My Brother Has Schizophrenia. This Is How I Love Him.

Modern Love

The New York Times

Nytimes, Redemption, Society & Culture, New York Times, Love, Essay, Storytelling, Loss, Nyt

4.4 • 8.7K Ratings

🗓️ 2 April 2025

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Growing up, Jamie Shandro was interested in science, while her younger brother, Tim, liked art. When they were in their twenties, they both landed in Seattle: Jamie for medical school and Tim for art school. They were closer than ever. But as Jamie was finishing up a rotation in psychiatry, Tim started behaving strangely. In this episode of Modern Love, Jamie tells the story of the frightening onset of her little brother’s mental illness and the parts of his personality and creativity that remain. Plus, she talks about how helping Tim has shaped her, as a person, and a doctor. This episode is adapted from Jamie Shandro’s 2025 essay My Brother Has Schizophrenia. This Is How I Love Him. Here’s how to submit a Modern Love essay to The New York Times Here’s how to submit a Tiny Love Story

Transcript

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0:00.0	Love now and...
0:03.2	Did you fall in love last?
0:04.0	I love love.
0:05.0	The love was stronger than anything.
0:07.0	I feel of love.
0:08.0	And I love you more than anything.
0:10.0	What is love?
0:11.0	There's to love.
0:12.0	Love.
0:16.0	Jamie Shandrow is a middle child.
0:18.0	Growing up, she had an older brother named Adam and a younger brother, Tim.
0:23.9	Jamie and Tim spent a ton of time together.
0:26.7	Tim was really into skateboarding and biking.
0:29.4	And as the older sister, Jamie made sure to look out for him.
0:32.7	This was the 80s, right?
0:33.8	We did a lot of biking around together.
0:36.6	And I was very protective when it came to crossing the streets.
0:39.5	I was like, okay, Tim, it's time. Let's go, but not yet. Okay, now.
0:43.9	They were the kind of siblings who genuinely enjoyed each other's company.
0:48.0	They built a skateboarding ramp together. They went to swim practice together.
0:51.8	They'd sit and read comics in the newspaper together.
0:54.8	And those comics inspired Tim.
	...

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