Who is schizophrenic

In young people who develop schizophrenia, this stage of the disorder is called the "prodromal" period. With any condition, it's essential to get a comprehensive medical evaluation in order to obtain the best diagnosis.

For a diagnosis of schizophrenia, some of the following symptoms are present in the context of reduced functioning for a least 6 months:. The hallucination is very real to the person experiencing it, and it may be very confusing for a loved one to witness. The voices in the hallucination can be critical or threatening. Voices may involve people that are known or unknown to the person hearing them.

People who have delusions often also have problems concentrating, confused thinking, or the sense that their thoughts are blocked. Negative symptoms often include being emotionally flat or speaking in a dull, disconnected way. People with the negative symptoms may be unable to start or follow through with activities, show little interest in life, or sustain relationships. Negative symptoms are sometimes confused with clinical depression.

People with the cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia often struggle to remember things, organize their thoughts or complete tasks. Diagnosing schizophrenia is not easy. Sometimes using drugs, such as methamphetamines or LSD, can cause a person to have schizophrenia-like symptoms. The difficulty of diagnosing this illness is compounded by the fact that many people who are diagnosed do not believe they have it.

Lack of awareness is a common symptom of people diagnosed with schizophrenia and greatly complicates treatment. While there is no single physical or lab test that can diagnosis schizophrenia, a health care provider who evaluates the symptoms and the course of a person's illness over six months can help ensure a correct diagnosis.

The health care provider must rule out other factors such as brain tumors, possible medical conditions and other psychiatric diagnoses, such as bipolar disorder. To be diagnosed with schizophrenia, a person must have two or more of the following symptoms occurring persistently in the context of reduced functioning:.

Delusions or hallucinations alone can often be enough to lead to a diagnosis of schizophrenia. The literature on the role of medicines early in treatment is evolving, but we do know that psychotherapy is essential. People can describe symptoms in a variety of ways. How a person describes symptoms often depends on the cultural lens she is looking through.

African Americans and Latinos are more likely to be misdiagnosed, potentially due to differing cultural perspectives or structural barriers. Any person who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia should try to work with a health care professional that understands his or her cultural background and shares the same expectations for treatment. Many people with schizophrenia do not realize that they are unwell. Hallucinations and delusions can seem very realistic to a person who is experiencing them.

This can make it hard to convince the individual to take medication. They may fear the side effects or believe that the medication will harm them. Schizophrenia usually appears when a person is in their late teens or older, but it can also affect children. Learn more about childhood schizophrenia here. Schizophrenia likely develops when specific genetic and environmental factors combine, according to the NIMH. Schizophrenia appears to develop when there is an imbalance of a neurotransmitter called dopamine, and possibly also serotonin, in the brain.

In , scientists found evidence to suggest that some substances in cannabis can trigger schizophrenia in those who are susceptible to it. Others, however, have suggested that having schizophrenia may make a person more likely to use cannabis in the first place. Schizophrenia is a lifelong condition, but effective treatment can help a person manage the symptoms, prevent relapses, and avoid hospitalization.

Some common medications for schizophrenia include :. That said, many of these drugs have adverse effects , including neurological symptoms and weight gain. Newer medications may have less severe side effects, however. It is essential for a person to continue with their treatment plan, even if the symptoms improve.

If a person stops taking medication, the symptoms may return. In the past, health professionals referred to various subtypes of schizophrenia, such as paranoid schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.

These classifications are no longer in use. Learn why in this article. There is no diagnostic test to assess for schizophrenia.

A doctor will diagnose it by observing how the person behaves. They will also ask about their history of physical and mental health. That said, they may recommend some tests to rule out other possible causes of the symptoms, such as a tumor, brain injury, or another mental health condition, such as bipolar disorder. The manuals explain which symptoms should be present, and for how long for you to receive a diagnosis. For example, according to the NHS you need to be hearing voices for at least 1 month before you can be diagnosed.

Mental health professionals may say you have psychosis before they diagnose you with schizophrenia. What is the future of diagnosis in schizophrenia? There are many research studies being conducted across the world on how to better diagnose schizophrenia.

For example, a recent study found through looking at images of the brain, there may be different sub-types of schizophrenia. In the future, brain scans and other tools may be used to diagnose different types of schizophrenia. This will hopefully allow people who live with schizophrenia to receive more personalised treatments.

But these approaches are still being developed. The symptoms of schizophrenia are commonly described as positive symptoms or negative symptoms. Both of these types of symptoms can affect your ability to function. The negative symptoms of schizophrenia can often appear several years before somebody experiences their first episode of psychosis. A diagnosis of schizophrenia does not mean that you will experience all types of symptoms.

The way that your illness affects you will depend on the type of schizophrenia that you have. For example, not everyone with schizophrenia will experience hallucinations or delusions. These symptoms can also happen in other mental illnesses. For example:. Hearing voices or other sounds is the most common hallucination.

Hearing voices is different for everyone. For example, voices may be:. Delusions These are beliefs that are not based on reality. Even though they feel real to you. Other people are likely to disagree with your beliefs. For example, you may believe:. You may not always find these experiences distressing, although people often do.

You may be able to stay in work and function well even if you have these experiences. Disorganised thinking Disorganised thinking means you might start talking quickly or slowly. Things you say might not make sense to other people. You may switch topics, or your words may become jumbled, making conversations difficult for other people to understand. Cognitive impairment is when you have problems with:. They may last longer, and stay after positive symptoms fade away.

Some people with schizophrenia feel that the negative symptoms of their illness are more serious than the positive symptoms. The experience of negative symptoms varies for each person. There are different types of schizophrenia. This type of schizophrenia is diagnosed in the later stages of schizophrenia. You may be diagnosed with this if you have a history of schizophrenia but only continue to experience negative symptoms. Symptoms meet the general conditions for a diagnosis, but do not fit in to any of the above categories.

Nobody knows exactly what causes schizophrenia, it is likely to be the result of several factors. There is research to suggest that may be an association between menopause and schizophrenia.

This may be due to the hormonal changes during this stage of life for women. There are different types of treatment available.

Medical professionals should work with you to find the right treatment for you. For many treatment helps to reduce symptoms to help make daily life easier. You may find that you need to continue with treatment to keep well. For every 5 people with schizophrenia:. Your healthcare professionals should work with you to help choose a medication. If you want, your carer can also help you make the decision.

Doctors should explain the benefits and side effects of each drug. In the past, some antipsychotics had negative side effects. Some people find that the side effects of newer antipsychotic drugs are easier to manage. If you have been on an antipsychotic for a few weeks and the side effects are too difficult to cope with, you should ask your doctor about trying a different one.

NICE state that people who have not responded to at least 2 other antipsychotic drugs should be offered clozapine. Antipsychotic medication can come as tablets, a syrup or as an injection. The injections are called a depot. You may find a depot useful if you struggle to remember to take your medication, or might take too much. Your doctor should take your views into account when prescribing you medication.

Your doctor should offer you psychosocial treatments. These treatments help you to look at how your thoughts and behaviour are influenced by the people and society you live in. This can include the following. CBTp does not get rid of your symptoms.

CBTp can help you to manage your feelings and symptoms better. Family intervention NICE recommend family members of people with psychosis and schizophrenia should be offered family intervention. This can help to improve how you feel about family relationships. This can help reduce any problems in the family caused by your symptoms.

Family intervention is where you and your family work with mental health professionals to help to manage relationships. It should be offered to people who you live with or who you are in close contact with. The support that you and your family are given will depend on what problems there are and what preferences you all have. This could be group family sessions or individual sessions. Your family should get support for 3 months to 1 year and should have at least 10 planned sessions.

Psycho-education This involves learning about your illness, your treatment and how to spot early signs of becoming unwell again. It can prevent you having a relapse. Psycho-education may also be helpful for anyone who is supporting you, such as family, a partner or a trusted colleague. Arts therapies This can help to reduce the negative symptoms of the illness. It can help you to express yourself more creatively. Early intervention teams are specialist NHS services which provide treatment and support for people when they first experience psychosis and schizophrenia.

They are usually made up of psychiatrists, psychologists, mental health nurses, social workers and support workers. Your doctor should refer you to an early intervention team when they diagnose you with a first episode of psychosis. NICE suggests that you should start treatment within 2 weeks of referral. Early intervention services operate differently across the country. If there is not a service in your area, then you should have access to a crisis or home treatment team.

People deal with their experience in different ways. You might need to try different things before finding something that works. You could join a support group. A support group is where people come together to share information, experiences and give each other support. Hearing about the experiences of others can help you feel understood.

This may help you feel less alone and boost your self-confidence. You might be able to find a local group by searching online. Rethink Mental Illness have support groups in some areas.

You can find out what is available in your area, or get help to set up your own support group if you follow this link:. Recovery colleges are part of the NHS. They offer free courses about mental health to help you manage your experiences. They can help you to take control of your life and become an expert in your own wellbeing and recovery.

You can usually self-refer to a recovery college. But the college may tell your care team. Unfortunately, recovery colleges are not available in all areas. To see if there is a recovery college in your area you can use a search engine such as Google. Or you can call our advice service on for more information. Your doctor may offer you peer support. Peer support is when you work with someone who has lived experience of psychosis.

And who are now in recovery. They should be able to offer advice and support with:. Managing your condition on your own is called self-help. Health professionals may offer you help to manage your condition on your own. They may call this a self-management programme.

You should first speak to your doctor about your treatment. Explain why you are not happy with it. You could ask what other treatments you could try. Tell your doctor if there is a type of treatment that you would like to try.

Doctors should listen to your preference. If you are not given this treatment, ask your doctor to explain why it is not suitable for you. A second opinion means that you would like a different doctor to give their opinion about what treatment you should have.

You can also ask for a second opinion if you disagree with your diagnosis. But your doctor should listen to your reason for wanting a second opinion. An advocate is independent from the mental health service. They are free to use. They can be useful if you find it difficult to get your views heard. There are different types of advocates available.

Community advocates can support you to get a health professional to listen to your concerns. And help you to get the treatment that you would like.

You can search online to search for a local advocacy service. We will look for you. They give information and support to patients. This is where your concerns are investigated in further detail. You can ask an advocate to help you make a complaint. Advocates that do this are called Independent Health Complaints Advocates.

Many people who live with schizophrenia have recovery journeys that lead them to live meaningful lives. Some doctors and health professionals think of recovery as:. Dealing with symptoms is important to a lot of people. But some people think that recovery is wider than this. What you think of as being a meaningful life might be different to how other people see it. You can think about what you would like to do to live a meaningful life and work towards that goal.

Recovery is an ongoing process. It is normal to have difficulties or setbacks along the way. What it took for me to recover from schizophrenia was having people who believed in me and who did not give up on me. Their belief and love for me encouraged me to believe in myself, so I could have the patience to heal slowly over several years, with the help of steady, continued medical treatment.

Their love and confidence in me gave me a reason and the strength to try and endure the emotional pain and social stigma of having schizophrenia. Research suggests that people with serious mental illness SMI , such as schizophrenia, have a shorter life expectancy. People with mental illness may die 15 to 20 years earlier than the general population. This may because people who live with SMI are at higher risk of having a range of health issues.

Such as being overweight, having heart disease, smoking and diabetes. Because of these issues, NICE recommends that when you start taking antipsychotic medication, your doctor should do a full range of physical health checks. This should include weight, blood pressure and other blood tests. These checks should be repeated regularly. Mental health professionals are responsible for doing these checks for the first year of treatment.

Responsibility may then pass to your GP. Your doctor or mental health team should offer you a programme which combines healthy eating and physical health checks.

You should be supported by a healthcare professional to help stop smoking. The risk of suicide is increased for people with schizophrenia. Research has found that the increased risk is not usually because of positive symptoms. The risk of suicide is associated more to affective symptoms, such as low mood. It can be distressing if you are a carer, friend or relative of someone who has schizophrenia.

You can get support. What is a carers assessment?