living and maintaining with schizophrenia

To the general society, people may not think it is possible to lead a functional life while having schizophrenia because of the sterotype that comes along with it. If the person is willing to get treatment or are harmful to themselves or others, actions can be taken so that they are able to get help. Often the schizophrenic gets treated by a doctor or mental health care professional. The doctor can prescribe antipsychotic medications to make their symptoms less severe but it is up to the schizophrenic to actually take their medication as recommended by the doctor. If the schizophrenic does not take the medication as it is recommended, their symptoms can come back. Having a positive and supporting family to help the schizophrenic set and achieve realistic goals will also help managing the illness easier. With the right support system, medication, and doctor living a functional life with schizophrenia can be possible.



http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/schizophrenia/index.shtml#part6

How Schizophrenia Affects Other Body Systems

As you may have read in my previous blogs, schizophrenia mainly affects the brain. In some schizophrenics the ventricles of the brain have become larger than a person that does not have the illness. In some studies, it suggest that a malfunction in the temporal lobes, hippocampus, and amygdala play a role in the positive symptoms that some schizophrenics may experience. 
 The different bodily affect schizophrenia has depends on which type you have. The main type of schizophrenia with affects that can be seen is catatonic schizophrenia. A person with this type of schizophrenia may suffer from abnormal motor movements known as exited motor signs. The person may pace back and forth, shout, be harmful to themselves or others, and talk fast. On the other hand, they can assume unusual positions for long periods of time and have little to no motor movement which is known as stuporous motor signs. The picture below shows a catatonic schizophrenic with stuporous motor signs.




I've tried to find what other body systems schizophrenia affect but it is hard to find since it mainly affects the brain and no other system in the body besides the skeletal muscle in catatonic schizophrenics. Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that disrupts cognitive functions and mood.




http://www.helpguide.org/mental/schizophrenia_symptom.htm
http://www.livestrong.com/article/103076-schizophrenia-affect-body/

Different Types of Schizophrenia (Blogger's Choice)

Many people are unaware that there are different types of schizophrenia. The symptoms of schizophrenia are put into the following schizophrenic types. I hope that you find the information below informative.

Paranoid schizophrenia- characterized by delusions and auditory hallucinations. They have normal intellect and expression of emotions compared to a person without the illness. Delusions are often about being victimized, harassed, or mistreated by a person or multiple people. Often times they exhibit anger, emotional distance and anxiety.

Disorganized schizophrenia- characterized by speech and behavior that are difficult to understand and indifferent or inappropriate emotions. They may laugh for no obvious reason, make unclear statements, but may not have delusions. Often they have childlike behavior and show little emotion. Their disorganized behavior often disrupt daily activities such as taking a shower or preparing their meal.

Catatonic schizophrenia- characteristics by the person being mute or withdrawn. The person may be restless or may not move much. They often have unusual posture,body positions, facial expressions, and may not be responsive to other people.

Undifferentiated schizophrenia- characterized by symptoms seen in all of the above groups but do not qualify enough to be categorized in them.

Residual schizophrenic- characterized by at least one past schizophrenic episode but currently no positive symptoms (delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech or behavior). The person may lack motivation on interest in life.



http://www.webmd.com/schizophrenia/guide/schizophrenia-types
http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/go/information/get-info/schizophrenia/schizophrenia-what-you-need-to-know
http://www.healthcentral.com/ency/408/000928sym.html?ic=506019

Interesting Facts about Schizophrenia

• Schizophrenia affects about 1.1% of the US adult population.
• Rates of schizophrenia are about the same to country to country.
• Schizophrenia ranks in the top 10 causes of disability in developed countries world wide.
• Schizophrenia means "split mind" instead of "split personality". The split refers to the split from reality.
• There are different types of schizophrenia (which will be the topic of my next blog).
• The average onset of schizophrenia in males are from late teens to early 20s and mid 20s early 30s for females.
• It is difficult to diagnose schizophrenia in children.

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=41430
http://psychcentral.com/lib/schizophrenia-fact-sheet/0001570
http://www.neomed.edu/academics/bestcenter/helpendstigma/myths-and-facts-about-schizophrenia

Prognosis of Schizophrenia

The prognosis of schizophrenia varies from person to person. As I stated in a previous blog post, there is currently no cure for schizophrenia. Medications are given to control or suppress the symptoms of the illness. According to Emergence Health Network, in ten years after diagnosis of the illness, about 50% of those suffering from the schizophrenia will recover or manage to lead a functioning life in society under the right medication. 25% are improved but still need medical, family, or group support. An additional 15% does not improve and are hospitalized or kept in a mental institution. 10% of people that are overwhelmed by the illness see no way out and commit suicide. Although living with schizophrenia is difficult but with the right medication  and support system, it is possible.


http://info.emergencehealthnetwork.org/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=8806&cn=7

Symptoms of Schizophrenia

Symptoms of Schizophrenia fall into major categories. There are positive, negative, and cognitive. A person with the illness may suffer from some or all of these following symptoms. These symptoms can be more observable depending on if the person is getting the proper treatment and medications. 

Positive Symptoms: are usually behaviors not seen in people without the illness. This is when schizophrenics can not distinguish between reality and what they are imagining. This includes:

• Hallucinations- things a person can sense using their five senses (hear, see, touch/feel, smell, and taste) that others can not. For example, the most common is hearing voices that usually tell them that someone is watching and wants to harm them.
• Delusions- something that the person believes but is not real or logical and in most cases has been proven not to be. For example, a schizophrenic may believe that someone can control their behavior with magnetic waves.
• Neologism- making up words without a meaning

Negative Symptoms: disruptions of normal behavior or emotion. These symptoms often get recognized as depression which makes it harder to differentiate between the two. These symptoms include:

• Flat affect- not showing facial movements when talking or talking in a dull toned voice
• Not being interested in everyday life
• Social withdrawal or very little interaction
• Difficulty taking care of themselves

Cognitive Symptoms: symptoms involving the thought process. These symptoms are difficult to recognize like negative symptoms but can be detected by a series of tests.

• Poor executive functioning-  inability to understand information and use it to make decisions.
• Trouble focusing or paying attention
• Poor working memory- inability to use information right after learning it
• Difficulty understanding the environment
• Difficulty remembering simple tasks

http://www.webmd.com/schizophrenia/guide/schizophrenia-symptoms
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/schizophrenia/index.shtml#part4

Physiology of Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a complex mental illness which cause is not specifically known. Many factors are thought to cause the illness. Having a family member with the illness increases a person's to have a likelihood to develop the illness in their lifetime. According to The National Mental Institute of Health, schizophrenia occurs in 1% of the general population. In identical twins, the risk of the one twin that doesn't suffer from the illness increases by 40-65%. 10% occurs in people that have a close relative like a parent, brother, or sister and those with distant relatives such as a grandparent, uncle, aunt, or cousin are likely to develop the illness than the general population. Another possible cause of schizophrenia is an imbalance of the  neurotransmitters in the brain like dopamine. Neurotransmitters are chemicals that allow brain cells to communicate with one another. This chemical imbalance disrupts the person's ability to process information and function properly.

What is dopamine?

 

 

 

http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/go/information/get-info/schizophrenia/schizophrenia-what-you-need-to-know

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/schizophrenia/index.shtml

http://neurotransporter.org/glutamate.html