The Role Of Schizophrenia In Adolescents

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder. It is also quite a complex illness that affects daily functioning of those who suffer from it. Professionals across several fields who treat schizophrenics do not share a consensus regarding the cause of schizophrenia, though there are a few theories regarding potential and definitive causes. The on-set of schizophrenia often takes place in adolescence and adulthood, but there are cases when there is childhood on-set schizophrenia. Schizophrenia in children will be the focus of this paper. Children who show signs of schizophrenia may begin doing so at around age five.

When a person has schizophrenia many of their abilities are going to be compromised. Some of those abilities are that they may not be able to think clearly, manage their emotions, or have the ability to be able to make decisions (National Alliance on Mental Illness [NAMI], 2018). With the person not being able to have these specific abilities, they may seem like they are not in touch with reality. This mental illness is not as common as many of the other ones are (National Institute of Mental Health [NIH], 2016). This mental illness affects about 1% of Americans which equals out to be around 2.4 million adults (NAMI, 2018). With that being said many people may not know much about what schizophrenia is and how a personality develops in a person

Schizophrenia is a disorder that has an effect on about 25 million people around the world (Myers, 2010). Schizophrenia is a brain damage, naturally created by the human body, that is caused by the genetically determined vulnerability of the blood-brain barrier (Voronov, 2013). This psychiatric disorder, like most others, is characterized by changes in behavior, thinking, reduced ability to feel normal emotions, and mood (Abad et al., 2011). The unique thing about schizophrenia is that the symptoms are split into two different sections: positive symptoms (the presences of behaviors and or feelings that are not usually present in humans) and negative symptoms (the lack of behaviors and or feelings that are usually present in humans). Positive symptoms are characterized by the patient having delusions and or hallucinations while negative symptoms are characterized by the patient having affective flattening, alogia, avolition, anhedonia, and asociality (Nasrollahi et al., 2012). Although these are general symptoms for schizophrenia, the symptoms differ between genders.

Schizophrenia is a mental illness that is in a very small amount of the population, 1 in 100 people (1% of the population). Symptoms of schizophrenia include, delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech and behavior, not much emotion if any is present, as well as speech and socializations issues. Ways to treat schizophrenia are very limited to antipsychotic drugs and therapy. Although there is not one cause to this illness found, there are many factors that explain the cause or result in having schizophrenia. Substance abuse and stress are also contributing factors in schizophrenia when it comes to patients with this illness having violent personalities as well as suicidal thoughts.

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that makes it difficult for someone to establish what is real and what is not real. Schizophrenia also makes it hard to think clearly or to establish your emotions. Having this disorder affects how a person acts and sees the world. Over 2.2 million people suffer from this mental illness. There are many symptoms for Schizophrenia. Although there is no cure, proper treatment can control these symptoms.

The onset of schizophrenia generally emerges in adolescence, sending straight A and B students, talented athletes, and young adults through a traumatic experience that can lead to prison, psychiatric facilities, or homelessness (Siegel & Ralph, 2011). These outcomes can be prevented. Research by Tarbox and Pogue-Geile (2008) indicated that age is an important factor between social deficits and later schizophrenia development. The first signs in adolescents can consist of sleep complications, decrease in grades, change of friends, irritability, and lack of interest of previous enjoyed activities (Tarbox & Porgue-Geile, 2008). Conversely, many ordinary adolescents exhibit these same behaviors sometimes, resulting in difficulty diagnosing and misdiagnoses. However, the persistence in symptoms indicate this disorder. Schizophrenia often times occur earlier in males rather than females (Fortinash & Worret, 2014). By understanding the progression of this disorder, we will be able to uncover specific factors and interventions. With elusive research breakthroughs, we will be more capable to determine appropriate interventions to be used in adolescences with

Schizophrenia is a mental psychotic disorder that diminishes the ability to distinguish reality from fantasy. Schizophrenia ranges from Type I, which are positive symptoms caused by an excess of functions to Type II, which are negative symptoms caused by a loss of functions within the brain. Subtypes range from Paranoid to Disorganized schizophrenia. A wide variety of factors can provoke anyone of these variations of schizophrenia, such as genes, an imbalance of chemicals in the brain, the death of a loved one, or even stress. Symptoms of Type I Paranoid Schizophrenia include delusions and auditory hallucinations, which revolve around them. According to 21st Century Psychology, "Anger, detachment, anxiety, argumentativeness, and a patronizing tone accompany paranoid schizophrenia" (302). The prince also has symptoms that complement paranoid schizophrenia, such as disorganized speech, thinking and behavior. In Hamlet 's case, grief caused by the death of his father provokes stress-induced Type I Paranoid Schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia is a life-long disorder that affects about one percent of the population (Mueser & McGurk, 2004). The cause of this mental illness is still unclear. Studies have suggested that Schizophrenia does not arise from one factor but from a combination of genetic, environmental, and social factors (Liddle, 1987). People diagnosed with Schizophrenia struggle to deal with a multitude of symptoms that make it difficult to function (Mueser & McGurk, 2004). Antipsychotic medications are a popular treatment of the symptoms of Schizophrenia (Mueser & McGurk, 2004). Research is constantly being done to develop these medications to enhance the quality of life of those diagnosed with Schizophrenia.

It is hard for people who are diagnosed with schizophrenia. It takes their courage, compassion, and commitment to stand up for who they are. It makes one a totally different person when being diagnosed with schizophrenia. Their loved ones have to stick by their side to help them go through the process and live with schizophrenia. There are some that result in suicide because they either don’t have the loved ones or just can’t handle be a patient with schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia affects the brain in numerous ways, including the ventricles, limbic structures, and thinking patterns. Gray matter is lost by 25% in the brain of a schizophrenic individual. The reduction of gray matter is “evident in the parietal lobes, while the reduction occurs mostly in the temporal and frontal lobes” (Breis, 2016). As the frontal lobe is the largest area of the brain, both cognitive and emotional functioning decreases.

The human mind and how it works is still one of the world’s biggest mysteries but as the technology and science improves every day, the psychological understanding of the mind and schizophrenia has improved as well. From the beliefs of demons dwelling in the minds of the ancient people to understanding the true psychological understanding of this disorder and how it affects the mind. The treatment differs throughout the ages as ancient doctors and knew little on the disorder now known as schizophrenia, the treatment has varied from killing people to shock therapy today. Even though the understanding has grown there still is no cure, but with treatment and medicine one can live a full functioning life. Schizophrenia has been around since

Approximately 1% of the population is diagnosed with schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that can affect a person’s daily life. Schizophrenia can be diagnosed at any given age even though it’s rarely diagnosed until a person reaches adulthood. Schizophrenia is more common in men than women. Men tend to develop schizophrenia at an earlier age than women. The average age for men to develop schizophrenia is 18 while its 25 in women. A person diagnosed with schizophrenia is highly encouraged to get treatment as it can be detrimental to their health or better yet their life.

Environmental and social factors during adolescence definitely have an effect on how an adolescent develops. Whether it is through parenting styles, the environment an adolescent grows up around or the people an adolescent is associated with. Research done by Bratlien et al (2014) suggests that environmental factors during adolescence can be associated with later development of psychotic disorders. This study suggests that a decrease in social support, cognitive functioning and problems or stress within family life all relate to the development of a psychotic disorder. Surveying adolescent’s fifteen to sixteen year olds with and without a psychosis disorder tested this hypothesis. Testing was done for this study by questioning the

Schizophrenia has many risk factors, etiological factors, and maintaing factors. The main risk factor of schizophrenia is family history. Haukka, Suvisaari, Hakkinen, and Lonnqvist, (2008) found that there is no growth characterization in family with a single family member with schizophrenia. More studies need to be performed to fully understand the outcomes. Other important risk factors include large lateral ventricles which are fluid filled holes in the brain. Pre birth exposure to toxins, environmental stressors.There is a very strong genetic link that connects schizophrenia to previous family history. Etiological factors of schizophrenia include equal across both males and females. Males have nematic symptoms, where females have positive

The above study (Zalesky et al., 2015) investigated whether adolescents with childhood-onset schizophrenia (COS) and their unaffected siblings displayed abnormal development of corticocortical connections compared with healthy controls. The authors hypothesised that patients with COS and, to a lesser extent, their unaffected siblings would display delays in cortical connectivity development. They further hypothesised that these delays would be greater in COS compared with the adult-onset disorder. Corticocortical connectivity between cortical region pairs was mapped prospectively, on average, every two years from 12 to 24 years of age using brain magnetic resonance imaging. Significant left-hemisphere occipitotemporal development