A Brief Introduction To Schizophrenia -- Symptoms

Symptoms

By reading through some of the causes of schizophrenia in the causes section, you may have gotten an inkling of the symptoms of the disorder.

So now let us watch a video clip on the common symptoms of schizophrenia. In this clip, some of the way of diagnosis and treatments can also be found.



The symptoms of schizophrenia are often divided into two groups:
Ÿ Positive symptoms: excesses or distortions of normal mental functions, e.g. hallucinations and delusions
Ÿ Negative symptoms: a loss or reduction of normal functioning and are more difficult to evaluate because they may be influenced by a concurrent depression or a dull and unstimulating environment, e.g. apathy and poverty of speech

Positive symptoms

Ÿ Hallucinations: They are often being described by family and friends as a wild imagination. The perceptions are sensory and involve sound, sight, touch and smell. Hearing voices is the most common type of hallucination in schizophrenia patients. The voices may describe the patients' emotions or activities, carry on a conversation, warn of dangers or even tell the patient what to do next.

Ÿ Delusions: People who experience delusions are convinced that their opinions and beliefs are real, despite evidence to the contrary. About one third of patients suffer from paranoid-type symptoms and often have delusions of persecution or suffer from irrational beliefs that they are being cheated, harassed, poisoned, or conspired against.

Ÿ Disorganised thinking: Schizophrenia often affects a person's ability to think straight. Thoughts may flash by; concentration is difficult and the patient is often easily distracted, unable to focus his/her attention. People with schizophrenia often find it difficult to decide what is or is not relevant to a situation. They are unable to connect thoughts into logical sequences and their thoughts become disorganised and fragmented. This lack of logical thought process, called thought disorder, can make a conversation very difficult and result in social isolation.

Ÿ Agitation: Schizophrenia patients are often extremely agitated.

Negative symptoms

Ÿ Lack of drive or initiative: A distinct lack of drive or initiative is often observed in patients. They seem to have lost their enthusiasm or interest in things.

Ÿ Social withdrawal: People with schizophrenia tend to become isolated and often prefer their own company and avoid contact with others. When forced to interact, they often have nothing to say.

Ÿ Apathy: Often people with schizophrenia appear totally indifferent to their surroundings and are not interested in taking part in things. Motivation can decrease significantly, as can interest in or enjoyment of life. In severe cases, a person can spend entire days doing nothing at all, even neglecting basic hygiene.

Ÿ Emotional: unresponsiveness or blunting People with schizophrenia often display blunted or flat emotions. They suffer from severely reduced emotional expression and may not be able to show normal emotions. For example, they may speak in a monotonous voice, show little facial expression and appear extremely indifferent.

Reference:
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