How to tell signs of schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a mental illness whereas the person has impairments in the expression of reality. In many cases, they are manifested as auditory hallucinations, paranoia, strange delusions, and in some cases, the person may experience disorganized speech and reckoning.

Causes of schizophrenia include:

•  Genetic

•  prenatal

•  social

•  substance use

•  Psychological

•  Neural

As with many illnesses, causes are explained or denied by the person that is discussing the illness or disease. Even some symptoms of Schizophrenia overlap to other mental disorders such as bipolar disorder or even major depression.

When you look at the causes, genetic or hereditary schizophrenia varies since it is difficult to separate the effects of genetics and the environment. In most cases, many people believe that Schizophrenia is a complex of inheritance with many genes at work to trigger this disease.

Prenatal factors may help to contribute to Schizophrenia in developing later in life. One finding has proven that more people born in the winter or spring have been diagnosed with Schizophrenia.

The social or environment such as living in an urban setting has been seen in many individuals diagnosed with Schizophrenia.

Other social factors include:

•  Poverty

•  migration

•  racial discrimination

•  family dysfunction

•  unemployment

•  poor housing conditions

•  child abuse

•  trauma during childhood

Medications or substance use can also trigger Schizophrenia. The medications that are known to trigger the symptoms include:

•  Amphetamines

•  Hallucinogenic or stimulant drugs

•  cannabis or marijuana

Psychological or Neural factors include those of individuals that have cognitive biases, such as jumping to conclusions, impaired reasoning, and so on. Differences occurring in the brain areas including frontal lobes, hippocampus, and temporal lobes have also been linked to deficits often seen in individuals with Schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia symptoms include:

•  disorganized thinking

•  auditory hallucinations

•  delusions

In severe cases the person can become

•  Mute

•  stand or sit motionless in weird postures

•  show agitation

•  show signs of catatonia

Treatment for schizophrenia is as controversial as the illness itself. Some conclude that addressing the symptoms by managing or improving functions rather than the disease is the best way in which to treat Schizophrenia.

At this time the treatment most often prescribed is:

•  Medication

•  Psychotherapy

•  Cognitive behavioral therapy

•  Family therapy

•  Electroconvulsive therapy

•  In some cases, many individuals are now trying an unconventional approach, which is the use of omega 3 fatty acids as a dietary supplement.