I think almost everybody is familiar with the movie ‘A Beautiful Mind’ about mathematician John Nash and his struggle with Paranoid Schizophrenia. This movie has done a lot in helping people understand Schizophrenia. In ancient cultures, people with Schizophrenia were thought to be possessed by evil spirits, or have evil powers. Unfortunately, there are still parts of the world where people believe this to be true. Even in more educated societies, there is fear and mystery about Schizophrenia.

So, what is Schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a very complex, chronic, and debilitating mental disorder. It is characterized by a disintegration of thought processes, behaviour and response, and social interaction. a Schizophrenic lives in his own world; one that may not exist out of his head. He can see people or hear voices or experience events that are just not present (hallucinations). A Schizophrenic has disordered thoughts and speech and responses. He may suffer from delusions, show complete lack of emotion, and perhaps isolate himself.
There are 5 types of Schizophrenia:
1. Paranoid Schizophrenia, where the patient suffers from delusions and hallucinations.
2. Disorganised Schizophrenia, where the patient’s thoughts, speech, and behaviour are very disorganised, and he shows very little emotional response.
3. Catatonic Schizophrenia, where the patient is pretty unresponsive to others, has problems with movement, and makes grimacing faces continuously.
4. Undifferentiated Schizophrenia, where the patient has 2 or more of the general symptoms of Schizophrenia, but they are not so strongly differentiated to label him as Paranoid, or Disorganised, or Catatonic.
5. Residual Schizophrenia, where the patient does not show the full blown positive symptoms of Schizophrenia, but instead shows the negative symptoms (complete disinterest, lack of speech, withdrawal from society, etc.). This is a milder form of Schizophrenia.

What causes Schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a very complex mental illness, and the medical profession is not exactly sure what causes it. It is believed that a combination of genetic and environmental factors are responsible. It has also been suggested that pre-natal factors (like certain infections in the mother) can contribute towards the child being Schizophrenic.
Schizophrenia does have some genetic or familial origin. People with Schizophrenia in the family are more likely to develop the condition.
Environmental triggers are many and varied, and can range from ethnicity, to drug abuse, to childhood experiences, to dysfunctional family life, to emotional, physical or sexual abuse, to bullying, and even unemployment.

Treatment for Schizophrenics.
Schizophrenia is a chronic mental illness, which means the patient must take his meds all his life.
A class of medicines called Antipsychotics is used in the treatment of the symptoms of Schizophrenia. Antipsychotics help change the inbalance of chemicals in the brain, and need to be taken regularly, and exactly as directed by the doctor. The patient is generally hospitalised during severe episodes for safety reasons.
Antipsychotics like Olanzapine, Risperidone, Aripiprazole, Quetiapine and Ziprasidone are preferred for treatment of the positive symptoms of Schizophrenia.
Anti-depressants like Fluoxetine, Citalopram, Paroxetine, Sertraline and Escitalopram are used to control the depression that can often accompany Schizophrenia.
Support therapy used along with the meds can help improve the quality of life for Schizophrenics. Behavioural techniques, support groups, and relationship-building classes can all prove very helpful.

People with Schizophrenia can be real achievers, accomplishing many wonderful things. Along with John Nash, Polish ballet dancer/choreographer Vaclav Nijinsky, singer/song-writer Bob Mosely, and guitarist Peter Green are some of the people who battled Schizophrenia.

To your good mental health!
Sonia.