newsprompt.coSCHIZOPHRENIA SYMPTOMS
Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness characterized by a broad range of unusual behaviors that cause profound disruption in the lives of the patients suffering from the condition and often in the lives of the people around them, too. Schizophrenia strikes without regard to gender, race, social class or culture. It is most often first diagnosed in a person’s 20s: early- to mid-20s for men, later 20s for women.
Schizophrenia is a challenging disorder that makes it difficult to distinguish between what is real and unreal, think clearly, manage emotions, relate to others, and function normally. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t hope. Schizophrenia can be successfully managed. The first step is to identify the signs and symptoms. The second step is to seek help without delay. With the right treatment and support, a person with schizophrenia can lead a happy, fulfilling life.
What is schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a brain disorder that affects the way a person behaves, thinks, and sees the world. People with schizophrenia often have an altered perception of reality. They may see or hear things that don’t exist, speak in strange or confusing ways, believe that others are trying to harm them, or feel like they’re being constantly watched. This can make it difficult to negotiate the activities of daily life, and people with schizophrenia may withdraw from the outside world or act out in confusion and fear.
Although schizophrenia is a chronic disorder, there is help available. With support, medication, and therapy, many people with schizophrenia are able to function independently and live fulfilling lives.
Early warning signs of schizophrenia
In some people, schizophrenia appears suddenly and without warning. But for most, it comes on slowly, with subtle warning signs and a gradual decline in functioning long before the first severe episode. Many friends and family members of people with schizophrenia report knowing early on that something was wrong with their loved one, they just didn’t know what.
In this early phase, people with schizophrenia often seem eccentric, unmotivated, emotionless, and reclusive. They isolate themselves, start neglecting their appearance, say peculiar things, and show a general indifference to life. They may abandon hobbies and activities, and their performance at work or school deteriorates.
Signs and symptoms of schizophrenia
There are five types of symptoms characteristic of schizophrenia: delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, disorganized behavior, and the so-called “negative” symptoms. However, the signs and symptoms of schizophrenia vary dramatically from person to person, both in pattern and severity. Not every person with schizophrenia will have all symptoms, and the symptoms of schizophrenia may also change over time.
- Delusions
A delusion is a firmly-held idea that a person has despite clear and obvious evidence that it isn’t true. Delusions are extremely common in schizophrenia, occurring in more than 90% of those who have the disorder.
- Hallucinations
Hallucinations are sounds or other sensations experienced as real when they exist only in the person’s mind. While hallucinations can involve any of the five senses, auditory hallucinations (e.g. hearing voices or some other sound) are most common in schizophrenia. Visual hallucinations are also relatively common. Research suggests that auditory hallucinations occur when people misinterpret their own inner self-talk as coming from an outside source.
Schizophrenic hallucinations are usually meaningful to the person experiencing them. Many times, the voices are those of someone they know. Most commonly, the voices are critical, vulgar, or abusive. Hallucinations also tend to be worse when the person is alone.
- Disorganized speech
Fragmented thinking is characteristic of schizophrenia. Externally, it can be observed in the way a person speaks. People with schizophrenia tend to have trouble concentrating and maintaining a train of thought. They may respond to queries with an unrelated answer, start sentences with one topic and end somewhere completely different, speak incoherently, or say illogical things.
Common signs of disorganized speech in schizophrenia include:
Loose associations – Rapidly shifting from topic to topic, with no connection between one thought and the next.
Neologisms – Made-up words or phrases that only have meaning to the patient.
Perseveration – Repetition of words and statements; saying the same thing over and over.
Clang – Meaningless use of rhyming words (“I said the bread and read the shed and fed Ned at the head”).
- Disorganized behavior
Schizophrenia disrupts goal-directed activity, causing impairments in a person’s ability to take care of him or herself, work, and interact with others. Disorganized behavior appears as:
A decline in overall daily functioning
Unpredictable or inappropriate emotional responses
Behaviors that appear bizarre and have no purpose
Lack of inhibition and impulse control
Negative symptoms (absence of normal behaviors)
The so-called “negative” symptoms of schizophrenia refer to the absence of normal behaviors found in healthy individuals. Common negative symptoms of schizophrenia include:
Lack of emotional expression – Inexpressive face, including a flat voice, lack of eye contact, and blank or restricted facial expressions.
Lack of interest or enthusiasm – Problems with motivation; lack of self-care.
Seeming lack of interest in the world – Apparent unawareness of the environment; social withdrawal.
Speech difficulties and abnormalities – Inability to carry a conversation; short and sometimes disconnected replies to questions; speaking in monotone.
Causes of schizophrenia
Schizophrenia has a strong hereditary component. Individuals with a first-degree relative (parent or sibling) who has schizophrenia have a 10 percent chance of developing the disorder, as opposed to the one percent chance of the general population.
But schizophrenia is only influenced by genetics, not determined by it. While schizophrenia runs in families, about 60% of schizophrenics have no family members with the disorder. Furthermore, individuals who are genetically predisposed to schizophrenia don’t always develop the disease, which shows that biology is not destiny.
