Schizophrenia is one of the most controversial psychiatric illnesses. Its symptoms are so diverse that it is difficult for scientists to understand whether this is a single disease or just a combination of different syndromes.
Ordinary people often confuse a split personality (as, for example, Billy Milligan) with schizophrenia, but these are completely different ailments. Despite the fact that only 4-6 out of a thousand people have the risk of getting schizophrenia, its symptoms may appear suddenly, so everyone should be aware of the possible signs of this dangerous disease.
Until recently, the causes of schizophrenia remained a complete mystery to scientists, but the development of neurobiology has allowed the curtain to be opened.
According to research, the main factor is a genetic predisposition, but the conditions in which a person was in the early years of life are of great importance – for example, mental or physical violence at an early age increases the risk of developing the disease.
Risk factors include low social status, poverty, racial or other persecution, unemployment, and loneliness. In addition, some scientists believe that viral diseases carried by the mother during pregnancy, as well as a lack of vitamins, can also increase the risk of getting schizophrenia.
What are the risks of getting schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia affects 1% of the world’s population, that is, approximately 75 million people. In this case, the disease occurs in 10% of people whose relatives are given the same diagnosis.
Both men and women are approximately equally affected by this disease, and most often it overtakes a person at a young age. Men usually fall ill between the ages of 20 and 28, and women between 26 and 32 years old. In addition, most often the disease is found in urban residents, while it is interesting that schizophrenia is practically not found in people living, as they say, outside of civilization.
In people with schizophrenia, the risk of dying at a young age is 2–2.5 times higher than in healthy people, since this disease is often accompanied, in particular, by malfunctions of the cardiovascular system. It is known that people with schizophrenia are often heavy smokers, which further reduces life expectancy.
Positive symptoms of schizophrenia
Positive symptoms have such unusual and unusual manifestations to the normal psyche that even a lay person can notice them.
- Hallucinations. As a rule, these are auditory hallucinations, which can occur both in the form of one voice commenting on the actions of the patient or giving orders, and in the form of two or more voices that lead a conversation with each other (usually about the “owner”). There are also visual, olfactory and even tactile hallucinations when a person feels touch.
- Bullshit. A person suffering from schizophrenia may believe that he is being persecuted by some people or organizations that control his life through radio signals, and also suffer, for example, delirium of greatness – that is, to be completely sure that he or she is a famous historical figure, moreover, this person can be either a deceased person or a living person.
- Depersonalization. A person with this symptom begins to perceive himself as if from the outside and loses the ability to control his emotions and body. For example, a person may not recognize his voice or his own reflection in the mirror.
- Derealization. This symptom, as a rule, goes hand in hand with depersonalization. In this state, the surrounding world seems unreal or distant, a person is often in a state of deja vu or jamevi (familiar places and situations seem to be seen for the first time).
- Disorganization of speech and thinking. This symptom is characterized by abrupt speech, incoherent and rapidly changing images. Sometimes a person suddenly falls silent, as if losing a thought.
Negative symptoms of schizophrenia
It can be difficult to identify negative symptoms for people far from psychiatry, since they can be perceived as traits of a person’s character. They can appear both as a result of positive symptoms, and as a result of taking medications.
- Violation of abstract thinking. It is expressed in the inability to think figuratively. So, for example, if you ask a person to explain the meaning of the saying “a forest is cut – chips fly,” he will interpret it literally.
- Lack of desires and aspirations. People who have this symptom may not only not want to do anything (for example, go to work or read), but also stop caring for themselves and observe hygiene rules.
- Apathy. A person is indifferent to everything that happens, nothing causes either positive or negative emotions in him. This symptom is also manifested in the absence of facial expressions and impaired gesticulation. However, the external lack of experience does not always mean that the patient does not experience emotions in his soul: just the opposite, sometimes they are even stronger than in healthy people.
- Autism. A person with this symptom loses interest in the outside world and plunges into his own inner world. Contact with others is broken and can completely stop, moreover, the patient may be hostile. However, people with schizophrenia are rarely prone to violence: in other words, if a person did not commit violent acts before the illness, then he will not commit them when he is sick.
When to start worrying?
It is believed that one of the first signs of a developing disease is a violation of hygiene habits. So, for example, a person who brushed his teeth twice a day begins to do this only 1 time, and then this ritual ceases to be daily at all. In addition, the action itself slows down: if before the onset of the disease, a person took a bath for 10–20 minutes, then after the onset of an ailment, the procedure can stretch for several hours.
Also, a person may begin to show emotions that are inappropriate for the moment, for example, cry during joyful events or laugh in a tragic situation. Sometimes, at the initial stages of the disease, emotions can disappear altogether: some patients can calmly watch scenes of torment of people or animals.
Sometimes the onset of the disease is accompanied by a sharp change in habits: for example, a person often attended various events and made new acquaintances, and then suddenly became a couch potato and fenced off people. Often, patients strike religion or mysticism, even if they were always far from such things.
Sharp mood swings should alert. In addition, in almost all patients at the initial stages of schizophrenia, facial expressions become unusually active, involuntary twitches appear, and blinking sometimes slows down.
How to help a patient with schizophrenia?
Despite the fact that there is more and more knowledge about the causes of schizophrenia, the treatment of this disease is aimed at eliminating its symptoms that prevent patients from living a normal life. To eliminate them, people with this ailment are prescribed various medications – the so-called antipsychotics.
Unfortunately, there is no talk of a complete cure, so schizophrenia is considered a chronic disease that requires treatment throughout a person’s life. And relatives of patients can help their loved ones in the fight against the disease, when they are in their care.
People caring for patients with schizophrenia need to monitor the timely intake of medications, without which the symptoms of the disease will return very soon. It’s good if a person with schizophrenia attends support groups for people with the same diagnosis.
What should I do if, during my stay at home, the patient begins to have delusions or hallucinations? You should not convince him of the unreality of what he sees and hears, but you should not agree with him. It is best to say that you have a different opinion, and immediately contact your doctor or call the patient care line with a similar diagnosis. It is worth remembering that kindness, patience and understanding are very important when dealing with people with schizophrenia.
