World Schizophrenia Day, aimed to spread awareness and reduce stigma on a very misunderstood diagnosis. Over 23 million people worldwide live with Schizophrenia, however misinformation and fear have become barriers to additional discussion and research of the symptoms. This article will shed light on what Schizophrenia is, and upturn myths on the not-so-rare diagnosis.
What is Schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a mental health diagnosis that causes delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, and disorganized and abnormal motor behavior. What do these terms mean?
-
Psychosis refers to a state of mind where one is out of touch with reality, usually due to a disruption in the way our brains process information. It can present as distorted thoughts, difficulty distinguishing what is real, and delusions and hallucinations. Psychosis is seen as a symptom, and is not an official diagnosis itself.
-
Delusions are fixed false beliefs despite evidence to the contrary. Delusions can take different forms: ‘bizarre’ and ‘non-bizarre’.
-
Bizarre delusions are impossible or illogical (i.e.: aliens have stolen my organs and replaced them with other things).
-
Non-bizarre delusions refer to things that could actually happen (i.e.: a partner cheating, being followed or watched)
-
-
Hallucinations refer to hearing, seeing, smelling, or touching things that are not there. They are often clear and vivid, with auditory hallucinations (i.e.: “hearing voices”) being the most common in schizophrenia.
-
Disorganized speech refers to thoughts and speech that don’t make sense, such as switching topics mid-conversation, or answering questions with unrelated responses.
-
Disorganized or Abnormal Motor Behavior presents on a spectrum, anything from unpredictable agitation, repeated movements, child-like motor-control, catatonia, etc.
One might hear references to ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ symptoms when discussing schizophrenia. Positive symptoms refer to ‘abnormally present’ symptoms that don’t present in others – hallucinations and delusions. Negative symptoms are traits that are ‘abnormally absent’ – impaired emotional expression, decreased speech, catatonia, little to no desire for social contact, decreased experience of pleasure, etc.
Symptoms of Schizophrenia usually present between late teens and early 20s for males, and between 20s and 30s for females. Symptoms must be present for longer than six months for a diagnosis to be made. Due to overlapping symptoms spanning across numerous diagnoses, thorough assessment is required to diagnose schizophrenia in order to rule out other neurological, medical, and substance-related struggles.
Causes and Treatments
There is no current known cause for schizophrenia, however research has theorized that genetics, environmental factors, and brain chemistry – specifically dopamine and glutamate – are at play. Neuroimaging has shown us changes in brain structure and one’s central nervous system for those with schizophrenia, leading researchers to see schizophrenia as a brain disease.
Unfortunately due to stigma, misdiagnosis, underreporting of symptoms, and unawareness of need for treatment, many individuals with schizophrenia have a delayed start to their treatment, or go untreated for the majority of their lives. While there is no cure for schizophrenia, people can manage their symptoms with the right care. Main treatment includes antipsychotic medication to help reduce hallucinations and delusions, and psychotherapy aimed to help manage stress and improve daily functioning. Additional treatment can take forms such as: support for school and work, assistance from family and caregivers, advocacy in healthcare settings to ensure physical health maintenance, building social skills, and reducing stress.
Mythbusters
Misinformation and stigma go hand-in-hand. Let’s look at some of the common myths out there about schizophrenia:
-
“People with schizophrenia are dangerous” → There is actually a higher rate of violence towards people with schizophrenia. People with schizophrenia are also more likely to experience self-neglect and risk harm to themselves.
-
“You can’t recover from, or live with schizophrenia” → Researchers and doctors encourage people to view schizophrenia as any other chronic health condition – one that can be managed with medication, therapy, and support.
-
“Schizophrenia is caused by bad parenting” → While this was a theory in the 20th century, research has shown that many factors are at play (genetics, brain chemistry, stress, environmental factors, etc).
-
“Schizophrenia means you have multiple personalities” → Schizophrenia is identified as a chronic health condition involving delusions, hallucinations, and ‘negative’ symptoms. Dissociative Identity Disorder (“DID”) previously known as Multiple Personality Disorder is characterized by the presence of two or more ‘states’ of personality in one individual, with heavy dissociative features.
-
“If your parent has schizophrenia, you’ll develop it too” → While genes play a role, there are multiple factors that go into developing schizophrenia.
-
“Schizophrenia first appears as a massive psychotic break” → Onset of symptoms is often subtle, and can include: withdrawing from social activities, not taking care of oneself (not showering or eating), experiencing strong beliefs that aren’t true, speaking in confusing ways, hearing voices, and having difficulty at work or school.
Promoting awareness and education are some of the best first steps we can take to fight misinformation and stigma surrounding schizophrenia. You can start by educating yourself and exploring organizations researching schizophrenia, such as the Schizophrenia International Research Society, or the Schizophrenia & Psychosis Action Alliance. Through more discussion and research, we can help our communities access treatment sooner and more effectively.
References:
