Schizophrenia and the people living with them are very misunderstood. The name itself is misleading: Schizophrenia means “split spirit” in Latin, but the disease does not cause “shared” or several personalities.
Each of 100 people in the United States, lives with schizophrenia, a disease that can significantly influence daily life and well-being.
You should know the following about schizophrenia.
What is schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that can cause hallucinations, delusions and unorganized movements and language. It affects thinking and motivation to an extent that can deactivate. These symptoms that are characteristics of psychosis (losing contacts to reality) differ between people in severity and frequency. People are usually diagnosed between the ages of 16 and 30, and women tend to start later than men. Early, consistent treatment facilitates the symptoms, while stress, alcohol and illegal drugs tend to absorb or increase the intensity of the symptoms.
Although people with this disease are often represented as violent, they are not more violent than other people – in fact they may be more susceptible to goals of violence.
What causes schizophrenia?
While schizophrenia has no cause, studies have associated genetics, substance use, brain injury and stress with the occurrence of symptoms.
Who affects schizophrenia?
The schizophrenia rates do not vary greatly worldwide. About 1% of the population live with the mental illness and women and men are equally affected. Around 2 million people or 1 out of 100 schizophrenia are to be accepted in the United States.
What are signs of schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is often diagnosed incorrectly and difficult to recognize early. His first warning signs are also symptoms of other mental illnesses such as depression, substance use or bipolar disorder. Schizophrenia & Psychosis Action Alliance recommends consulting a psychiatric specialist if they notice drastic changes in behavior in a loved one. Early diagnosis and immediate treatment can improve the results.
Early signs of schizophrenia can include:
- Dramatic weight losses or profits
- Inattentiveness towards hygiene
- Problems to understand others
- Concerned relationships
- Bad school performance
- Reduced motivation
- Social withdrawal
- Extreme emotional reactions such as outbreaks, screams or uncontrolled crying
Later symptoms of schizophrenia fall in three categories:
- Psychotic symptoms are sometimes referred to as “positive” symptoms because they are unusual. Psychotic symptoms change the way a person understands and interacts the world. This includes hallucinations – to feel things that are not there – or delusions – strong beliefs that appear irrational for others. The psychotic symptoms include hearing voices, the assumption that they are persecuted or believe that they are a famous or historical figure. These symptoms seem very real for the person who experiences them.
- Negative symptoms Relate to unusually missing features such as flat emotional expressions, withdrawal from social contact, reduced motivation, reduced language and a reduced experience of pleasure. People with negative symptoms use a monotonic voice, make only a few facial expressions or could stop moving and talking at all – an illness known as catatics. Negative symptoms can sometimes be confused with depression symptoms.
- DIsoranized and cognitive symptoms Relate to confused and disorganized language and thinking, impairment of decision -making and the inability to plan and carry out everyday activities such as purchasing food. Treatment of cognitive symptoms through treatment can significantly improve daily functioning and the ability to live independently.
How does schizophrenia differ for women?
The age of diagnosis and the symptoms of schizophrenia can be different for men and women. Schizophrenia tends to stand the late teenagers in men at an earlier age in men, while the symptoms in women normally appear in the end of 20 and early 30.
The late schizophrenia, which is available after the age of 45, is more common in women. Some studies suggest that this is explained by the falling estrogen levels during perimenopause and menopause. The symptoms of late schizophrenia can include severe paranoid delusions, visual and olfactory hallucinations (smell) and tactile hallucinations that can feel like beetles that crawl on the skin.
Overall, women experience emotional instability that can go hand in hand with any kind of schizophrenia. Symptoms can include:
- depression
- impulsiveness
- Emotional instability
- Sexual delusions
How to get a diagnosis for schizophrenia and seek care
Family and friends can play a crucial role in diagnosing schizophrenia, since people with this mental illness often cannot recognize that they have them. The detection of the disease and the treatment of treatment improves the likelihood of a person significantly reducing psychotic episodes and successfully treating the disease.
Unfortunately there is not a single test that can diagnose schizophrenia, but a mental health profession can diagnose the disease by observing and evaluating the symptoms of a person over six months. During this time, the medical team will rule out other options, such as other mental illnesses, substance abuse and brain tumors.
A family doctor can help you to refer you to a specialist in mental health. For the first appointment for you or a loved one, it helps to prepare:
- A list observed symptoms, even those who do not contain schizophrenia or mental illnesses
- A family health history, including mental illnesses
- Key information on stressors or life changes
- A list of the medication or dietary supplements currently taken
- A list of questions you or your loved one could have
How is schizophrenia managed?
There is no healing for schizophrenia, but there are treatment options that reduce or control symptoms, prevent future psychotic episodes and improve the daily functioning of a person. Several antipsychotics and recent treatments are available. One of these recent treatments is a recently approved Muscarin agonist, which means that certain types of receptors are stimulated in your body. This is the first medicine of this kind and pursues a new approach to the treatment of schizophrenia symptoms and at the same time avoids stressful side effects associated with other antipsychotics. Some medication is taken daily by pill, while others can be given once or twice a month by injection. The aim of the prescription doctor is to find the medication that best control a person’s symptoms with the lowest possible dose.
Medicines should be taken as part of a comprehensive plan that includes social support and therapy. Examples of this are talk therapy, vocational training for professional and social skills as well as employment and education services. People who coordinate their medical care with this support are known to be less acute episodes and hospital stays.
Other factors that contribute to a better quality of life for people with schizophrenia are proactive management of trigger and stress, maintaining good sleeping habits, avoiding alcohol and drugs as well as prioritizing social connections.
What are frequent obstacles to treatment and well -being for those with schizophrenia?
One of the challenges in the treatment of schizophrenia is to ensure the continuity of care. This includes the support of people with consistent intake of their medication and access to important services. A key factor is that psychosis can change the perception of reality, which makes it difficult for the individual to recognize their condition or the need for treatment. This and other factors mean that around 1 out of 2 people with schizophrenia cancel their treatment – statistics that show why the life expectancy of average schizophrenia patients is shortened by an average of 28.5 years.
Another obstacle to the treatment is that there is a significant stigma of schizophrenia, since it is often misunderstood, which is partially due to how it was shown in mainstream media. The stigma can prevent people from outside, but also from the inside, and from the inside, and from the inside, and every stigma – regardless of the source – from looking for medical help and continuing treatment.
The financial burden of schizophrenia can also be steep. Direct costs for health care represent part of the financial burden, while factors like not are able to work and have complex social service needs that make schizophrenia more expensive than other chronic diseases.
The insurance can also create obstacles to access to treatment. Antipsychotics are covered in Medicare Part D, Medicaid and most private health insurance. Even with cover, however, the specific drug you need may not be covered by your plan – or even if this is the case, depending on which level it is, it could still be expensive.
In addition, many insurance companies use usage management programs that use cost management instruments such as step therapy and prior approval for complex diseases such as schizophrenia. Step therapy requires that you try to fail certain treatments before others are covered by your insurance. The prior approval requires you to receive permission from your insurance company before you are paid for it. This can lead to people being forced to try out a number of treatments that do not work for them or capture older medication, since newer likes a level and prior approval with greater probability. These additional requirements can prevent people from receiving medication or treatment in good time.
The lack of access to treatment can lead to increased rates of emergency rooms, hospital stays, prison terms and homelessness in people with schizophrenia.
Nevertheless, the vast majority of people with illness is not homeless and lives with family, in group homes or independent.
Live with hope and dignity
Although schizophrenia is an incurable mental illness, it can be successfully managed with a combination of medication, therapy and social support that enables people with schizophrenia to live life full of hope and dignity.
resources
American Psychiatric Association
Current clinical studies for schizophrenia
National alliance about mental illnesses
National Institute of Mental Health
Samhsa treatment finder
Schizophrenia & Psychose Action Alliance
This educational resource was created with the support of BMS, a healthy member of the management consultancy.
From their site articles
Related articles related to the web
