This often-misunderstood mental health disorder can be frightening and coincide with substance abuse, but treatment is available.
Schizophrenia is a chronic, severe, and disabling brain disorder that has affected people throughout history, with approximately one percent of Americans battling this illness, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).
The disease is often misunderstood, likely because of the unpredictable behaviors that accompany it. Schizophrenics may hear voices or believe people are reading their minds, controlling their thoughts or plotting to harm them. While this can be scary for those around them, it his can be terrifying for the individuals experiencing these symptoms, making them withdrawn or extremely agitated. As a result, many people with schizophrenia have difficulty holding a job or taking care of themselves. Most people who have the disorder cope with symptoms throughout their lives.
Treatment does help relieve many symptoms of schizophrenia, though, and many with schizophrenia can lead rewarding and meaningful lives in their communities. In addition, researchers are continuing to develop more effective medications and using new research tools to understand the causes of schizophrenia. In the years to come, this work may help prevent and better treat the illness.
Schizophrenia Symptoms
The symptoms of schizophrenia fall into three broad categories: positive symptoms, negative symptoms and cognitive symptoms. Positive symptoms are psychotic behaviors not seen in healthy people, and cause sufferers to often "lose touch" with reality. These symptoms can come and go and may be severe or hardly noticeable. Negative symptoms are associated with disruptions to normal emotions and behaviors and are harder to recognize as part of the disorder, often being mistaken for depression or other conditions. Cognitive symptoms are the most subtle of the three categories, and they are often only detected when other tests are performed.
Schizophrenia Stats
Schizophrenia affects men and women equally, occurring at similar rates in all ethnic groups around the world. Symptoms usually start between ages 16 and 30, with men tending to experience symptoms a little earlier than women. It can be difficult to diagnose schizophrenia in teens because the first signs -- change of friends, a drop in grades, sleep problems, irritability – are common behaviors among that age group. People with the illness attempt suicide at much higher rates than the average population, with approximately 10 percent of schizophrenia sufferers dying by suicide (young adult males are particularly susceptible).
Schizophrenia Misconceptions
Some symptoms of schizophrenia are associated with violence, such as delusions of persecution, but the risk of violence among people with schizophrenia is small. Substance abuse may also increase the chance a person will become violent. If a person with schizophrenia becomes violent, the violence is usually directed at family members and tends to take place at home.
Schizophrenia & Substance Abuse
Some drug abusers can exhibit symptoms similar to those of schizophrenia, making it possible to mistake someone battling substance abuse for someone who is schizophrenic. Most researchers agree that substance abuse causes schizophrenia, but people with schizophrenia are much more likely to have a substance or alcohol addiction problem than the general population. Substance abuse can also make treatment for schizophrenia less effective. Some drugs, like marijuana and stimulants such as amphetamines or cocaine, may make symptoms worse. In fact, research has found increasing evidence of a link between marijuana and schizophrenia symptoms. In addition, people who abuse drugs are less likely to follow their treatment plan.
Schizophrenia Treatment
Because the causes of schizophrenia are still unknown, treatments focus on eliminating the symptoms of the disease and include antipsychotic medications and various psychosocial treatments. Some of the more commonly used traditional medications include Chlorpromazine (Thorazine), Haloperidol (Haldol), Perphenazine (Etrafon, Trilafon) and Fluphenazine (Prolixin).In the 1990s, new antipsychotic medications were developed, called second generation or "atypical" antipsychotics. Clozapine (Clozaril) Risperidone (Risperdal), Aripiprazole (Abilify) and others fit into this category.
For those who develop co-occurring disorders that include schizophrenia and substance abuse, our facilities all specialize in integrated treatment, offering a dual diagnosis approach that addresses both areas at one time, providing the best chance for long-term recovery.
This often-misunderstood mental health disorder can be frightening and coincide with substance abuse, but treatment is available.
