Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a chronic disabling mental illness that affects men and women equally and although it is treatable, it is not curable. Schizophrenia is a disease that causes people to withdraw from the real world and activities they once loved only to enter their world of delusion and fantasy. It is one of the most common mental disorders in the United States, affecting roughly 2.2 million Americans. The most widely used treatment for this illness is medication and as long as the person stricken with this illness takes the prescribed medication, they can lead semi normal lives.Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that impairs the person’s “perception of reality” (Klag 1254). Schizophrenia is not a split-personality disorder as psychiatrists once thought, but the split occurs between the mind and reality (Siegfried 2). There is no one known cause of this disorder, but there are many different opinions about the possible causes. Early theories suggested it was caused by stress, but more recently it is thought to be due to a biochemical abnormality (Deth 1). Furthermore, some researchers have explored fetal growth for the cause of schizophrenia. It is thought that schizophrenia appears . . .
Also, schizophrenics live in a world that is distorted by hallucinations and delusions, which often makes them feel “frightened, anxious and confused” (Tsai 2). Some other commonly prescripted medications include olanzapine (Zprexa), quetiapine (Seroquel), risperidone (Risperdal), fluphenazine (Prolixin), perphenazine (Triafon), and haloperidol (Haldol). The National Advisory Mental Health Council says, “the treatment success rate for schizophrenia is comparable to the treatment success rate for heart disease” (Fact Sheet 2). You find it easier to withdraw than cope with a reality that is incongruent with your fantasy world. The longer the patient is taking these medications, however, the greater chance they could develop Tardive Dykinesia (TD), which is involuntary movements of the mouth, lips, tongue and sometimes the limbs (Tsai 5). Jordan has had schizophrenia for over 25 years and she has written a book about her experiences with this disorder. As with most mental disorders, schizophrenia also has a variety of early warning signs. Your thoughts race and you feel fragmented and so very alone with your “craziness. 2 million Americans, which is about 1% of the population (Fact Sheet 1). It is a journey through a world that is deranged, empty, and devoid of anchors to reality. Since, there is no known cure for schizophrenia, psychotherapists have found many ways to help relieve the patient’s symptoms of the disorder. You feel tormented by distorted perceptions. Equally important, biochemists say that it might be a neurochemical imbalance that deals with the neurotransmitters of the brain. Medication is widely used form of treatment of this disorder because there are more benefits with it than any other form of treatment. If schizophrenics respond to medication, they have a pretty good chance of leading full and productive lives (The Alliance for the Mentally Ill 1).
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