Schizophrenia is like being a rat in a complex maze, running and running and never being able to find an exit. Then later, someday, the same rat looks up and realizes there is no roof and that it is possible to climb the wall if it sticks with a plan.
What is Schizophrenia?
People with schizophrenia, a chronic mental illness, are unable to perform well in society, at work, in relationships or at schools. They become detached from reality and feel frightened and withdrawn. For instance, a 20 years old boy can falsely accuse the college of running an organized crime operation or yell at his professor for taking his tuition fees. Having said that, such people cannot tell what’s real and what’s imagined.
Professionals such as the best psychologist in Dubai say that schizophrenia can go undiagnosed in the region due to lack of education and stigma of mental illness. It is problematic because the patients miss out on treatments and suffer, which is worse.
Their behavior can be strange and shocking for the people. However, they are unable to give a specific term to their condition. We have listed the positive and negative symptoms that might start showing up:
Positive Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Positive symptoms refer to the presence rather than the absence of symptoms. They are the highly exaggerated perceptions, ideas, false beliefs and actions because of which the individual is unable to separate reality from imagination. Following are the positive symptoms:
Hallucinations
Schizophrenic people might hear, see, smell or feel things that don’t have a reality. For instance, a woman might hear angry voices that make her doubt the people in the surroundings. Sometimes, these voices turn into a whisper into her eyes, demanding her to do insane things such as hurting someone.
Then there will be times when she sees her loved ones who have passed away, standing on a window like Heathcliff calling out to Catherine. During a family dinner, she pushes the plate aside because she wrongly smelled poison in the food.
Such hallucinations are troubling for schizophrenic people and urge them to act or say things they don’t mean.
Delusions
Delusions are beliefs that can be proven wrong easily. Schizophrenic people think that someone is trying to control them through TVs or the FBI is hunting them down, such as that 20 years old boy who could not stop talking about organized crime operations at his college. Alternatively, they see themselves as a superhero or a famous personality like a president.
They also carry delusions such as their partner is cheating, or a celebrity is in love with them. Delusions turn a simple gesture or a song lyric into a special message for them.
Confused Thoughts and Lack of Concentration
Schizophrenic people have difficulty concentrating and easily zone out or get distracted. As a result, their words come out jumbled up when they talk.
Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia
Negative symptoms mean the absence of mental functioning like thinking, behavior and perception. You might witness the following symptoms in a schizophrenic person:
Lack of Pleasure
A psychiatrist will call this state anhedonia as the person is unable to enjoy anything.
Lack of Speech and Flattening
It is generally labeled as alogia, in which the individual is unable to form a proper sentence and express himself. They showcase a terrible case of blahs. Their voice does not carry any emotion and sound flats. They cannot express themselves through facial emotions and seem detached from the conversations.
Withdrawal
A college student with schizophrenia will stop hanging out with friends and family. Parties and cocktails do not attract him. Seeking answers out of him for his disappearance from the group study is no less than a challenge.
He will also stop taking a bath or brushing his teeth because he has absolutely withdrawn from social life.
Cognitive Symptom
Some individuals with schizophrenia have a hard time working their memory. They have difficulty remembering and managing multiple tasks simultaneously, such as phone numbers and addresses.
The Takeaway
If you think that someone you know is struggling with schizophrenia, talk to them about their concerns. Although you cannot force someone to take a trip to a psychiatrist clinic, you can encourage them to seek support and help from the people they trust. It is necessary to intervene because suicidal ideation is a common symptom among schizophrenic individuals. A little assistance can prevent the possibility; otherwise, take them to the nearest hospital’s emergency room.
