Humor me and follow the directions in step 1 to search "schizoaffective disorder recovery memoir" on Amazon. You will find stories of people who did it.

As for irrecoverable damage... people with many different disorders can do irrecoverable damage to themselves and their lives. That isn't limited to disorders with psychotic features. Even people who aren't mentally ill at all make stupid decisions they have to live with forever -- and they don't even have an excuse! 😂

The past is the past. We can't change anything about it. We can only choose our decisions in the present moment. And in this, there is hope for healing for all of us.