Inexplicable and mysterious mental illness. Society eschews the people who suffer from them. Why is this happening? Perhaps some forms of mental illness are transmitted by airborne droplets? The mysterious word "schizophrenic" causes a huge number of conflicting feelings and negative associations. But who is schizophrenic and is he dangerous for others?
A bit of history
The term "schizophrenia" was formed from two Greek words: "schizo" - split, "fren" - mind. The name of the disease was invented by professor of psychiatry Paul Eigen Bleiler and said that it should remain relevant until scientists find an effective way to cure it. Symptoms of the disease itself were described by a psychiatrist from Russia back in 1987, however, then it bore a different name - "ideophrenia".
Who is schizophrenic? Bright minds are looking for the answer to this question. A lot is known about the disease and nothing is known. Normal behavior is mixed with inadequacy, smart thoughts border on implausible nonsense. Bleiler called this emotional, volitional, and intellectual ambivalence.
Most often, at the initial stage, only the family guesses the condition of the relative. The fact is that the disease manifests itself in a very strange way: a patient with schizophrenia rejects relatives, and all deviations from the norm and symptoms of the disease are noticeable in relation to them, while with friends and colleagues the behavior remains the same. There is a completely logical and reasonable explanation for this. Formal, superficial communication does not require such enormous emotional costs as a spiritual connection. The personality is damaged, is at the stage of destruction, so love is a painful sphere, a person has neither moral nor physical strength to waste himself on it.
Symptoms
So who is schizophrenic? This is a person suffering from a serious illness, which is characterized by a number of signs:
- Emotional coldness appears. A person's feelings for relatives and friends are extinguished. Gradually, complete indifference is replaced by unreasonable aggression and anger towards loved ones.
- Losing interest in entertainment, hobbies. Aimless empty days replace your favorite activities.
- Instinctive feelings weaken. This is characterized by the fact that a person can skip a meal, ignore extreme heat or cold, bring his own appearance to unrecognizability: untidiness, sloppiness, absolute indifference to clothes and basic daily procedures (brushing your teeth, caring for your face, body, hair, etc. . d.)
- Statements that do not stand up to criticism, delusions, strange and inappropriate comments may be observed.
- Auditory and visual hallucinations appear. The danger lies in the fact that sometimes verbal voices do not just convey information, but prompt actions: to cause serious harm to oneself or others.
- Who is schizophrenic? First of all, this is a person who is prone to hypochondriac neurosis, has many different phobias and unfounded fears, and suffers from depersonalization.
- At an early stage, obsessions appear (frightening obsessive thoughts and images).
- You can also observe lethargy, lethargy, insomnia, lethargy and a complete lack of sexual needs.
State of psychosis
Under the state of psychosis is meant spring exacerbation in schizophrenics. It is characterized by a loss of connection with the real world. Orientation decreases, the usual symptoms take a hypertrophied form. It is believed that even a healthy person experiences some discomfort in the autumn-spring period. This is expressed by melancholy, general lethargy, vitamin deficiency, decreased performance.
Nevertheless, many "healers of the soul" argue that the spring exacerbation of schizophrenics is more a myth than a reality. The aggravation of the disease is extremely rarely confined to a particular time of the year.
Rosenhan's experiment
Back in 1973, psychologist D. Rosenhan conducted an unprecedented and risky experiment. He explained to the world how to become a schizophrenic and return to normal again. He was well versed in the symptoms of the disease, and he did it so well that he was able to simulate schizophrenia, get to the psychiatric clinic with such a diagnosis, and after a week completely “recover” and go back home.
After some time, an interesting experience was repeated, but now the brave psychologist was in the company of the same brave friends. Each of them knew very well how to become a schizophrenic, and then skillfully depict healing. An interesting and instructive story is that they were written out with the phrase "schizophrenia in remission." Does this mean that psychiatrists leave no chance for recovery and a terrible diagnosis will haunt all life?
Great crazy
The topic “Famous Schizophrenics” is causing a lot of noisy debate. In the modern world, this unflattering epithet is awarded to almost every person who has achieved unprecedented heights in art or some other activity. Every second writer, artist, actor, scientist, poet and philosopher is called schizophrenic. Naturally, there is little truth in these statements, and people tend to confuse talent, eccentricity and creativity with signs of mental illness.
The Russian writer Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol suffered from this ailment. Attacks of psychosis mixed with excitement and activity bore fruit. It is schizophrenia that causes attacks of fear, hypochondria, claustrophobia. When the condition worsened, the famous manuscript was burned. The writer explained this with the machinations of Satan.
Vincent Van Gogh was sick with schizophrenia. Joy and bouts of happiness were replaced by suicidal thoughts. The disease progressed, the time came for the painter X - a famous operation took place, during which he cut off part of his ear and sent this fragment to his beloved as a souvenir, after which he was sent to an institution for the mentally ill.
The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche was diagnosed with schizophrenia. His behavior was not adequate, megalomania was a characteristic feature. There is a theory that it was his works that influenced the worldview of Adolf Hitler and strengthened his desire to become "master of the world."
It's no secret that schizophrenic scholars are not a myth. A striking example is the American mathematician John Forbes Nash. His diagnosis is "paranoid schizophrenia." John became known around the world thanks to the movie "Mind Games." He refused to drink pills, explaining this by the fact that they are able to negatively affect his mental abilities. Others treated him as a harmless madman, but the mathematician was still awarded the Nobel Prize.
How to recognize a schizophrenic?
- The patient ceases to talk with loved ones, as he sees in them conspirators, liars and enemies who wish him dead.
- Attacks of seclusion and isolation can be replaced by excessive sociability.
- The schizophrenic is talking to himself, and it’s not about trivial phrases like “Where are my keys?” The observations are absolutely devoid of logic, the conversation is built in a strange way, there is a “slipping” from one thought to another. There is the medical term “resonance” - a type of thinking that is characterized by inappropriate philosophies, stupid, empty, banal judgments.
- Personality traits change (accuracy and perfectionism give way to sloppiness and sloppiness).
- Changes in perception, as a rule, are episodic in nature.
- Strange behavior, unacceptable actions.
But of course, the presence of some examples from the list does not mean that the person is seriously ill. Such a diagnosis is made by competent specialists very carefully and carefully. After all, schizophrenia is a stigma and to some extent a sentence.
How not to incur the wrath of the patient?
As mentioned above, society eschews people with mental health problems, but this is not possible when a family member is the schizophrenic. What to do in this situation? First of all, carefully read the information on how to behave with a schizophrenic. There are a number of rules:
- Do not ask questions aimed at clarifying the details of delusional statements.
- Do not argue, trying to prove the invalidity of the patient's allegations.
- If the patient experiences too strong experiences (fear, anger, hatred, sadness, anxiety), try to calm him down. But do not forget to call a doctor.
- With great care, express your own opinion.
- Do not scoff or be afraid.
Paranoid schizophrenia
Who is paranoid schizophrenic? This is a person suffering from delusions (jealousy, megalomania, delusions of persecution), prone to fears, doubts, hallucinations, impaired thinking. The disease occurs in people over 25 years of age and is initially sluggish in nature. This is one of the most common forms of schizophrenia.
"Heavy madness" of the child
For parents there is nothing worse than a sick child. Schizophrenic children are a common occurrence. They, of course, differ from their peers. The disease can occur even in the first year of life, but manifest much later. Gradually, the child becomes withdrawn, abstracts from loved ones, you can notice a disorder in thinking and a complete loss of interest in ordinary activities. The faster the problem is discovered, the more effective the fight against it will be. There are some signs that should alert:
- Walking in circles and from side to side.
- Quick excitement and almost instantaneous extinction.
- Impulsiveness.
- Unmotivated tears, tantrums, laughter, aggression.
- Cold.
- Lethargy, lack of initiative.
- The breakdown of speech in combination with immobility.
- Ridiculous behavior.
Children's schizophrenia is terrible for its complications. If the process arose at the stage of personality formation, then an oligophrenic defect with mental retardation may appear.
Alternative treatment
There is one interesting theory how to change the life of a schizophrenic. Why doctors of sciences, professors and the most ingenious doctors of the present still have not found an effective way to cure? Everything is very simple: schizophrenia is a disease of the soul, so drug treatment does not contribute to recovery, but only exacerbates its course.
The temple of the Lord can become a panacea, it is he who heals the souls. Of course, at first nobody takes this method into service, but later, when relatives become desperate, they are ready to try everything. And surprisingly, faith in the healing and power of the church can work a miracle.
Aggravation of the disease
Aggravation in schizophrenics can panic impressionable relatives. The acute period of the disease requires immediate hospitalization. This will protect the immediate environment and protect the patient himself. Sometimes there may be certain difficulties associated with the fact that the schizophrenic does not consider himself a sick person. All arguments of the mind will be smashed against the blank wall of his misunderstanding, so you need to act without his consent. It is also necessary to familiarize yourself with the signs indicating the approach of relapse:
- Change to normal mode.
- Features of behavior that were observed before the last attack.
- Refusal to visit a psychiatrist.
- The absence or excess of emotions.
If the signs are obvious, then it is necessary to notify the attending physician, reduce the possibility of negative effects on the patient from the outside, and not change the usual rhythm and lifestyle.
Tips for loved ones
People with such a relative are often confused and do not understand how to exist with him under one roof. To avoid excesses, it is worth exploring information on how to live with a schizophrenic:
- Patients need long-term treatment and should be constantly monitored.
- In the course of therapy, there will certainly be exacerbations and relapses.
- It is necessary to create the amount of work and household chores for the patient and never exceed it.
- Excessive custody can be harmful.
- You cannot get mad at the mentally ill, scream or be annoyed. They cannot bear criticism.
You also need to know the signs of an approaching suicide attempt:
- General statements about the meaninglessness and transience of existence, the sinfulness of people.
- Hopeless pessimism.
- Voices ordering suicide.
- The patient's conviction that he suffers from an incurable disease.
- Sudden reassurance and fatalism.
To prevent a tragedy, one should learn to distinguish between the “normal” behavior of a schizophrenic and an abnormal one. You can’t ignore his talk about the desire to commit suicide, an ordinary person is able in this way to seek attention to his own person, but with a schizophrenic, everything is different. You should try to convey to his mind that the disease will soon move aside and there will be relief. But you need to do this gently and unobtrusively.
It is bad if the patient suffers from alcohol or drug addiction, this exacerbates the course of the disease, significantly complicates the rehabilitation process, causes resistance to drugs, and also increases the tendency to violence.
The theme of violence stands apart here. And many people care about the question: is there a chance that a schizophrenic will harm others? It should be noted right away that social danger is exaggerated. Of course, precedents did occur, but if you establish trustful relationships with the mentally ill and look after him correctly, the risk is completely eliminated.