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Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder characterized by disturbances of thought and language, distortions of reality, emotional responsiveness and withdrawal from social contact. Environmental and genetic factors have an important role in the development of this mental disorder.
643 Questions
How does a person cope with having paranoid schizophrenia?
The most effective way to deal with Paranoid Personality Disorder is to undergo therapy. This type of mental illness is very hard to treat though as there is not much research about it since most people will not go to the doctor about it.
Someone who is not thinking in their right mind. Given to fantasy or corrupt thinking and concepts.
What are some of the symptoms of catatonic schizophrenia?
A variety of symptoms are associated with catatonia. Among the more common are echopraxia (imitation of the gestures of others) and echolalia (parrot-like repetition of words spoken by others).
Is schizophrenia a disability?
People with schizophrenia usually have normal cognitive function at the beginning of the course of schizophrenia.
Does schizophrenia cause a breakdown in logical thought processes?
This is true. The root word "schizo" means "split". This is why many people associate multiple personality disorder ("split" personalities) with schizophrenia. However, the "split" refers to the split between the mind and the rest of the world. The thought processes are no longer logical.
What age can you get diagnosed with schizophrenia?
You can be diagnosed with schizophrenia at any age, although an age below 13 is termed "juvenile-onset schizophrenia" and an age above 45 is termed "adult-onset schizophrenia". The average age of onset for men is 18 and the average age of onset for women is 25.
Can schizophrenia and depression be inherited?
M a patient of known depression... m having major depressive disorder.... and ya.. sometimes i have delusion too.... its sounds more like schizophrenia.... but is it really ?... i cant say.... but one thing i do notice.... delusion is too frequent and its sometimes like hallucination also...
Is schizophrenia autosomal recessive or dominant?
Schizophrenia is only partially genetic, and therefore is neither recessive nor dominant.
What neurotransmitters and druges are used to treat schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that makes it hard to:
Tell the difference between what is real and not real
Think clearly
Have normal emotional responses
Act normally in social situations
Certain events may trigger schizophrenia in people who are at risk for it because of their genes.
You are more likely to develop schizophrenia if you have a family member with the disease.
Schizophrenia affects both men and women equally. It usually begins in the teen years or young adulthood, but it may begin later in life. It tends to begin later in women, and is more mild.
Childhood-onset schizophrenia begins after age 5. Childhood schizophrenia is rare and can be hard to tell apart from other developmental problems in childhood, such as autism.
SymptomsSchizophrenia symptoms usually develop slowly over months or years. Sometimes you may have many symptoms, and at other times you may only have a few symptoms.People with any type of schizophrenia may have trouble keeping friends and working. They may also have problems with anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts or behaviors.
At first, you may have the following symptoms:
Irritable or tense feeling
Trouble concentrating
Trouble sleeping
As the illness continues, you may have problems with thinking, emotions, and behavior, including:
Bizarre behaviors
Hearing or seeing things that are not there (hallucinations)
Isolation
Lack of emotion (flat affect)
Problems paying attention
Strongly held beliefs that are not real (delusions)
Thoughts that "jump" between different topics ("loose associations")
Symptoms depend on the type of schizophrenia you have.
Paranoid schizophrenia symptoms may include:
Anxiety
Anger or arguing
False beliefs that others are trying to harm you or your loved ones
Disorganized schizophrenia symptoms may include:
Childlike behavior
Problems thinking and explaining your ideas clearly
Showing little emotion
Catatonic schizophrenia symptoms may include:
Grimacing or other odd expressions on the face
Lack of activity
Rigid muscles and posture
Not responding much to other people
Undifferentiated schizophrenia may include symptoms of more than one other type of schizophrenia.
Signs and testsThere are no medical tests to diagnose schizophrenia. A psychiatrist should examine you to make the diagnosis. The diagnosis is made based on an interview of you and your family members.The health care provider will ask questions about:
How long the symptoms have lasted
How the ability to function has changed
Developmental background
Genetic and family history
How well medications have worked
Brain scans (such as CT or MRI) and blood tests may help rule out other conditions that have similar symptoms.
TreatmentDuring an episode of schizophrenia, you may need to stay in the hospital for safety reasons.MEDICATIONS
Antipsychotic medications are the most effective treatment for schizophrenia. They change the balance of chemicals in the brain and can help control symptoms.
These medications are usually helpful, but they can cause side effects. Many side effects can be managed, and they should not prevent you from seeking treatment for this serious condition.
Common side effects from antipsychotics may include:
Dizziness
Feelings of restlessness or "jitters"
Sleepiness (sedation)
Slowed movements
Tremor
Weight gain
Long-term use of antipsychotic medications may increase your risk for a movement disorder called tardive dyskinesia. This condition causes repeated movements that you cannot control, especially around the mouth. Call your health care provider right away if you think you may have this condition.
When schizophrenia does not improve with several antipsychotics, the medication clozapine can be helpful. Clozapine is the most effective medication for reducing schizophrenia symptoms, but it also tends to cause more side effects than other antipsychotics.
Schizophrenia is a life-long illness. Most people with this condition need to stay on antipsychotic medication for life.
SUPPORT PROGRAMS AND THERAPIES
Supportive therapy may be helpful for many people with schizophrenia. Behavioral techniques, such as social skills training, can be used to improve social and work functioning. Job training and relationship-building classes are important.
Family members of a person with schizophrenia should be educated about the disease and offered support. Programs that offer outreach and community support services can help people who lack family and social support.
Family members and caregivers are often encouraged to help people with schizophrenia stay with their treatment.
It is important that the person with schizophrenia learns how to:
Take medications correctly and manage side effects
Notice the early signs of a relapse and what to do if symptoms return
Cope with symptoms that occur even while taking medication (a therapist can help)
Manage money
Use public transportation
People with schizophrenia may need housing, job training, and other community support programs. People with the most severe forms of this disorder may not be able to live alone. They may need to live in group homes or other long-term, structured residences.
Symptoms will return if you do not take your medication.
ComplicationsHaving schizophrenia increases your risk for:Developing a problem with alcohol or drugs: This is called a substance abuse problem. Using alcohol or other drugs increases the chances your symptoms will return.
Physical illness: People with schizophrenia may become physically sick, because of an inactive lifestyle and side effects from medication. A physical illness may not be detected because of poor access to medical care and difficulties talking to health care providers.
Suicide
Voices are telling you to hurt yourself or others.
You feel the urge to hurt yourself or others.
You are feeling hopeless or overwhelmed.
You are seeing things that aren't really there.
You feel you cannot leave the house.
You are unable to care for yourself.
You can prevent symptoms by taking your medication exactly as your doctor told you to. Symptoms will return if you stop taking your medication.
Always talk to your doctor if you are thinking about changing or stopping your medications. See your doctor or therapist regularly.
How are autism and schizophrenia connected?
Autism and schizophrenia are not connected at all. In fact, it has been scientifically demonstrated that if you have an allele for schizophrenia you are less likely to have autism.
Are men or women more likely to have schizophrenia?
Women generally have a later age of onset than men. The average age of a man's first psychotic episode is 18, while a woman's is 25. Women generally have a higher rate of paranoid schizophrenia compared to other types. Women more often have problems with affect (i.e. having inappropriate emotional responses or not showing responses), but also generally have better lives after recovery.
How do you help someone get help with schizophrenia?
In the early onset stages of schizophrenia there are many simple techniques in tending to a resolution. New studies have shown that simple brain training activities daily can improve the neuro pathways of a person with the disorder (in mild to moderate cases). So, perhaps going online or to a library and having the person do activities involving brain teasers, testers, lateral thinking, logic processing (working with logical thinking) for at least 1 hour a day, will show signs of improvements in the subconscious behaviour of someone enduring schizophrenia over a long period of time (it would have to be daily for months or even years). The trick is to keep that persons mind active with influences that are pro-active (no fiction and no fantasy, mainly just fact, truth and knowledge - eg watching documentaries on life and not movies on horror stories). With severe cases of schizophrenia, medical treatment and psychiatric evaluation/conditioning is essential.
Just understand one thing, most mental illness ARE curable over time, this is a fact most of the public are unaware of.
What is the average life expectancy of someone with schizophrenia?
The average life expectancy of someone with schizophrenia is 12-15 years less than that of the general population; the total life expectancy depends on where you live. This may be caused by high rates of suicide, overweight and obesity, smoking, and sedentary lifestyle.
Can you get schizophrenia without a relative with schizophrenia?
No. Scientists have long known that schizophrenia runs in families. The illness occurs in 1 percent of the general population, but it occurs in 10 percent of people who have a first-degree relative with the disorder, such as a parent, brother, or sister. People who have second-degree relatives (aunts, uncles, grandparents, or cousins) with the disease also develop schizophrenia more often than the general population. The risk is highest for an identical twin of a person with schizophrenia. He or she has a 40 to 65 percent chance of developing the disorder.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of treatment for schizophrenia?
The advantages would be that the persons have less paranoia, less hallucinations, and less likely to be a danger to themselves or to others. The disadvantages would be the many side-effects from the medication. Imagine feeling tired and lethargic all the time and feeling like someone else, perhaps with cramping or drooling too. Then the patients will quit the medication to stop the side-effects.
What kind of schizophrenia did John Nash have?
According to the autobiography of John F. Nash Jr. on the Nobelprize.org website:
"The mental disturbances originated in the early months of 1959".
Please see the related link.
It's typical onset is young adulthood. A stressful event / series of stressful event, drug use, and other factors may play a role in triggering schizophrenia. However, in many cases, no trigger can be identified.
You usually cannot diagnose schizophrenia from a simple brain scan. However, long-term damage to the brain from schizophrenia can sometimes be assessed by a MRI scan.
How do doctors diagnose schizophrenia in children?
The first signs are the behavioral changes in the person. All of a sudden they start acting different, they stop hanging out with friends and family, they want to be left alone, the loose interest in everything and sometimes they hear voices inside their heads telling them to do things or distracting them from focussing on their regular activities.
Schizophrenia - disorganized type?
Disorganized schizophrenia, otherwise known as hebephrenic schizophrenia, is a form of schizophrenia with the main symptom of disorganized affect. Disorganized affect is a severe problem with appropriate expression of emotions. If Ann habitually laughs in sad or boring situations, is sometimes sad when the mood is happy, or is angry with literally no provocation, then Ann might have disorganized schizophrenia.
On the lighter side, disorganization in a psychiatric context is a fancy term for scatter-brained. But when a schizophrenicis scatterbrained, we're talking a major scattering of the brains (so to speak).
What kinds of treatments to patients with paranoid schizophrenia receive?
The main treatments for paranoid schizophrenia are:* Medications* Psychotherapy* Hospitalization* Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)* Vocational skills trainingMedications for paranoid schizophreniaAntipsychotic drugs are good for people with Disorganized Schizophrenia, though they have a side effect of weight gain.
What does it mean when your asleep and hear a name shouted in your ear?
Hey i have had the same thing. So i talked to my older sister. She said that it was just my imagination. Also check if any electronics u have are on and if they are they may be making noises that sound like your name. So don't worry. And if it doesn't work try sleeping with some loud noise like a fan to drain out the voice. ( or noise ) Don't worry i just watched the Movie Poltergeist. I'm 11. I'm scared to death. There is really probably nothing in your room or were ever you sleep. Maybe try sleeping why listening to your Ipod or music.
Can one have both schizophrenia and aspergers?
Yes because aspergers is a syndrome and schizophrenia affects a different part of the brain, possible but very rare.
How do you get rid of light scars?
A Vitamin E oil or lotion will help heal your skin and reduce the appearance of scars.
