The Misunderstood 'Schizophrenia'

If you're not very familiar with schizophrenia, you might associate it with a movie like A Beautiful Mind or Law and Order. But schizophrenia is a complex and widely misunderstood disorder that is not always (or even usually) correctly described in popular culture. Here are 9 things you really need to know about schizophrenia.

1. Yes, schizophrenia is a mental health disorder that can cause symptoms like delusions, but there’s more to it than that

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), there are three main symptoms of schizophrenia: positive, negative, and cognitive.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, the condition is largely inherited; multiple genes may increase a person's risk of developing schizophrenia. Imbalances in neurotransmitters such as dopamine and glutamate may also make people more susceptible to this mental health condition. In addition, people with schizophrenia have changes in the brain, such as reduced gray matter. (Gray matter is the brain tissue that helps process information, according to the National Institute of Neuroscience Disorders and Stroke.) Experts are still investigating the extent to which this loss of gray matter is linked to the onset and risk of schizophrenia. development trajectories.

Positive symptoms include psychotic behaviors that you don't see in people without mental disorders. They include: hallucinations, delusions, unusual thought processes, unusual body movements.

Negative symptoms are, in many people without schizophrenia, a lack of emotional and behavioral manifestations, such as: "flat emotion," basically when someone doesn't express the emotions you expect; little enjoyment of life; lack of Thinking skills and positive behavior; less talking;

Cognitive symptoms are related to memory and thinking. They include: the ability to understand and use information to make decisions; difficulty concentrating; problems with "working memory" (the ability to use information immediately after learning).

2. Experts can’t fully pinpoint the cause of schizophrenia, but it’s thought to be a combination of factors such as genes and brain chemistry

Ananda Pandurangi, Ph.D., director of the Virginia Commonwealth University Psychiatry Schizophrenia and Electroconvulsive Therapy Program, said people often only attribute factors such as family to the origin of schizophrenia. "It's totally inaccurate."

Finally, mind-altering medication use during adolescence or adolescence, prenatal exposure to viruses that can affect brain development, prenatal malnutrition, and psychosocial factors (ie, psychological and social problems such as childhood trauma) may also play a role. Conclusions: No single environmental or behavioral factor contributes to schizophrenia.

3. Men are more likely to suffer from schizophrenia than women

The World Health Organization estimates that around 23 million people worldwide suffer from schizophrenia, of which 12 million are men and 9 million are women. Experts aren't sure why, although they have some theories. One of them is that women have higher levels of hormones such as estrogen, which may help prevent imbalances in neurotransmitters such as dopamine and glutamate. There is also the idea that sex chromosomes may be a factor, although this is still up for debate.

Not only are men more likely than women to develop schizophrenia, but the two groups may also be different. For example, according to the Mayo Clinic, symptoms of schizophrenia typically appear between the ages of 16 and 30, but in men in their early 20s and 25s and women in their 20s. (Later onset in women may be related to lower estrogen levels with age.)

It seems that men and women experience schizophrenia differently. For example, a 2010 paper in the International Review of Psychiatry explained that men with schizophrenia tend to have more of these negative symptoms, while women are more likely to have mood-related symptoms . Part of the reason may be that the neurotransmitters work differently in people of different genders.

4. People with schizophrenia are not born violent or criminal, no matter what you hear

"Most people with schizophrenia are not violent," said Prakash Masand, MD, a psychiatrist and founder of the Center for Spiritual Excellence. It's true that untreated people with schizophrenia may be more likely to commit violent crimes than people without schizophrenia, and people with schizophrenia make up a large percentage of prisoners, Dr. Masan noted. But it's a correlation, not a causation: schizophrenia itself doesn't make people dangerous.

A 2014 study in Law and Human Behavior found that of 429 violent and nonviolent crimes committed by people with mental illness, only 4 percent were directly related to psychosis caused by schizophrenia. (3% are directly related to depression and 10% are related to bipolar disorder.) Other factors—mostly general risk factors for crime, rather than how well a person is mentally healthy, tend to have a bigger impact, such as Poverty, substance abuse, homelessness and unemployment. Another problem is that people with schizophrenia often don't have access to the mental health treatment they need, as explained in a 2015 paper in the Crime Psychology Review that was less about schizophrenia disease, rather than an impediment to health care.

Additionally, a 2011 study published in the Psychiatry Bulletin noted that people with schizophrenia may be 14 times more likely to be victims of violent crime than to be arrested for a crime.

"There are several reasons for this," says Aimee Daramus, MD, a licensed clinical psychologist with the Behavioral Health Association in Chicago, Illinois, "[schizophrenia] often suffers from people who are afraid of themselves. Aggression from people who behave erratically, such as speaking, singing, or yelling to hallucinations." People with schizophrenia also have high rates of homelessness, which puts them at risk of violence. Because they often focus on their own inner hallucinations and delusions, they usually don't pay attention to their surroundings.

5. Schizophrenia is different from bipolar disorder or dissociative identity disorder

The Oxford English Dictionary explains that the word "schizophrenia" comes from the Greek words "skhizein", which means "split," and "phren", which means "thinking." But the literal meaning can be confusing, so people might confuse schizophrenia with bipolar disorder or dissociative identity disorder.

According to the Mayo Clinic, bipolar disorder, sometimes called manic-depressive disorder, is a mental health condition characterized by extreme mood swings between high (mania) and low (depression). People with bipolar disorder may experience psychosis -- one of the main components of schizophrenia -- but it's uncommon. Although schizophrenia can cause mood swings, it is not the main symptom.

There are also differences between schizophrenia and dissociative personality disorder (formerly known as multiple personality disorder). According to the Mayo Clinic, people with dissociation identity disorder (DID) alternate between multiple identities and may feel like they have many voices in their heads vying for control. While schizophrenia can also cause delusions and hallucinations, they don't necessarily revolve around different personalities.

To better understand it, there is another way of saying it: "split" in schizophrenia refers to disengagement from reality during a period of insanity, not a split of identity, nor of emotional highs and lows.

6. People with schizophrenia may be at higher risk for other health problems, including premature death

People with schizophrenia are more likely to suffer from conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and smoking-related lung disease, and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) notes that under-tested or under-treated people with schizophrenia can lead to death. People with schizophrenia are also more likely to commit suicide. Unfortunately, due to these factors, people with schizophrenia are more likely to die prematurely (die prematurely) than the general population.

7. There is no definitive diagnostic test for schizophrenia, so doctors often take a multi-pronged approach

The fifth and latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), which experts use as a blueprint for identifying different mental health conditions, details what doctors should be aware of when treating schizophrenia. Diagnosis is not just symptoms, but how long symptoms last (a person must have at least two positive or negative symptoms for at least a month) and how those symptoms affect a person's life, such as enabling maintenance of jobs, relationships and self-care becomes difficult.

It also ruled out other influences that could contribute to schizophrenia symptoms, such as bipolar disorder and drug use. To do this, doctors may perform a physical exam, do a drug and alcohol test, and conduct a psychiatric evaluation to assess symptoms such as delusions and hallucinations, the Mayo Clinic explained.

8. There is currently no cure for schizophrenia, but existing treatments make it possible to treat schizophrenia

Most people with schizophrenia can work well and live fulfilling lives if they receive the recommended treatment to reduce or eliminate their symptoms, Pandorangi said.

Taking antipsychotic medication for life is an important part of treating schizophrenia, according to the Mayo Clinic. These drugs, which come in pill or liquid form, seem likely to change the brain's dopamine levels in some way, thereby reducing symptoms. However, it can take weeks to find different treatments, and as with medications for many other mental health problems, it can take trial and error to find the right one. The Mayo Clinic notes that antipsychotics can also cause side effects such as tardive dyskinesia (a disorder that causes repetitive and involuntary movements), although newer drugs usually do not cause serious side effects. Some people may also need antidepressants or anti-anxiety medications.

Therapy is another core component of schizophrenia treatment, as are other psychosocial approaches. These include training to help strengthen people's social skills so they can participate more fully in life, and programs to help people with schizophrenia find and maintain employment. Support for this lifestyle is important for many people with this condition, the Mayo Clinic explains.

In addition to this, sometimes people with schizophrenia require short-term hospital treatment to prevent them from harming themselves or others, or to have a professional assess how treatment is progressing.

9. People with schizophrenia still face the stigma associated with mental illness, and we all have a responsibility to avoid it

It's normal to be nervous about things you don't understand. But now that you've read this article so far, hopefully it's easier for you to recognize that people with this disorder don't deserve this horrific, violent depiction. "Schizophrenics are like everyone else," Pandorangi said. "They're suffering from an internal neurological disorder..." Needs understanding and care.