Patient Psychiatric Care Is The Key To Cure Schizophrenia

Mental illness can affect a person at any time and at any age. While some of these disorders are mild and not much noticeable, others can take a toll on your personal as well as professional life. But if diagnosed at an early stage these problems can be cured. One of many such psychological problems is ‘schizophrenia’. It is basically a mental disorder where a person faces abnormalities in perception or expression of reality.

Schizophrenia is derived from the Greek words ‘schizein’ (to split) and ‘phren’ (mind). The disabling brain disease is indicated by auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions or disorganized speech and thinking. It affects both men and women. Approximately 1% of the population develops schizophrenia during their lifetime.

People affected with schizophrenia often suffer from frightening symptoms such as believing that other people are reading their minds, hearing voices not heard by others etc. The symptoms of schizophrenia can be actually classified into three categories:

1. Positive symptoms: These include occurrence of bizarre thoughts or perceptions coupled with hallucinations.
2. Negative symptoms: Here there is an overall reduction in the ability to implement plans successfully, express emotions or find happiness in general life. Recognising these symptoms can be a difficult task because they can be mistaken for depressiondefine.
3. Cognitive symptoms: These are the problems related to attention. Basically include functions of the brain related to planning and organizing things.

There are no specific causes for schizophrenia identified till now. It is believed to be caused by a disorder of the brain wherein a chemical called dopamine is released in excess. Brain scans of schizophrenic patients have shown that there is a reduction in brain tissue density on the outer and inner surfaces. A sibling or a parent with schizophrenia increases likelihood that the person will have the disease.

Although there is no cure for schizophrenia, it can be treated effectively with psychiatric care as well as medicines. Initial drug treatment includes atypical antipsychotic medications such as olanzapine, quetiapine, risperidone or arpiprazole. Their doses can be increased according to the progress in the condition of the patient.

But other than medication therapies, psychological rehabilitation programmes can prove to be really helpful. The main aim of such therapies is to reduce schizophrenic symptoms, prevent return of symptoms, minimize side effects from medicines and help the individual lead a normal life.

The main thing to keep in mind is that available treatments only help to relieve symptoms, but most people with schizophrenia continue to suffer throughout their lives. It has been estimated that no more than one in five individuals recover completely. But there is a lot of hope and it’s important to deal with the patient in a very patient and calm way so that the symptoms don’t go from bad to worse.