Schizophrenia - Symptom, Treatment And Causes

When you hear the word “schizophrenia”, the first thing that comes to mind are those serial killers shown on the TV or you call it split personality. But that is not the true meaning of it. It is not split personality or some kind of violent illness. Schizophrenia is a severe chronic mental illness which makes it difficult to differentiate between what is real and what is false.

As this is a mental illness, you will not be able to see any changes physically. You need to understand the symptoms of schizophrenia in order to know if a person is suffering from this problem. There are different kinds of symptoms that are used for diagnosing schizophrenia, but they all differ from person to person. Also, the symptoms that you see now, may not be seen later as the disease progresses. There are different types of schizophrenia and each has different symptoms.

Here is a list of the different types of schizophrenia and the most predominant and significant symptoms of each type.

1. Paranoid Schizophrenia: People suffering from paranoid schizophrenia are characterized by strong auditory hallucinations and of being persecuted. However, they are very normal and function normally. But they are not ready to discuss their feelings openly and the symptoms are not observable. Other symptoms include anger, hostility and disorganized speech.
2. Disorganized Schizophrenia: As the name suggests, people with disorganized schizophrenia exhibit disorganized thoughts. Delusions and hallucination may not be seen in this type of schizophrenia. The behavior of the affected person is quite disorganized or it is difficult to understand what they are saying. In fact, some emotions exhibited by the affected person are hard to understand or they are not at all relevant to the current situation. Their daily routine and activities will also be affected.
3. Catatonic Schizophrenia: People with catatonic schizophrenia are characterized by increased or decreased movement. This symptom actually varies from person to person. Some people stay at a place for a long time without any kind of movement and some people keep moving for hours and do not stop. They do not speak for hours and sometimes they keep repeating the same thing over and over again. This has to be treated immediately as they will not be able to manage even their daily routine with this kind of behavior.
4. Undifferentiated Schizophrenia: Undifferentiated schizophrenia is a condition where the symptoms do not fall into any of the above three types. You will also be able to observe hallucinations, delusions, anger, disorganized speech or catatonic behavior.
5. Residual Schizophrenia: As the name suggests, it is the residue of schizophrenia behavior, but it is less severe as compared to the past. Delusions, hallucination and disorganized speech may still be present but compared to the past, the patient would be doing better.

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Both schizophrenia and autism are considered to be neurological disorders resulting from atypical neural development, occurring due to a variety of causes. Both these disorders have a genetic predisposition that may be due to environmental factors. However, there are a few basic differences between the two disease conditions.

Autism is also known as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by a spectrum of abnormal behaviour. They include persistent deficits in social communication and interaction, along with restricted and repetitive patterns of behaviour, interests or activities.

Signs of autism in babies

1. By 6 months - No social smiles or other warm, joyful expressions; limited to no eye contact
2. By 9 months - No sharing of vocal sounds
3. By 12 months - No babbling or use of gestures to communicate; not responding to one’s name when called
4. By 16 months - No use of words
5. By 24 months - No meaningful or two-word phrases

Signs of autism at any age

1. Avoids eye contact and wants to be alone
2. Finds it difficult to understand other people’s feelings
3. Speaks very less or has delayed language development
4. Echolalia - Repeats words or phrases
5. Cannot accept change in routine or surroundings
6. Performs repetitive behaviours like flapping or rocking
7. Has restricted interests and hobbies
8. Reacts unusually intense to sounds, smells, tastes, lights, colours etc.

Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a neuropsychiatric disorder that begins during late adolescence and early adulthood. It is characterized by delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech and behavioural changes that cause social and occupational dysfunctions.

Signs of Schizophrenia

1. The symptoms of schizophrenia are usually observed between ages 16 and 30, such as e.g. delusions, hallucinations, thought disorders, movement disorders etc.
2. Delusions are false beliefs of the patient that may take many forms like delusions of persecution or grandeur. You may feel somebody is controlling you or may think you have extraordinary powers and abilities.
3. Hallucinations are when the patient hears voices more than seeing, feeling, tasting or smelling random things, which are not actually there.
4. Thought disorders are when the person jumps from one subject to another for no logical reason.
5. Some negative symptoms i.e. these are symptoms which are normally present in a healthy individual, but are absent in a schizophrenic patient. E.g. absence of facial expressions, lack of motivation etc.
6. Cognitive symptoms affect the individual’s thought process. They can be positive or negative based on their expression. E.g. poor ‘executive functioning’ which deals with the ability to understand information and make decisions using them, finding it difficult to focus etc.
7. Although both Autsim spectrum disorder and schizophrenia are interlinked in their causes and neurological background, the symptoms for each disorder are different.

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Are you aware of the schizophrenia and the adverse effects it inflicts on a person? Schizophrenia is a chronic and extremely severe mental disorder that affects how a person thinks, behaves, and feels. Schizophrenia patients seem like they are not aware of reality. The condition requires lifelong treatment, even after the symptoms leave. There are various types of treatments, which are used for schizophrenic patients. The treatment is usually guided by an experienced psychiatrist.

The various modes of treatments are as follows:
Medications: Medications are very important for the treatment of schizophrenia, and antipsychotic drugs are most commonly used. They help in managing the symptoms by affecting dopamine. Treatment using antipsychotic drugs aims at managing the symptoms effectively. Antidepressants and anti-anxiety drugs are also used for treatment. Several weeks are required for these medicines to show results. Most of the medications used for schizophrenia treatment are associated with severe side effects and are thus avoided by many people. The patient’s cooperation with treatment determines the choice of drug.

• First generation antipsychotics: These medicines are associated with adverse neurological side effects, such as the possibility of developing tardive dyskinesia, which is an irreversible movement disorder.
• Second generation antipsychotics: These medicines are preferred because of the lower risk of adverse side effects on the body than first generation medicines.

Psychological interventions: When the patient’s psychosis decreases, psychological and psychosocial interventions are required. They include the following:

• Individual therapy: Psychotherapy is important for normalizing a patient’s regular thought patterns. Learning about ways to deal with stress, and identifying warning signs can help patients manage their condition better.
• Social skills training: This aims at improving a schizophrenic person’s social interactions, communication and his/her ability to take part in daily activities.
• Family therapy: Family therapy is important for educating the families of schizophrenic patients about the disorder, and let them know about the ways to deal with it.

Vocational rehabilitation and supported employments: Most people with schizophrenia need some kind of daily living support. Programs are offered by several communities and self-help groups for helping schizophrenic people with housing, jobs, crisis situations. With proper treatment, most schizophrenic people manage to deal with their symptoms and illness.

Hospitalization: During emergency or crisis periods of extreme symptoms, a patient may need to be hospitalized to get proper nutrition, basic hygiene, sufficient sleep, and safety.
Electroconvulsive therapy or ECT is carried out for schizophrenic patients who do not respond to drug treatment. This therapy is also beneficial for patients who have got depression. It is recommended for you to consult a doctor on experiencing any symptom of schizophrenia. In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

The mind is a very intricate organ and controls the entire body functioning with great precision. Any small change in its wiring would mean changes in the way a person functions, including changes of emotions and feelings.

There is a group of personality disorders known as “cluster A” personality disorders. One of the most common forms in this is a paranoid personality disorder, also known as PPD. The onset of the problem is in early adulthood and men are more likely to have this condition as compared to females. People with paranoid personality disorder are very odd or have eccentric ways of thinking. The most common way of thinking is suspicion with no reason to do so.

Symptoms:

1. They are always on watch or guard and believe that others are out to harm or demean them.
2. Their belief and distrust are often unfounded, and they find it very difficult to form close relationships, either at work or at home.
3. There is always a doubt in terms of other people’s commitment and trust, and believe that others are out to use them and often end up deceiving them
4. Find it very difficult to confide in people, and think the information they tell others may be used against them.
5. They are always known to hold grudges from past experiences and find it very difficult to forgive others
6. They are not open to criticism and are extremely sensitive to what others think of them or tell them
7. Try to read between the lines and interpret more than the obvious
8. They are very quick to retaliate and think others are constantly attacking what they say and/or do
9. There is a constant thread of suspicion especially of their spouses or partners, which would be completely unfounded, and add unwanted strain on the relationships
10. Refrain from forming close relationships and keep some distance even in close relationships. They are generally cold and can be jealous and controlling of their near and dear ones
11. Firmly believe that their thoughts and words and actions are always right and do not believe in conflict resolution. They are usually argumentative, hostile, and stubborn
12. They always present as tense and cannot relax very easily

Causes: There is usually a past history of emotional or physical abuse, which is unresolved, leading to these symptoms. Hypnosis, which is often used to diagnose the condition, is very helpful in identifying the cause.

Diagnosis: There are specific assessment tools and questionnaires which are useful in confirming the diagnosis.

Management: Psychotherapy where the person is taught to manage the above feelings and taught to communicate and cope with others. This is often combined with antidepressants, benzodiazepines, and antipsychotics.

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

Be it sound or smell, vision or touch or taste, our senses help us experience the world around us. The brain always responds when there is a stimulus. So, we see an object, hear a sound, feel something, etc. When there is no stimulus, but there is still a response, it is hallucinations. This sense of something which is not real is by definition hallucinations. This could be related to past experiences or our deep inner feelings and is much more common than we think.

Causes:
Most psychiatry disorders including schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease, and other forms of dementia start off as hallucinations.

1. Migraines usually are accompanied by visual aura.
2. Brain tumors can cause different types of hallucinations depending on where it is located and the corresponding area it is affecting.
3. Epilepsy also depends on the type of seizure, different hallucinations would be seen.

Types:

1. Visual: Seeing things which are not there, for instance, flashes of light, insects crawling on self or another person, someone standing where no one is there, etc.
2. Auditory: The affected individual could hear voices coming from inside himself or from outside. These voices could be giving instructions to the person, calling out to him/her, or be talking to each other.
3. Olfactory: Again, these imaginary smells could be coming from within the person or from an external source.
4. Tactile: The affected person could feel a rush of hot air being blown, feeling of insects crawling on the body, feeling of being tickled, etc.
5. Gustatory (taste): When something is eaten, it could taste like something completely different, which is very odd. This could be related to some past experience in some people.

Hallucinations are initial symptoms of the onset of psychiatric disorders. In fact, most of these are insidious in onset, where it cannot be exactly identified when the disease began. Therefore, if a person has hallucinations for prolonged periods, and if they are progressing, it is best to get more testing done.

Other symptoms include:

1. Confused thoughts
2. Disorganized speech
3. Incoherently speech
4. Reduced social interactions

Who is likely to experience hallucinations?

1. A person who gets very anxious, even about small things, a fear of losing touch with reality
2. People with migraine headaches. These suffer visual hallucinations very commonly and may also have auditory hallucinations.
3. Children who are having a fever. They might see or hear something which is not real.
4. People on illegal drugs like amphetamines, LSD, and Ecstacy. In fact, this is what creates addiction.
5. Sudden withdrawal from alcohol or drugs. It is always advisable to withdraw from illicit drugs under supervision as hallucinations are very common.

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!