The Truth About Schizophrenia: Facts And Myths Debunked
Schizophrenia is a chronic mental health disorder with symptoms that impact daily functioning. Symptoms of active schizophrenia can include psychosis, lack of motivation, social withdrawal, delusions, and hallucinations. Working with a mental health professional can improve cognitive function and manage the impact of living with schizophrenia.
Like many mental health disorders, schizophrenia is often misunderstood due to the many myths and stigmas that tend to be associated with it. For example, some may believe that individuals with schizophrenia have multiple personalities or a propensity for violence, neither of which is true. Others may believe that schizophrenia cannot be treated, but often, therapy and medication can help individuals manage symptoms and live fulfilling lives.
Hallucinations and delusions: The truth about schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that can be highly complex. The condition often impacts thoughts, behavior, and feelings. People with schizophrenia may find it hard to succeed at work or school due to highly impactful symptoms, such as hallucinations and delusions. These symptoms, along with social withdrawal, can make building strong, lasting interpersonal relationships difficult for some people.
Schizophrenia is a rare mental health condition
Overall, schizophrenia can be considered rare compared to other mental disorders, with around 0.32% of people worldwide living with it. Individuals with schizophrenia may also experience comorbid conditions, such as substance use disorders, or physical illnesses, like cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
These other comorbidities may be the reason why individuals with schizophrenia tend to have a higher early mortality rate when compared to other disorders.
Symptoms of schizophrenia
Understanding schizophrenia may start with learning about potential symptoms. The symptoms of schizophrenia can often be divided into positive and negative symptoms. Positive symptoms can be thought of as thoughts and behaviors that are “added” due to schizophrenia. In contrast, negative symptoms can be seen as thoughts and behaviors that are “taken away” due to the disorder. Positive symptoms of schizophrenia include the following:
Positive symptoms of schizophrenia: Hallucinations and delusions, etc.
- Hallucinations: Hallucinations usually involve hearing, seeing, or feeling things that are not real. Auditory hallucinations, such as hearing voices, tend to be the most common.
- Delusions: Delusions can be considered false beliefs that are not reality-based. For example, a person with schizophrenia may believe that they’re being persecuted or that they have exceptional abilities, even when presented with evidence disproving these beliefs.
- Disorganized thinking: Disorganized thinking often involves difficulty organizing or connecting thoughts logically. This symptom can result in speech that seems nonsensical or is challenging to follow.
- Abnormal behavior: Abnormal motor behavior can manifest as a variety of behaviors, such as unpredictable or inappropriate movements, agitation, or catatonia (a state of unresponsiveness).
- Agitation: Agitation typically entails restlessness or increased activity without a clear purpose.
The negative symptoms of schizophrenia generally include the following:
- Flat affect: Flat affect generally refers to reduced or absent emotional expression. A person may appear emotionally flat or unresponsive.
Alogia: Alogia can be defined as reduced speech output. A person may speak very little, giving brief or monosyllabic answers.
Avolition: Avolition can be thought of as decreased motivation to initiate and sustain goal-directed activities. This symptom can result in the neglect of personal hygiene or other daily responsibilities.
Anhedonia: Anhedonia is typically defined as a reduced ability to experience pleasure from typically enjoyable activities.
Social withdrawal: Social withdrawal often involves avoiding social interactions and a preference for being alone.
Although these symptoms may be challenging to overcome, working with a support network of mental health professionals can reduce the impact of schizophrenia on everyday life. After a schizophrenia diagnosis, a person may attend talk therapy, be prescribed antipsychotic medications, and work with other professionals to manage symptoms.
Causes of schizophrenia and psychosis
Although the exact causes of schizophrenia are unknown, scientists believe that a combination of genetic and environmental factors may contribute to its development. Schizophrenia may run in families, but this does not mean that if one person in a family has schizophrenia, others will automatically develop it. The genetic connection tends to be highly complex, and many genes may influence whether a person develops schizophrenia.
Factors in the development of schizophrenia
Outside of genetics, environmental factors may also play a role in the development of schizophrenia. Factors like poverty, high stress, living in a dangerous location, and prenatal nutritional deficiencies may impact whether a person goes on to develop schizophrenia. These factors, combined with changes in brain chemistry and structure, may put a person at a higher risk of developing schizophrenia.
Debunking schizophrenia myths
As a serious and rare disorder, schizophrenia is often misunderstood, and many myths about schizophrenia have likely contributed to the stigmatization of the disorder. Understanding and debunking these myths may encourage people with schizophrenia to seek the support and help they deserve, which, in turn, can reduce symptoms and the impact of the disorder. Below, we’ll discuss some of the common myths about schizophrenia.
Myth: People with schizophrenia have split or multiple personalities
Individuals with schizophrenia do not have multiple personalities. Having multiple personalities is considered a symptom of dissociative identity disorder (DID), which is a separate mental health condition. These identities often control the person's behavior at different times. People with schizophrenia usually do not have multiple personalities; rather, they may experience disruptions in their thoughts, perceptions, and emotions that can affect their ability to function in daily life.
Myth: People with schizophrenia are always dangerous
While many people may believe that people with schizophrenia are violent, this is generally not true. Violence is not considered a symptom of schizophrenia, and statistically speaking, individuals with schizophrenia tend to be more likely to be the target of a violent attack than the perpetrator. Although violence is not a symptom of schizophrenia, associated comorbidities like substance use disorder may cause an increase in violence and could be the reason why violence is sometimes associated with schizophrenia.
Myth: Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness and is a life sentence
Schizophrenia is a chronic disorder, which generally means that it may never be completely cured. However, the disorder can be managed. Treatment of schizophrenia can successfully lead to remission of symptoms, and a person can live a healthy and fulfilling life with the disorder. Still, even when symptoms are not present, there can be potential for them to recur in the future, which is why it can be important to continue with medication and therapy even when psychotic symptoms have subsided.
Treatment for people with schizophrenia
Treatment for schizophrenia may be most successful when implemented as soon as possible. The early detection and diagnosis of schizophrenia can help a person begin to properly manage the disorder before major symptoms occur. While no two people may be the same, treatment for schizophrenia usually includes a few common methods.
Mental health treatment options for schizophrenia management
Treatment for schizophrenia often involves antipsychotic medication, which a doctor or psychiatrist can prescribe. Individuals taking any type of medication should follow the directions given by the prescribing professional. In addition, they should communicate with their doctors regarding their medication's efficacy and side effects.
An individual with schizophrenia may also work with a therapist. A therapist may use modalities like cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) to help clients manage symptoms and cope with the feelings of distress that can be associated with psychotic episodes.
The BetterHelp platform is not intended to provide any information regarding which medication or medical treatment may be appropriate for you. The content provides generalized information that is not specific to one individual. Do not take any action (including starting, stopping, or changing medication) without consulting a qualified medical professional.
Online therapy for schizophrenia
For individuals with schizophrenia, online therapy may be effective for treating and managing daily symptoms, although individuals currently experiencing acute psychotic symptoms may require in-person care.
Effectiveness of online therapy for psychosis
Research shows that online therapy may be effective for individuals after a psychotic episode, as well as for managing symptoms during inactive phases of schizophrenia.
When compared with traditional in-person therapy, online therapy can provide a person with more flexibility and comfort. With in-person therapy, you are generally limited to whichever therapists live within a driving range. For those living in rural areas, this factor can be particularly challenging. However, online therapy can provide the opportunity to connect with a therapist in another city, town, or state, potentially making it easier to find a professional who has experience treating schizophrenia. In addition, with online therapy, a person can generally see a therapist from anywhere at a time that works for them with an internet connection.
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