ipl-logo

Schizophrenia Outline

1290 Words6 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essay On Schizophrenia Understanding

An outline of the causes and effects of schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a chronic mental disorder that is most commonly associated with delusion and hallucinations. It has been estimated that 0.4-0.7% of people develop schizophrenia, with the mental health condition being equally prevalent in both men and women (Saha et al., 2005). It is a particularly expensive illness due to its severity, reportedly costing the U.S. around $62.7 billion in 2002, with unemployment the most significant factor causing this staggering figure (Wu et al., 2005). While there is no known cause for the development of schizophrenia, a number of factors have been attributed to increasing the likelihood of someone developing the mental disorder. Environmental, genetic …show more content…

In some cases drug use is a trigger for the symptoms of schizophrenia and can lead to exacerbation of these symptoms. Marijuana in particular is now known to significantly worsen symptoms and well as cause signs of psychosis to appear at a much younger age (Foti et al., 2010). Those with schizophrenia are more likely to develop addictive behaviours than those without the disorder and this may be a result of irregular dopamine levels. Dopamine is an important part of the reward system and increased levels are produced as a result of many addictive drugs. Therefore, it is no surprise how those with schizophrenia are much more likely to exhibit addictive behaviour due to the abnormal levels of dopamine that may be present in the brain resulting from the differing chemical structure of the schizophrenic …show more content…

Many years before any acute episodes are experienced, the negative symptoms are likely to be present. These symptoms are very subtle and can be hard to distinguish as schizophrenia. The negative symptoms are often likened to those of depression, with a lack of motivation and being unsociable common examples. It is not uncommon for people with schizophrenia to suffer from cognitive impairment in addition to these behavioural changes, with concentration an issue for many (Mueser and McGurk, 2004). In conclusion, despite large amounts of research concerning the disorder, both diagnosis and treatment of schizophrenia still proves costly. While research has been able to identify key factors that are seemingly essential for the development of schizophrenia, there remains a vast amount unknown of the causes, making early diagnosis of the disease difficult. Although people living with schizophrenia require a substantial amount of care, treatment has improved over recent years allowing for many suffering from the mental disorder to live fulfilling, meaningful

Show More
Related
1654 Words | 7 Pages

In today’s society we are constantly facing stigma around mental illness, Schizophrenia probably has more negative association around it today than many other mental illnesses. The negative beliefs and wrong ideas that society has on those living with schizophrenia impact their lives immensely. Due to ill informed society members those living with schizophrenia are often discriminated they are denied employment without the knowledge that for them holding a job is actual extremely beneficial. Its believed that people living with schizophrenia are not capable to function properly and that, is one of the many misconceptions that comes with schizophrenia. Elyn R. Saks shares her story in her book “The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness”

Read More
662 Words | 3 Pages

This article describes a man who has a psychotic break with reality, which can be attributed to schizophrenia. We can see that this man, Todd West, suddenly developed irrational behavior as well as hallucinations of disembodied voices. As Joanne Greenberg explains, people who suffer from schizophrenia often experience compulsive illogical thoughts, which Todd’s behavior constitutes. (Greenberg, 18) There are two hallmarks of schizophrenia: false memories and beliefs that are all-consuming and hallucinations that can affect any of the senses though typically manifests in ones sense of audition(Greenberg, 50). Although these symptoms always appear in a schizophrenic patient, they can appear at different magnitudes and some people experience much more powerful delusions then others (Mendel, 273).

Read More
981 Words | 4 Pages

While obvious symptoms are shown in men during early 20s and late 20s or early 30s in women, faint signs such as poor school performance, troubled relationships, and reduced motivation may appear earlier, but children or adolescents will rarely be diagnosed. Because Schizophrenia is a group of disorders, the symptoms and causes are specific to each individual. The specific cause of schizophrenia is unclear; however theories suggest that abnormalities in the brain’s chemistry or structure such as developmental problems in connections and pathways in the brain while a baby is still

Read More
733 Words | 3 Pages

Schizophrenia is a “long term mental disorder of a type involving breakdowns in the relationship between thoughts,emotions and behavior,leading to faulty,inappropriate actions and feeling, withdrawal from reality and personal into fantasy and delusions.” Symptoms of Schizophrenia include delusions, lack of emotion, lack of interest.

Read More
1244 Words | 5 Pages

In present studies, researchers have yet to distinguish a primary cause to account for all people living with schizophrenia

Read More
656 Words | 3 Pages

Examples of psychotic disorders include schizophrenia and psychosis

Read More
276 Words | 2 Pages

Abstract Relative to other mental disorders, Schizophrenia generally has a low level of prevalence. However, despite the low level of prevalence, the manifestation of the symptoms is just as severe as other mental disorders. The symptoms can be positive, negative, or cognitive. It is therefore necessary to have an overview of the various causative factors for the mental disorder.

Read More
748 Words | 3 Pages

Diagnosing psychological abnormalities and disorders can often prove to be a difficult task because of the many symptoms which could be shared by two (or more) disorders. Not to mention possible underlying symptoms that can go unobserved. Julie, the patient in the given report, was exhibiting behaviors which were out of the norm. She displayed characteristics that could be correlated with both multiple mood disorders and schizophrenia. Julie experienced extreme levels of hyperactivity, a boost in energy that resulted in the inability to sleep for five days.

Read More
402 Words | 2 Pages

Before watching the film A Beautiful Mind I had some understanding of schizophrenia. I knew that it could cause hallucinations, but I never knew it could make the person suffering with go through so much more. Not only does it affect them mentally it also affects the social aspect of their lives. It was surprising to see how the main character of the film honestly thought that these major parts of his life were actually real. He believed he was a spy for the government and that his roommate from college existed.

Read More
215 Words | 1 Pages

Conversely, there are many differences between the explanations. It may be suggested that the biological approach is reductionist as it focuses fully on the bodily and natural causes, ignoring any environmental aspects they may contribute to the development of schizophrenia. Yet, the psychological explanation is holistic as it provides arguments for environmental and natural causes as it mentions family influence and deficits in bodily functions. Therefore, it may be proposed that the psychological approach is more credible and is explores more than one factor that could effect the initiation of schizophrenia. Nevertheless, the biological explanation is highly scientific whereas the psychological approach has little scientific elements.

Read More
2176 Words | 9 Pages

Other symptoms they may experience are disorganised speech, flat or inappropriate emotions or social withdrawal • Catatonic Schizophrenia is characterised by an individual’s motor disturbances but they may also experience symptoms such as bizarre voluntary movements, the refusal to speak or extreme negativism • Disorganised Schizophrenia has symptoms such as inappropriate emotions, bizarre reactions or incoherent speech • Undifferentiated Schizophrenia is characterised by symptoms of delusions of importance, emotional excitement, confusion and incoherence • Residual Type Schizophrenia has the absence of delusions and hallucinations but the individual displays symptoms such as disorganised speech or impaired motor functioning • Delusional Disorder is when an individual may experience feelings related to jealousy, grandiose, persecutory, erotomanic, somatic type and mixed type • Schizoaffective disorder symptoms include disorganised speech, catatonic behaviour, flat emotions or lack of motivation and interest • Simple Schizophrenia individual’s experience symptoms of decreased interest and motivation, emotional blunting and social

Read More
148 Words | 1 Pages

Researchers in Toronto, Canada have discovered an innovative drug target that has opened up new possibilities for the treatment of Schizophrenia. Patients with schizophrenia are currently treated with antipsychotic drugs that interfere or completely block the receptor for a neurotransmitter called Dopamine. The blocking of this D2 receptor, however, causes side effects that are unwanted. These side effects include a tremor, muscle spasms and more serious side effects such as diabetes or tardive dyskinesia (involuntary movements of the face and jaw).

Read More
1894 Words | 8 Pages

Schizophrenia is a rare, debilitating mental illness

Read More
138 Words | 1 Pages

Schizophrenia is caused by structural abnormalities in the brain, although what causes these abnormalities is not explicitly known, scientists have pinpointed some factors. Genes certainly play a part, while 1% of the population suffers from Schizophrenia, there is a 10% chance of occurrence when a first-degree relative is diagnosed. It seems unlikely that just one gene causes the disorder, and it is hypothesized that many combinations of them lead to chemical or structural imbalances in the brain (National Alliance on Mental Health). Indeed, at Washington University scientists are working to analyze gene structures and have found that not single genes but gene clusters seem to serve as a sort of accurate predictor (Dryden, 2014). Some evidence

Read More
2909 Words | 12 Pages

For instance, Nicolaou helps the reader understand more about sexual dysfunction prevalence rates in people with schizophrenia and the implications of sexual dysfunction for treatment. In addition, Nicolaou responded to previous research conducted on clients taking antipsychotic medications and their experiences with sexual dysfunction and further explored how treatment could be altered to better serve mental-health and sexual dysfunction symptoms. The article raises the question of which type of treatment would be most beneficial for clients experiencing both psychotic symptoms and sexual dysfunction. De Boer would agree with Nicolaou that sexual dysfunction among clients taking antipsychotics should be more of a focus considering the high prevalence rates of sexual dysfunction among this population. The author noted that further research should be conducted to explore the association between schizophrenic symptoms and sexual dysfunction to develop appropriate assessment tools to guide clinical practice.

Read More

More about Schizophrenia Outline

Open Document