FREE ESSAY ON SCHIZOPHRENIA

SCHIZOPHRENIA

Schizophrenia is a serious, chronic mental disorder characterized by loss of contact with
reality and disturbances of thought, mood, and perception. Schizophrenia is the most
common and the most potentially sever and disabling of the psychosis, a term encompassing
several severe mental disorders that result in the loss of contact with reality along
with major personality derangements. Schizophrenia patients experience delusions,
hallucinations and often lose thought process. Schizophrenia affects an estimated one
percent of the population in every country of the world. Victims share a range of
symptoms that can be devastating to themselves as well as to families and friends. They
may have trouble dealing with the most minor everyday stresses and insignificant changes
in their surroundings. They may avoid social contact, ignore personal hygiene and behave
oddly (Kass, 194). 
Many people outside the mental health profession believe that schizophrenia refers to a
"split personality". The word "schizophrenia" comes from the Greek schizo, meaning split
and phrenia refers to the diaphragm once thought to be the location of a person's mind
and soul. When the word "schizophrenia" was established by European psychiatrists, they
meant to describe a shattering, or breakdown, of basic psychological functions. Eugene
Bleuler is one of the most influential psychiatrists of his time. He is best known today
for his introduction of the term "schizophrenia" to describe the disorder previously
known as dementia praecox and for his studies of schizophrenics. The illness can best be
described as a collection of particular symptoms that usually fall into four basic
categories: formal thought disorder, perception disorder, feeling/emotional disturbance,
and behavior disorders (Young, 23). 
People with schizophrenia describe strange of unrealistic thoughts. Their speech is
sometimes hard to follow because of disordered thinking. Phrases seem disconnected, and
ideas move from topic to topic with no logical pattern in what is being said. In some
cases, individuals with schizophrenia say that they have no idea at all or that their
heads seem "empty". Many schizophrenic patients think they possess extraordinary powers
such as x-ray vision or super strength. They may believe that their thoughts are being
controlled by others or that everyone knows what they are thinking. These beliefs are
caused by delusions. Most specialists agree that symptoms are provoked by chemical
disturbances of the brain, but no exact mechanism is known (Mueser, 102). 
Those with schizophrenia regularly report unusual sensory experiences, especially when
the illness is in an acute stage. Often these experiences are in the form of hearing
voices. Persons may hear one or two voices making comments on their behavior. They may
not know the voice, or they may believe it is the voice of God, the Devil, or a friend.
When the voice issues orders to behave in a particular way, the experience is known as a
command hallucination. These hallucinations can be very dangerous to the sufferer and
others. When the voice commands the person to do something, the schizophrenic person will
perform that task as instructed (Kass, 188). 
Particular, repetitive movements sometimes are seen in schizophrenics. Victims might
swing one leg back and forth all day, or constantly shake their heads. Catatonic behavior
is another symptom; a victim might keep the same position for hours, unable to talk or
eat. Catatonic schizophrenia is marked by striking motor behavior. Some victims may be
overly intrusive, constantly prying into the affairs of those around them (Gingerich,
64). 
When compared to other people in general, those with schizophrenia are less likely to
marry or remain married; more likely to have school problems; often unable to keep their
jobs; more prone to suicide attempts. People with schizophrenia also tend to fall into
other groupings that can help in diagnosis. The majority range in age from adolescence to
the mid twenties at the time the psychosis begins. No single patient is likely to show
all the symptoms associated with the illness or fall into all of the categories listed.
One person may experience only auditory hallucinations and exhibit only inappropriate
emotions. Another might become reclusive and suffer from delusions (Arasse, 210). 
The modern era of medical treatment for schizophrenia began in 1952 with the use of the
tranquilizer chlorapromazine. This drug, for the first time, controlled acute systems,
reduced hospitalization from years to days, and lowered the rate of relapse by more than
fifty percent. Not everyone responds to these drugs. Long term control is less successful
than short term alleviation. Prolonged medication may bring harmful side effects,
especially the neurological muscle disorder known as tardive dyskinesia (TD), which
causes involuntary facial movements. Dopamine is the primary neurotransmitter that
appears to be involved in this disorder, and most medications used to treat schizophrenia
target this neurotransmitter and its receptors in the brain. Schizophrenia seems to be a
syndrome of multiple causes and types. Genetics seem to play a role, but there is no
single "schizophrenia gene". While it is clear that a supportive family can be helpful in
preventing relapse, it is also agreed that family strife does not cause schizophrenia
(Young, 35). 
One of the most recent advances in treating schizophrenia is the drug clozapine. This
drug has been used in Europe and China for a number of years and now has been approved by
the Food and Drug Administration in 1990 for use in the United States. Clozapine is
sometimes effective in cases where other drugs have failed to blunt systems. This drug
appears to have fewer side effects than some of the anti-psychotic drugs. A major
drawback to its use is that it can dangerously lower the count of white blood cells.
Other new medications that have beneficial effect similar to clozapine but that appear to
be safer are now undergoing testing and may be available in the near future. Various
medications are handled by the body in different ways, so one drug may be selected over
another because it has less chance of damaging a diseased liver, worsening a heart
condition, or affecting a patient's high blood pressure. For all the benefits that
anti-psychotic drugs provide, clearly they are far from ideal. Some patients will show
marked improvement with drugs, while others might be helped only a little, if at all.
Ideally, drugs soon will be developed to treat successfully the whole range os
schizophrenia symptoms. Roughly one third of schizophrenic patients make a complete
recovery and have no further recurrence, one third have recurrent episodes of the
illness, and one third deteriorate into chronic schizophrenia with severe disability
(Kass, 206).
Bibliography
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Arasse, Daniel. Complete Guide to Mental Health. Allen Lane Press,New York, 1989.
Gingerich, Susan. Coping With Schizophrenia. New Harbinger Publications, Inc. Oakland,
1994.
Kass, Stephen. Schizophrenia: The Facts. Oxford University Press. New York, 1997.
Muesen, Kim. "Schizophrenia". Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia. Microsoft Corporation,
1998. 
Young, Patrick. The Encyclopedia od Health, Psychological Disorders and Their Treatment.
Herrington Publications. New York, 1991.