SCHIZOPHRENIA
What is schizophrenia? How do i deal with it?
Schizophrenia is a diagnosis you may be given if you experience some of the following symptoms:
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a lack of interest in things
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feeling disconnected from your feelings
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difficulty concentrating
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wanting to avoid people
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hallucinations
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hearing voices
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delusions
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feeling like you need to be protected.
A N G E R
For some people these experiences or beliefs can start happening quite suddenly, but for others they can occur more gradually. You may become upset, anxious, confused andsuspicious of other people, particularly anyone who doesn’t agree with your perceptions. You may be unaware or reluctant to believe that you need help.
Delusions, hearing voices and hallucinations are all types of psychosis.
The symptoms of schizophrenia can be disruptive and have an impacton your ability to carry on with day-to-day tasks, such as going to work, maintaining relationships with other people, caring for yourself or for others.
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can help you to deal with this added stress and to develop ways of managing your symptoms. You might also find it helpful to talk and share coping tips with other people in the same situation.
There is more media misinformation about schizophrenia than about any other type of mental health problem. A diagnosis of schizophrenia does not mean ‘split personality’, or indicate that someone will swing wildly from being calm to being out of control.Sensational stories in the press tend to present people with schizophrenia as dangerous, even though most people diagnosed with schizophrenia don’t commit violent crimes.Some people think that people who hear voices are dangerous, but actually voices are more likely to suggest that you harm yourself than someone else.
The schizophrenia mind is not so much split as shattered. I like to say schizophrenia is like a waking nightmare.
- Elyn Saks
It's pronounced
(skit-suh-FREE-nee-uh)
not
(KREY-zee)
FIGHT THE STIGMA.
Some people say that what the condition is called doesn’t matter and that it would be more helpful to focus on relieving specific symptoms and individual needs. Other people argue that because psychiatric experts can’t agree on the definition, causes or suitable treatments for schizophrenia, it shouldn’t be used as a diagnostic category at all.
The reality is that many people are still diagnosed with schizophrenia. If you are one of them, it might be helpful to think of a diagnosis more as a tool for treating what you’re currently experiencing, rather than a definite condition or label that you will have to live with forever. We hope this helped x