINM, the Academic was named Haslem; I used his book for the Wikipedia pages. Shinji is obviously schizo-paranoid in "End", just like Anno, who released two books named "Schizo Evangelion" and "Parano Evangelion". Gwern, years ago, reported a passage of a symbolistic Schreber poem that was possibly included in Bessatsu Takarajima, the famous book who inspired Anno for the psychological terms in the latter part of NGE.
Rei is schizophrenic in a metaphysical sense. Her clones are vaguely compared to different personalities. Her famous monologue has some passages very schizoparano-like, just like: "This is the me that can be seen, yet I feel as though I am not myself. Very strange. I feel as if my body is melting. I can no longer see myself. My shape is fading. I feel the presence of someone who is not me. Is someone there, beyond this?".

So, again, is Anno's idea well-informed and accurate? Well. Rei is not into positive syntomps of schizophrenia, but she's still an extremized negative schizoparanoid-type girl. Negative symptoms include blunting of affect, poverty of speech and thought, apathy, anhedonia, reduced social drive, loss of motivation, lack of social interest, and inattention to social or cognitive input. (https://www.mdedge.com/psychiatry/article/66140/schizophrenia-other-psychotic-disorders/negative-symptoms-schizophrenia-how)
Last edited by Berserkelion on Fri Aug 07, 2020 3:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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"Despair is a Sickness in the Spirit, in the Self, and So It May Assume a Triple Form: in Despair at Not Being Conscious of Having a Self (Despair Improperly So Called); in Despair at Not Willing to Be Oneself; in Despair at Willing to Be Oneself" (Kierkegaard, The Sickness Unto Death)
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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby FelipeFritschF » Wed Jul 22, 2020 8:44 pm

View Original PostReichu wrote:The Wikipedia claim is unsourced, so forget that. If the interview statement does exist, I'm curious where it's from so I can look at the original wording.


It's the same one from here post/895675/NGE-Ep24-Script-First-and-Second-Drafts/#895675 , but it's probably in another page.

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Re: Does Rei Ayanami have schizophrenia?

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Postby ErgoProxy » Thu Jul 23, 2020 8:31 pm

Anno Hideaki wrote:I had intended to make Rei a schizophrenic (分裂症的) character.

He really said that? Well THIS explains a lot.

However, being a schizo/parano myself, I've always felt the original Rei is just a case of feral child, who only had access to human books. Why didn't that work? Because reading a book places the reader in God's position in the sense of omniscience and full control over the timeline, while the real social life is a kind of hazard game with incomplete information. Rei lacks the concept and practice of the latter, which requires her to pick bits of intel here and there, and then use them to construct the mental models of persons being dealt with. Instead she expects a full, instrumentalized access to human psyche and passively awaits for such input, which quite obviously never comes.

There's also quirk that the game of reading a book grants you the chance to redo your moves, while the game of real life does not.

Rei Q is yet another story, as she's simply afraid of people and world out there, but still longs for being loved.
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