Schizophrenia occurs in people from all cultures and from all walks of life. Schizophrenia is a chronic brain disorder that affects a small portion of the population in the world. When schizophrenia is active there are many different symptoms that can appear. Some symptoms can include delusions, hallucinations, trouble with thinking and concentration, and lack of motivation. When these symptoms are treated, most people with schizophrenia will improve over time with treatment. With the different studies we are able to see how schizophrenia works in different ways. The different ways being what is happening in the brain when a person has schizophrenia. Along with the different treatments from counseling to medication what works better.
Mental illnesses are becoming more and more prominent in the lives of people today. The most common of these illnesses are mood disorders such as depression or bipolar disorder. However, schizophrenia, which is not a mood disorder, affects the lives of many people as well. Treatment is a very important part of any illness, but this is especially true when it comes to schizophrenia. Without the proper treatment, people dealing with schizophrenia can have an exceptionally hard time functioning on a daily basis and in the community. Over the past few decades, many different options have been developed to help those who suffer from schizophrenia. These treatments combat the symptoms that patients with schizophrenia deal with.
Schizophrenia is a chronic brain disorder that affects more than one percent of the population. When schizophrenia is active, symptoms can include delusions, hallucinations, trouble with thinking and concentration, and lack of motivation. However, when these symptoms are treated properly, a large portion of those diagnosed will greatly improve over time.
As with any disorder or sickness patients have various treatment options available to them. It’s always in the best interest of the patient to seek treatment advice from a Mental healthcare professional who has experience on schizophrenia disorder, and who can server the patient effectively. Patients who have been diagnosed with schizophrenia should look into all options available to them before choosing one treatment option in order to experience the best pathway back to a healthy life. Some of the more popular treatment options to help relive symptoms of schizophrenia have been either antipsychotic medications such as Chlorpromazine, haloperidol (haldol), perphenazine (Etafon, Trilafon), and Fluphenazine. Although medications are more common and been around for centuries other treatment options can also provide a more long-term treatment plan with positive outcomes. According to the NIMH antipsychotic medications have been around since the mid 1950’s (2014).
Hallucinations are perceived sensations that have no external source. These often include auditory hallucinations (eg, hearing voices) and visual hallucinations (eg, seeing objects). Delusions are a fixed, false beliefs that may include paranoia or grandiosity. Disorganized thought is often characterized as moving rapidly from one topic to the next in a disorganized fashion (tangential speech) or speaking incomprehensible sentences (word salad).
Schizophrenia is a mental health condition that places considerable burden on the individuals who have it, their families, and society (Eack 2012). Someone who has schizophrenia may have the following symptoms, but not all: faulty perceptions, inappropriate actions and feelings, withdrawal from reality and personal relationships into fantasy and delusion, and a sense of mental fragmentation (Oxford Dictionary). The two most commonly used interventions are drug and family intervention. Often times patients with a
Recent studies indicate that limiting the use of certain medications can improve a senior's life. One study, conducted by researchers at Indiana University, finds that the prolonged use of anticholinergics may cause physical changes within the brain that could lead to dementia. Furthermore, The Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement (CFHI) released information related to a program it started in 2014: This study examined how the discontinuation of antipsychotic medications affected the seniors who were taking them to treat dementia. The results indicate that seniors’ lives may improve when antipsychotic medications (that are being used to treat dementia) are discontinued.
Patients with Schizophrenia can have symptoms that vary from hallucinations, to bad hygiene. They can experience delusions and disorganized thoughts. They are normally depressed and can cause self-harm. The treatments for Schizophrenia includes medications, Electroconvulsive Therapy and therapy. Therapy for these patients can be individual or group. The therapy sessions can help teach these patients how to be social and it can show them how to deal with the voices or hallucinations. Medications for schizophrenia are called antipsychotics. The medications help curb the symptoms of schizophrenia. The down fall to the medications is most people stop taking them. It is not uncommon for the “voices” to talk the patient out of taking them. Electroconvulsive
There is no known or possible cure for schizophrenia. This was the worse news that has been given yet. I have been switching between different medications and dosages to help my symptoms for years. I was happy to hear that in the 1990s, new antipsychotic medications were developed (S.A. Roberts, Personal Communication, March 15, 2016). These new medications are called second-generation or atypical antipsychotics (Schizophrenia. n.d.). These medications were offered to me in the form of a pill and an injection that can be given once or twice a month. Other than medications, I have also been offered therapy. There are different kinds for different aspects. Personally, I have been receiving psychosocial treatments and cognitive behavioral
As we have seen, treatment of schizophrenia with antipsychotic drugs can have impressive results in terms of decreasing active symptoms, although it does nothing to alleviate negative symptoms or to improve cognitive functioning. Unfortunately, this kind of treatment has the drawback of extremely serious and even fatal side-effects. Newer generation atypical antipsychotics offer more hope, as they can treat both active and negative symptoms, and also improve cognitive functioning. Moreover, they have fewer side-effects. However, treatment is complicated by the fact that results are unpredictable; and in addition the side-effects that they do have can be very serious, such as diabetes, which in itself is life-threatening. However, as the potential side-effects are known, the physician has leeway to choose a drug which is a good match for the patient’s clinical profile. Then, once the patient’s symptoms have been much alleviated with an appropriate newer generation atypical antipsychotic, the patient should be able to also benefit from a range of psychotherapeutic interventions. It is argued that this is the best treatment regime to choose, as it is likely to result in the greatest improvement in quality of life, coupled with the lowest risk of potentially devastating side-effects, or of death. This is likely to be better than utilizing cognitive behavioral therapy, the results of which are not reliably known – although research has certainly shown that it is less efficacious
Treatment of schizophrenia may vary according to what clinicians believe to be its causes. For example, some believe (and this is backed by evidence) that the condition is caused by over activity of the dopamine system, so that the person experiences too much stimulation. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, so that in effect too much activity is occurring in the brain. Clinicians who believe this is the case are likely to use drug therapies to correct this over activity, and will use antipsychotic drugs.
Schizophrenia, a thought process that has affected many lives, is characterized by disruptions to the thinking processes, emotions, as well as one's sensory perception. Schizophrenia is a multi-faceted affliction in that individuals suffer audio and visual hallucinations and often deal with financial burdens as well. Many individuals fail to realize that they suffer from this mental disease until symptoms and effects begin to manifest themselves. Treatment for this illness consists of a combination of drug therapy with changes to diet, lasting an entire lifetime. Living with schizophrenia is difficult for
Psychosocial therapies are also commonly used to treat those with schizophrenia, however this type of treatment is best when the patient has already been prescribed an effective medication.
Schizophrenia is a disease process that is characterized by periods of irrational behavior, emotional changes, and distorted views of reality. According to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, this illness affects about one percent of the population. In the past, the general belief about schizophrenia was that it was untreatable and that all patients with this disease needed to be institutionalized. Although that could still be a viable option in isolated cases of extreme psychosis, most patients nowadays use a combination of individual or group therapy and pharmacological therapy to reduce and control their symptoms. As a result, these patients are able to adapt and learn to live with this illness.