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| *Women health>>>Schizophrenia |
Schizophrenia? |
Do you or anyone you know of have it? How does someone develop it? Why do they develop it? Do you truthfully try to avoid those that you know have it? Is it long-term? Do you believe if someone is diagnosed with this that they are a threat to society? What causes this to happen to someone? Why is it one of the most serious mental illnesses? They put me on medication for this "illness", and I really have no clue what it is. So I'm asking you hopefully you know more about it than I do. And don't worry, nothing you say will be offensive. Please be honest. First of all, remove the quotation marks. Schizophrenia is an illness. Unfortunately, it is chronic and it cannot be cured. However, for most people with schizophrenia, symptoms can be relatively controlled with medication. The exact cause of schizophrenia is unknown. It is a genetic disorder and they have noticed some neurological differences between the brains of schizophrenic and non-schizophrenic people (ventricle size, dopamine levels, etc). Most people are diagnosed in their late teens or early 20s. A lot of people will have their first psychotic break during college. However, since people with early schizophrenia are so disorganized and in so much denial, that they don't recognize the symptoms. There can be some observable symptoms (isolation, poor hygiene, talking to themselves or responding to internal stimuli, depression, confusion). When this happens, usually family or friends can seek help. However, a lot of people are involuntarily hospitalized because they can't take care of themselves (danger to themselves) by not eating or not showering. As you can see, it is a serious mental illness due to the severity of the symptoms and how the symptoms can affect a person's global functioning. I worked with schizophrenics one-on-one in a community outpatient program. Obviously, I am not frightened by them and I don't avoid them. Some of them were occasionally frustrating (like when one stopped taking his Clozaril and decided to self-medicate with alcohol, went totally psychotic, tried to fly to Canada, and was found sleeping in the dead of winter on a vent on the street). But most of the schizophrenics I worked with were very kind and very gentle. I even worked with a couple with advanced, college degrees and one was working full time and making more than I was. Of the 40+ patients in our program, I can only think of 1 or 2 that committed a violent crime. That, unfortunately, is one of the stereotypes and the stigma attached to schizophrenia. The media jumps on stories in which a person with schizophrenia commits a violent act, but they never feature the majority of these patients who are law-abiding individuals, just trying to live their lives. If you are not sure what schizophrenia is, you are headed in the right direction. Once you can accept this illness and develop some insight, you have a better chance of successful treatment. 10-15 % of schizophrenia is familial 1/4 to 1/3 is attributable to having had an older father. Risk to offspring rises linearly with the father's age. There is a wide range different conditions under this label. best wishes Schizophrenia is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a mental disorder characterized by impairments in the perception or expression of reality and by significant social or occupational dysfunction. A person experiencing untreated schizophrenia is typically characterized as demonstrating disorganized thinking, and as experiencing delusions or auditory hallucinations. Although the disorder is primarily thought to affect cognition, it can also contribute to chronic problems with behavior and emotion. Due to the many possible combinations of symptoms, there is ongoing and heated debate about whether the diagnosis necessarily or adequately describes a disorder, or alternatively whether it might represent a number of disorders. For this reason, Eugen Bleuler deliberately called the disease "the schizophrenias", plural, when he coined the present name. Diagnosis is based on the self-reported experiences of the patient, in combination with secondary signs observed by a psychiatrist, clinical psychologist or other competent clinician. There is no objective biological test for schizophrenia, though studies suggest that genetics, neurobiology and social environment are important contributing factors. Current research into the development of the disorder often focuses on the role of neurobiology, although a reliable and identifiable organic cause has not been found. In the absence of objective laboratory tests to confirm the diagnosis, some question the legitimacy of schizophrenia's status as a disease. The term "schizophrenia" translates roughly as "shattered mind," and comes from the Greek 蟽蠂委味蠅 (schizo, "to split" or "to divide") and 蠁蟻萎谓 (phr膿n, "mind"). Despite its etymology, schizophrenia is not synonymous with dissociative identity disorder, also known as multiple personality disorder or "split personality"; in popular culture the two are often confused. Although schizophrenia often leads to social or occupational dysfunction, there is little association of the illness with a predisposition toward aggressive behavior. Patients diagnosed with schizophrenia are highly likely to be diagnosed with other disorders. The lifetime prevalence of substance abuse disorders is typically around 40%. Co-morbidity is also high with clinical depression, anxiety disorders, social problems, and a generally decreased life expectancy is also present. Patients diagnosed with schizophrenia typically live 10-12 years less than their healthy counter-parts, owing to increased physical health problems and a large suicide rate. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/schizophren... http://www.schizophrenia.com/ That's quite a stack of questions, and the best answer would come from a licensed psychologist (not a psychiatrist, who will only give you meds and push you out the door) who can give you better insight and possibly a tentative prognosis after some time in therapy. A good resource would be the DSM-IV-TR. Be a mental health professional I have one, but since it would take forever to evaluate your particular type of Schizophrenia and because I am not yet licensed I will give you a link to the Wikipedia (Yes, I know it's lame, but in this case it's accurate) page on the disorder. The info there is derived directly from the DSM-IV-TR. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/schizophren... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/schizophren... |
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