Essay About Symptoms Of The Illness And Persons Life

Schizophrenia
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Schizophrenia or Sz is one of the most destructive illnesses known to man,
although not that much has actually been known about it since recent progressive
research. It usually hits at the most crucial point in a persons life, soon after high
school, when a person is beginning to become independant and forming a life for
themselves. Sz has many different forms and faces, but also has very predictable
symptoms and progression and although the illness is very destructive, it is on
average very treatable when diagnosed. In the past, there has been very many
“stigmas” or rumors about this illness and it has been widely misunderstood and
because of that, it has been very hard for people suffering from scizophrenia.
The word “schizophrenia” has a greek origin, schizo” meaning splitting and
“phrenia” meaning of the mind. This term can be misinterpreted and confused with
the idea of split-personality disorders, so even its name could be partially blamed
for the stigmas surrouding the illness. Sz was first described in 1896 in a study by
German psychiatrist, Dr. Emil Kraepelin. The term he coined was “dementia
praecox” or precocious mental deterioration.
It is still very unclear what causes Sz, although there are many theories as to
how this illness develops. The first theory is that it is a hereditary or genetic
disease. It has been noted that Sz seems to run in families and it is possible that you
inherit a tendancy to develop this illness. Similarily to other genetic illnesses, Sz
surfaces when the body is undergoing major physical and hormonal changes like
during puberty, and in the young adult years. Another theory is that schizophrenia is
caused by a chemical imbalance. People with Sz either produce too much or have a
high sensitivity to the chemical, dopamine, which is a neurotransmitter that allows
nerve cells in the brain to send messages to each other. An imbalance of this
chemical interferes with the way that the brain interprets certain stimuli and that
causes the person to be overwhelmed by sensory information. This problem of
processing sounds, tastes, smells, sights and feelings can also lead to hallucinations
or delusions. Another less common theory is that scizophrenia is caused by
problems during pregnancy or viral infections. Some researchers insist that poor
nutrition and care during pregnacy can be a major cause of Sz.
When Sz first begins to develop, the person might start to feel antisocial or
depressed. Observers might think that the person is becoming lazier and more
apathetic than usual and this could be interpreted as just rude behavior instead of an
illness. Symptoms of the illness are referred to as “positive” and “negative”. Positive
symptoms are characteristics that are not experienced by the average person like
delusions, disorganized thinking, agitation and hallucinations while negative
symptoms are characteristics that the average person has but are lacked by the ill
person. Lack of motivation and drive, social withdrawl, depression, lack of emotion
and expression are just to name a few.
The positive symptoms are what people tend to associate with schizophrenia
and the most widely known symptom is the experiencing of hallucinations. These
hallucinations can come in many forms. The most common form of hallucinations
are those of auditory nature. The person might hear odd noises or voices that
comment on the actions and behaviors of the individual. These voices might tell the
person to do things and therefore could be very potentially dangerous, seeing that
these voices are virtually impossible to ignore or resist. Another form of
hallucination are those of the visual nature. These can greatly attribute to delusional
behavior and seriously confuse or scare the individual. Other hallucinations include
smell or afactory hallucinations, sematic hallucinations or pains, and taste or
gustatory hallucinations.
Another very common symptom associated with Sz is the experience of
delusions. These are fantasies that cannot be dispelled no matter how little
evidence there is to support them. Many people become paranoid that others are
talking about them or that others can read their thoughts. Thought broadcasting or
telepathy is another common delusion as well as the person believing that they are
rich and famous.
Other common symptoms that friends and family should be aware of are
eccentric dressing, decreased lack of intrest in personal hygiene, intense obsession
with religion or philosphy and noticable increase or decrease in the sensitivity to
other people, although these symptoms can just seem like the regular behavior of an
average