Is a re-set in people’s attitude toward schizophrenia on the way due to innovations in diagnosis and management of the disorder? A new understanding of the disease has already taken shape given the already known fact that schizophrenia is treatable.
The good news for those with the disease is that it isn’t a death sentence, for they can still live a full life, get married, and have children. But once diagnosed, the support of society and a patient’s family is essential for successful treatment and management of the disorder.
In principle, the treatment of the schizophrenia should be viewed in the same context as attending to other medical cases such as high blood pressure, asthma, diabetes, etc. Essentially, the blame shouldn’t be transferred to the patient. It’s an illness, whose prognosis depends on the level of professional and social support extended to the patient.
schizophrenia patients suffer, because they are stigmatised in society.
Many people shy away from relationships that may result in the birth of a child with anyone with a known or suspected case of the disorder in his or her family. Across the world, the word schizophrenia isn’t chic. Nobody talks about it or wants to hear of it, unlike bipolar affective disorder, depression, and anxiety which you hear cinema celebrities and trendsetters in the society talk about most time. As if these mental disorders are much more temporal experiences to be worn like a badge of honor for being successful or the consequence of working too hard at something creative for the benefit of society. But you don’t hear them talking about schizophrenia, and I always wonder why.
What you hear on TV is a lot of negative things about schizophrenia, you know someone with schizophrenia has hurt somebody and has caused a big problem. There are few films out there, like The Soloist, A Beautiful Mind, etc. These films have portrayed schizophrenia in a slightly more positive light, which is encouraging.
Do people sometimes ask if schizophrenia is an extreme and very different case of mental disorder that compels difficult and challenging behavior in those affected by it?
But what exactly is schizophrenia?
It is a particular kind of mental disorder that affects the brain, it affects the way people behave, it affects the way people perceive the world, they tend to lose touch with reality, they experience what we call auditory hallucinations … and what are auditory hallucinations? They are voices that they hear within themselves that you and I cannot hear. They may also experience what we call visual hallucinations. That is seeing things that are not real. Seeing things that you and I can’t see. They might also experience what we call tactile hallucinations, that is very odd sensations, like a feeling of ants crawling up one’s skin, a very uncomfortable situation.
Among other possibly very distressing symptoms is a morbid fear of being constantly stalked by specters only they see, or be frightened by some imagined conspiracy or conspiracies against them by people in their social or job environment. Therefore, become very suspicious – paranoid, and seem to be out of touch with reality.
These are positive symptoms of schizophrenia. On the other hand stands the negative symptoms often defined by a-motivated, which implies despondency. The patient lacks the spirit to get involved in things, he is not up to it, not at all motivated. He seems to just want to retreat into himself, wants to stay in bed all day, basically self-isolating. Let the world pass him by, he’s happy for it. But these are not good symptoms. They can be prolonged and they can last for a long time.
When do we say someone has schizophrenia?
Among males, schizophrenia tends to be diagnosed at the age of 18 and a lot later in girls, from the age of 20 upwards, until the early 30s.
So who is susceptible to being afflicted?
Schizophrenia is diagnosed in 1% of the population. But there are groups of people who are slightly more prone to getting it. For these groups nevertheless, it just means that they are slightly more susceptible to getting it. The first, of these groups, are people with a family history of schizophrenia. Then you have another group, of people who have experienced extreme difficulties such as child sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, very difficult family circumstances, people who have been in refugee camps, and people who have to fight for survival.
A third group includes drug users and alcoholics. Recreational and regular abusers of alcohol and hard drugs may become develop schizophrenia. Yes, clinical studies indicate that the illness can be triggered by such hallucinogens as cannabis sativa (weed), LSD, Magic-Mushrooms, etc in someone predisposed. Even alcohol abuse sometimes may be a trigger. Yes, it is quite possible for anyone predisposed or exposed to causes that trigger them to develop any mental disorder. Schizophrenia is one, among many other forms of mental disease.
How do we treat them, and how do we get them help?
If someone you know is exhibiting symptoms of schizophrenia, you need to get them help, as such individuals may not believe they are ill. Your first point of call should be a physician or some medical clinic.
Treatment – what do we do?
Educate the person, and educate the family so that they are aware of the symptoms. The physician would then conduct a proper physical examination, to ensure that the root of the symptoms isn’t a set of physical factors.
Certain anti-psychotic medications may also be administered, in the treatment of schizophrenia. Treatment is bio-psychosocial. This means treating with medication such as anti-psychotics to balance the chemical imbalances in the brain. Psychological therapy and social support forms another important aspect of treatment for the patient.
Josephine Asakpa
MBBS MRCPsych, PG Cert Public Health
Dr. Asakpa is an experienced consultant psychiatrist. She has worked extensively in the UK and sub-Saharan Africa. She has traveled extensively and speaks basic Romanian and French. She trained in the eastern deanery and was actively involved in educational programs at Darwin Centre in Cambridge. She obtained her higher specialist training in Intellectual Disability Psychiatry.
Her areas of expertise include mental health disorders in children and adolescents including individuals with intellectual disabilities. As a result, she worked closely with neurologists and pediatricians through her training and subsequently in her role as a consultant psychiatrist. She runs an open clinic in the United Kingdom, the Benelux countries and South of the Sahara African states.
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