Understanding Schizophrenia and Psychosis

Schizophrenia is a complex, chronic mental disorder, which is categorized by certain symptoms such as hallucinations, delusions,

Schizophrenia is a disorder that is characterized by a broken thought process and poor emotional responses. Typical symptoms of this disorder include delusions, paranoia, hallucinations, social dysfunctions,

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder often characterized by abnormal social behaviour and failure to recognize what is real. Common symptoms include false beliefs, unclear or confused thinking, auditory hallucinations, reduced social engagement and emotional expression, and inactivity. A person with schizophrenia often hears voices, experiences delusions and hallucinations and may believe thoughts, feelings and actions are controlled or shared by someone else.

Prospective studies are preferable, where people are studied after the onset of the disorder. Hirsch et al followed 71 schizophrenic patients over a 48-week period. It was clear that life events made a significant cumulative (increasing) contribution in the 12 months preceding relapse rather than immediately prior to the schizophrenic episode. This does support the retrospective research.

Schizophrenia is a long-term psychological disorder characterized by a breakdown in the relation between thought, emotion, and behavior. The disease corrupts the biological functions in the brain pathways, thus causing phenotypic symptoms to occur. Diminished and or immobile facial expression, flat or inappropriate,

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.

The word schizophrenia is less than 100 years old. Schizophrenia is a mentality or approach characterized by inconsistent or contradictory elements. Depression, dementia, and thought disturbances that are found in schizophrenia and are described in the Book of Hearts. The disorder was noticed as symptoms of the heart and the uterus and originating from the blood vessels or from purulence, fecal matter, a poison, demons.

Schizophrenia is classified as a psychotic disorder. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, in order to be diagnosed with schizophrenia, an individual must present two (or more) of the following symptoms for a significant portion of time during a one-month period: delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, catatonic behavior, or negative symptoms (such as diminished emotional expression or avolition). The DSM-5, however, has a continuum (schizophrenia spectrum) of disorders that may be similar to schizophrenia disorder but not as severe or persistent.

The overall symptoms of schizophrenia vary from one another. It may sound strange but there are positive symptoms as well as negative symptoms. One problem with schizophrenia is that it is difficult to have a job and socialize with friends. Also having schizophrenia one may experience sorrow, concern and have thoughts of suicide or have suicidal behaviors. In the beginning schizophrenia starts out slow one may experience symptoms as irritability, have trouble concentrating or difficulty sleeping. As the disease progresses one has trouble thinking as well as behavioral and emotional problems arise. (“Schizophrenia”)

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.

What is Schizophrenia? Schizophrenia is a mental disorder where the person suffering it is afflicted by numerous different symptoms, which primarily include vivid hallucinations and paranoia. People who suffer it tend to have abnormal perceptions of the world around them, and as mentioned above they tend to have hallucinations that appear very real to them, sometimes to the point where they are unaware that they are hallucinating. (John Nash, Professor who was notable for having Schizophrenia, is a good example of someone who was largely unaware that they were hallucinating). Conditions such as the ones mentioned above can be very disorienting and confusing or scary, to the people suffering them,

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, Schizophrenia is a severe mental illness that is characterized by being delusional and hallucinating. Delusions are the most common psychotic symptoms of schizophrenia. Hallucinations are common among half of the people with this illness. Those with this illness seem like they have lost touch with reality.

Schizophrenia is an illness that affects the brain chemistry and structure in such a way that they experience changes in how they think, manage emotions, make decisions, and relate to others. An individual with schizophrenia may experience psychotic symptoms such as delusions, hallucinations, disorganized sleep, flat affect, loss of interest in life and activities, trouble organizing thoughts and remembering things, etc. Current treatment options may include medication, therapy, and psychosocial rehabilitation. (NAMI, 2015)

Schizophrenia is a complex mental illness which has several differing theories exploring the underlining neurological causes. This paper will focus on giving insight into aspects of schizophrenia as well as discussing the following leading theories on the topic: neurodevelopment, dopamine, glutamate, and brain abnormalities. Methods of research focus on studying twins, adopted family members as well as genetics. As it is such a complex illness it presents many different symptoms that have been categorized as positive, negative, and cognitive. Treatment is crucial to managing a life with this illness which includes a combination of therapy and antipsychotic drugs. Since a wide array of the symptoms

Schizophrenia has no actual definition, but it describes a series of events and actions that a person ususally experiences. Schizophrenia is a psychosis. ( Smith, 1992, p.23-25 ) Psychosis describes a disorder where a group of mental disturbances happen. Schizophrenia is described to be a psychosis because it causes the victim to lose the ability to be in touch with society and its functions. For example, a person may begin to "see" animals that are not there, or may begin to characterize themselves as a famous person from the past such as Queen Elizabeth or King Edward. ( Kvarnes, Parloff, 1983, p.220-223)