EXPERIENCING ISSUES WITH
Schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a chronic, serious mental health condition that affects how a person thinks, feels, and behaves. It can be a very disabling condition, but with treatment, most people with schizophrenia can lead productive and fulfilling lives.
Need immediate help?
If you or someone you know is in danger of hurting themselves or someone else — or if there’s any type of health emergency — please call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
How schizophrenia might show up
People with schizophrenia may have difficulty distinguishing between what is real and what is not real. They may also experience hallucinations, such as hearing voices or seeing things that are not there.
Schizophrenia can also cause delusions, which are false beliefs that a person has even when they are proven to be untrue.
Individuals with schizophrenia are typically diagnosed between the teen years and early 30s. This usually follows an episode of psychosis, which can include those hallucinations or delusions.
Need immediate help?
If you or someone you know is in danger of hurting themselves or someone else — or if there’s any type of health emergency — please call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
Symptoms of schizophrenia are broadly categorized into positive symptoms, negative symptoms, and cognitive symptoms. Positive symptoms are psychotic symptoms, which means they involve a distortion of reality. Negative symptoms can include social withdrawal, lack of motivation, and a decreased ability to express emotions. Cognitive symptoms involve problems with thinking like difficulty concentrating, memory problems, and problems with planning and decision-making.
Schizophrenia is a chronic mental health condition, but it can be effectively managed with treatment. Treatment for schizophrenia includes antipsychotic medications, which help reduce hallucinations and delusions. Therapy can also help individuals with schizophrenia better cope with their symptoms and improve everyday skills and relationships with loved ones.
Frequently asked questions about schizophrenia
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Learning about schizophrenia—its symptoms and how it’s treated—can help your loved one. Diagnosing and treating schizophrenia can be difficult and time-consuming, so patience and understanding are critical. If you are a caretaker for someone with schizophrenia, it’s important to take care of yourself by getting help (which could include a support group or therapy).
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Signs and symptoms of schizophrenia can be subtle and vary from person to person. They can also be signs of other conditions. It’s important to watch for changes in social behavior, personal hygiene, sleep patterns, mood or emotions, and suspicious or paranoid behavior that could include hallucinations or delusions.