Symptoms And Symptoms Of Schizoaffective Disorder

Schizophrenia is a chronic and severe disorder which is equal in both Men and Women and affects one percent of the worlds population, it is the most common mental illness (Carlson 2014). Schizophrenia is the suffering from a split mind which can start at a very early age and remain as a lifelong disease. (Tsuang 1982) In the UK currently 250,000 people are suffering from Schizophrenia. (Crow 1991) There are several symptoms which are found in Schizophrenics which are characterised by positive, negative and cognitive symptoms. However some people may differ differently due to their diagnosis of Schizophrenia. Some individuals may show all the symptoms listed, whereas others may only display a small number of them. (Jones et al.) In addition, the description of the symptoms of Schizophrenics indicates that the disorder has been around for thousands of years. (Jeste et al.1985). According to the Biological approach, Schizophrenia occurs due to brain abnormalities which involves the absence of normal behaviour. Although, due to Schizophrenia being strongly genetic and heritable, the presence of unusual behaviour may be due to underlying biological factors. (Carlson 2014) The main types of biological treatments available for Schizophrenia are Electro convulsive therapy (ECT) and Psychosurgery, however there are other drugs therapies available for Schizophrenia.

“Schizoaffective disorder is a chronic mental health condition mainly characterized by its symptoms of schizophrenia,

According to the DSM-5 (2013), the characteristic symptoms of schizophreniform disorder, such as delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior, or negative symptoms, may present for a significant portion of time during a 1-month period. Martin is a 21 year-old college student and he had psychotic symptoms, specifically delusions and hallucinations over the past few weeks. Martin’s family and friends have overheard him whispering in an agitated voice. Recently, Martin refused to use his cell phone, claiming that if he uses it, a deadly chip implanted in his brain by evil aliens will activate. At the same time, he has negative symptoms, such as a lack of motivation, he has stopped attending

According the fourth edition diagnostic manual of mental disorders (American Psychiatric Association, 2000), the category psychotic disorders (Psychosis) include Schizophrenia, paranoid (Delusional), disorganized, catatonic, undifferentiated, residual type. Other clinical types include Schizoaffective Disorder, Bipolar Affective Disorder/Manic depression, mania, Psychotic depression, delusional (paranoid) disorders. These are mental disorders in which the thoughts, affective response or ability to recognize reality, and ability to communicate and relate to others are sufficiently impaired to interfere grossly with the capacity to deal with reality; the classical and general characteristics of psychosis are impaired reality testing,

They can be sensory, as if they think they are burning, tingling or stinging, when in reality they are not. They can feel robotic and apart from their own body or visually see something that is not there. The delusions are when they are holding strong beliefs that are not real, and they also have “loose associations” which they jump from topic to topic. Anhedonia is when a person no longer enjoys or takes pleasure in activities that usually have fun doing. Avolition is the lack of motivation to accomplish goals. A person must be suffering from these disturbances for an extended period of time to be diagnosed as a schizophrenic, because there are other psychotic disorders that have like symptoms. There are different ages people can actually develop this suffering. There is the adolescent onset of ages 10-17 years old, the early adult onset of ages 18-30 years old, the middle age onset of 30-45 years old, and the late onset of 45+ years old. No matter the age group, they all may be in what some refer to as a “land of fantasy”. Schizophrenia has been found in all cultures worldwide. The perception of the illness within the culture can affect the diagnosis, treatment, and the support for the individual who is being examined. Schizophrenic clues that can help determine if one is suffering is when one hears voices or has urges to harm themselves or others, has feelings of being

Schizophrenia is a disease that has plagued societies around the world for centuries, although it was not given its formal name until 1911. It is characterized by the presence of positive and negative symptoms. Positive symptoms are so named because of the presence of altered behaviors, such as delusions, hallucinations (usually auditory), extreme emotions, excited motor activity, and incoherent thoughts and speech. (1,2) In contrast, negative symptoms are described as a lack of behaviors, such as emotion, speech, social interaction, and action. (1,2) These symptoms are by no means concrete. Not all schizophrenic patients will exhibit all or even a majority of these symptoms, and there is some

Schizoaffective disorder is a common mental illness that can be simply characterized as a mixture between schizophrenia and various mood disorders,

The disease is very uncommon with only .3% or 21.4 million at risk, not all will get the disease. Some symptoms of Schizoaffective disorder include; hallucinations, delusions, disorganized thinking, depression, manic behavior, isolation, bi-polar, and some we will discuss later

When it comes to mental illness many people are rendered incompetent. One such mental illness is known as Schizoaffective disorders, that have various illnesses combined together to affect one’s perception and judgment. Equally important is when people with schizoaffective disorder have sporadic relapses and symptoms emerge that will cause dilemma. There is uncertainty about the prevalence of schizoaffective disorder, but it is stated that the disorder affect female more than males especially the depressive type. A clinical picture of the disorder and the criteria by Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders fourth edition, text revision, (DSM-IV-TR) for this disorder will be presented. In this paper, various symptoms are presented

The cruel disease of schizophrenia effects 1.1% of the world’s population over the age of 18. (Treatment Advocacy Center.) That’s as many as 51 million people at any one time suffering from this life threatening disease. Schizophrenia is a serious mental condition that alters thoughts, feelings, and the actions of the victim. Symptoms of this disease include positive symptoms (disturbances added to everyday life) and negative symptoms (Capabilities lost in everyday life). The most common positive symptom is hallucinations, this is the act of seeing, hearing, feeling or even tasting and smelling something that doesn’t actually exist. The most prevailing form of a hallucination in schizophrenic patients is hearing imaginary

The characteristic symptoms of schizophrenia, according to The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed., text rev.; DSM-IV-TR; American Psychiatric Association, 2000), first require that at least two symptoms from the following list are pointedly exhibited within a month: delusions, hallucinations, disordered speech, catatonic behavior, and other negative symptoms such as a lack of emotional expressiveness known as affective flattening, a deficiency of speech known as alogia, or a general lack of drive known as avolition. However, if the delusions or hallucinations are extreme, only one of these symptoms is required. These symptoms are mainly behavioral core symptoms. Moreover, affective core symptoms of schizophrenia include paranoia. Secondly, the patient must experience social and/or occupational dysfunction. The patient noticeably begins to perform insufficiently in these major areas of functioning. This traces to cognitive core symptoms in the sense of mental impairments. For example, schizophrenic patients often believe that they hear voices, feel paranoid and threatened without reason, and cannot grasp social cues or functions. Third, duration is a key aspect of the symptoms that characterize

Symptoms vary between three different diagnoses including Bipolar 1, Bipolar 2, and cyclothymic disorder. Each diagnosis has similarities but different time lengths between depressive and manic episodes. Bipolar 1 being more severe, can lead to hospitalization opposed to mild symptoms of Bipolar 2 and cyclothymic, causing more depressive episodes rather than experiencing extreme manic episodes.

Schizophrenia is known to be a devastating brain disorder that negatively affects many aspects of a person’s life, such as; thinking, language, emotions, social behavior, and ability to perceive reality (Varcarolis, 2010). Due to the high comorbidity of schizophrenia, patients often suffer from multiple disorders, when a mood disorder, such as mania, or depression, coexists with the schizophrenia, it is known as a schizoaffective disorder. Patient, A.S., is diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder due to her hallucinations, her manic state and paranoia. The purpose of this paper is to form an individualized Care Plan for A.S. in accord with the evidence-based practice and clinical manifestations. It will include the patient’s history (past and present) along with the appropriate interventions. In the paper we will discuss schizoaffective disorder as well as well as the symptoms, thoughts, and actions of a schizoaffective person. Furthermore, the pathophysiology of schizophrenia will be explained thoroughly, followed with the medications and interventions used for this disorder. The hope is to better understand the aspects of schizoaffective disorder and its manifestations, so one better care for a patient with such a disease.

Schizoaffective disorder is a disorder that is exhibited similarly to schizophrenia and mood disorders. Schizoaffective disorders characteristics consist of both auditory and visual hallucinations, delusions, mania, and depression. According to Pagel, “This seems all the more plausible because SAD (schizoaffective disorder), by definition, is characterized by criteria of two disorders (Pagel, 2014, p.239).” Many people have difficulty understanding the differences between schizoaffective disorder and schizophrenia, and the difference simply is that schizoaffective disorder also exhibits the symptoms of an affective disorder, along with hallucinations. Affective disorders consist of anxiety, depression and bipolar disorder. The affective disorder that will be exhibited with schizoaffective disorder is either bipolar disorder or major depressive disorder. The bipolar type of schizoaffective disorder will exhibit episodes of hypomania and mania, whereas the major depressive disorder type will exhibit only depression. Other symptoms that can occur with schizoaffective disorder are paranoia, impaired socialization skills, lack of proper hygiene, and inability to perform ADL’s properly. There can be many contributing causes of schizoaffective disorder such as, genetics, substance abuse, brain chemistry, and stress. Schizoaffective disorder can be related to brain chemistry, by chemical and hormone imbalances, delayed development, and exposure

Some of the chemicals may be low, or too high, causing a person to not be able to process decisions and emotions correctly (‘Schizoid Personality” 1). Another possibility is stress, emotional stress to be exact. This stress can originate from untimely deaths, financial stress, or traumatic situations (“Schizoid Personality” 1). The final and my personal belief of the cause are the parents and family of the effected. If the effected person grows up in a family of emotionally detached individuals, parents that abuse them, or parents that neglect them fully, they are at a dramatically increased risk of developing Schizoid personality disorder.