Schizophrenia is a chronic disabling mental illness that usually manifests itself in adolescence or early adulthood. It is characterized by a fragmentation of the structure of thought processes, accompanied by difficulty in distinguishing between experiences.
“It is an organic neuropsychiatric disease that affects cognitive processes, and its effects have repercussions on behavior and emotions”, explains Carine Eleutério, a psychologist graduated from UFC (Federal University of Ceará) and Master from UNIFESP (Federal University of São Paulo).
Complexities of schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a very complex disease and can manifest itself in many ways. However, in general, it causes its carriers to have difficulty distinguishing the real from the imaginary. In addition illness affects ways of thinking and feeling. This causes people to have losses in affective relationships, professional and social performance.
Severe, it brings suffering both for the bearer and for their relatives and friends. It can be treated and the sooner treatment is started, the better the results will be, even if the procedures have to last a lifetime.
Causes of this mental disorder
As already mentioned, schizophrenia is a complex disorder, and its origin may be related to different factors. “There is no single cause that causes the disease, it can be multifactorial. It is admitted that several causes compete with each other for the appearance; among them are: the psychological picturethe environment, family history of illnesses and other mental disorders, and also the possibility that the use of psychoactive substances can trigger outbreaks”, clarifies the psychologist.
Symptomsof schizophrenia
The symptoms presented by schizophrenia are varied, and none of them are present only in carriers of the disease, they can also be found in other mental disorders. For this reason, the diagnosis of the disease is complex. The symptoms of schizophrenia are usually divided into categories (positive, negative, cognitive and affective). The terms “positive” and “negative” do not indicate “good” and “bad” signals.
Symptoms of each category
Positive symptoms are divided into: delusions, hallucinations, disorganized thinking and eccentric behavior. The negative ones, on the other hand, in: decrease of will and affectivity, impoverishment of thought and social isolation.
In turn, cognitive symptoms are composed of: difficulties in attention, concentration, comprehension and abstraction. And, finally, they are part of the affective ones: the depressionhopelessness, loss of pleasure and ambivalent feelings.
Treatmentof schizophrenia
In addition to therapy, according to Carine Eleutério, antipsychotics are effective in relieving the symptoms of schizophrenia. Some of them, known as typical antipsychotics, strongly inhibit the dopamine D2 receptors of the dopaminergic pathways linked to the limbic system of the brain, which is the system responsible for emotions. Treatment raises expectations of long-term improvement and, if the disease is treated efficiently, many people are able to make an excellent recovery.
Source: Maxima
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