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Facts about schizophrenia
Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
---------------Winston Churchill
SCHIZOPHRENIA
Symptoms of Schizophrenia may occur at any age but commonly appear between 15 and 30 years of age. Both men and women have equal chances of developing Schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a mental disorder characterized by abnormalities in the perception or expression of reality. Distortions in perception may affect all five senses , including sight , hearing , taste , smell and touch , but most commonly manifest as auditory hallucinations , paranoid or bizarre delusions , or disorganized speech and thinking with significant social or occupational dysfunction.
They may think that other people are reading their mind, controlling their thoughts or making plans to harm them (delusions). The speech or the words spoken by the affected person may not make sense due to disorganized thinking. One may not be able to understand things happening around him. Suicidal tendency may be present.
There are relatively few famous people with schizophrenia because schizophrenia is a brain disorder that typically strikes people when they are quite young-age 17 to 28. People this age typically are too young to be famous, they are just starting out their professional lives after completing high school or college. Some of the famous personalities suffering from schizophrenia are:-
| Tom Harrell-Jazz Musician |
| Meera Popkin-Broadway Star John Nash –Mathematician/Nobel Prize Winner Albert Einstein’s son-Eduard Einstein Dr.James Watson’s son ( Dr.Watson is co-discover of DNA and Nobel Prize Winner ) Alan Alda’s Mother (Alan Alda is the famous TV actor from the series MASH ) Andy Goram – Scottish Sogger Player/Goal Keeper Lional A ldridge-Superbowl-Winning Football Player Peter Green-Guitarist for the band Fleetwood Mac Praveen babi-Indian actress Joe Meek-1960’s British record producer Charles “ Buddy “ Bolden-Jszz Musician Antoin Artaud-Dramatist, Artist Mary Todd Lincoln-Wife of Abraham Lincoln ( past – president of the U.S) Vaclav Nijinsky-Famous Russian Dancer Tennessee Williams- sister of Rose Williams |
ETIOPATHOLOGY
The exact defect is not known but probably there is an imbalanced secretion of several neurotransmitters (chemicals secreted by the nerve cells to communicate with other cells) in the brain, such as of dopamine.
Thinking process, behavior and perception is affected. There may be behavioral problems such as aggressiveness, agitation or anxiety.
Schizophrenia probably occurs due to an imbalance in secretion of several neurotransmitters in some regions of the brain. Neurotransmitters are chemicals that are secreted by the nerve cells and are needed to transmit signals from one nerve cell to the other.
| The brains of the people with schizophrenia probably produce too much dopamine, which is a neurotransmitter, which causes the symptoms. |
Changes or defects in the brain are present in people having Schizophrenia. These defects are thought to occur before or just after birth. There may be significant changes in the activation of some parts of the brain, such as the frontal or the parietal lobes.
Exact cause of Schizophrenia is not known. However, some of the potential cause is:-
· Genetic: - People whose close relatives have Schizophrenia are more likely to develop the condition. This is probably because of certain defective genes inherited from the parents. Many genes have been found to be associated with Schizophrenia. However, the condition may also occur in people who do not have any family history.
· Environment:-Probably the interaction between the genetic and the environmental factors results Schizophrenia. Exposure to certain viruses, malnutrition before birth, problems during birth, or some other factors that are not known yet may be involved. Excessive stress due to a troubled relationship or from job problems may also be involved in cases of Schizophrenia.
SYMPTOMS
The symptoms may vary depending on the type of Schizophrenia. However, the usual symptoms are perception of something that does not exist such as hearing voices (hallucinations), disorganized thinking or behavior and having false beliefs
Delusions).
| A beautiful mind Johan Nash, a famous mathematician, won noble prize was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia. A famous novel and later movie, by the name of A BEAUTIFUL MIND, was made on his life. Nash, a graduate from MIT, falls in love with her student and later married her. Nash seemed to believe that all men who wore red ties were part of a communist conspiracy against him. Nash mailed letters to embassies in Washington, D.C., declaring that they were establishing a government. Nash gave game theory which proved to a turning stone for future researches. He worked in national security agency as cryptographer and designed new encryption decryption machine. |
People who have Schizophrenia may lose touch with reality. The affected person may hear, see, smell or feel sensations that do not exist. They are called as hallucinations. Hearing non-existent voices, known as auditory hallucinations, is more common. The voices may be related to the behavior of the person or they may be about orders to do certain things.
The person may have trouble in organizing his or her thoughts or connecting them logically. Speech may be garbled, contain meaningless words and hard to understand. The person may stop speaking abruptly in the middle of a thought.
| Delusions are false beliefs, not a part of the person’s culture, that do not change even if other people prove them to be false or illogical. The person may think that other people can control his or her behavior, actions or thoughts. One may think that someone is trying to harm him or her by cheating, poisoning, or spying. |
The affected person may not show facial expressions or talk in a dull or monotonous voice. One may not be able to begin and sustain any planned activities. The person may be aggressive, make wild or inappropriate gestures, mimic others and neglect self care or hygiene. The person may repeat certain motions again and again. One may lie motionless, rigid and not respond to others. It is a condition referred to as CATATONIA. The person may not be able to understand things happening around him. One may not be able to concentrate or pay attention.
Facts about schizophrenia
| In the U.S., approximately 2.2 million adults , or about 1.1 % of the population age 18 and older in a given year, have schizophrenia |
| Rates of schizophrenia are very similar from country to country about 1 % of the population. |
| Schizophrenia ranks among the top 10 causes of disability in developed countries worldwide. |
| The risk of suicide is serious in people with schizophrenia. |
| More mental health hospital beds are occupied by persons with schizophrenia than any other illness. |
Date: 2015-12-11; view: 816