Schizophreniform disorder
is a mental disorder characterized by a transitory psychotic episode.
The most common symptoms are: delusions,
hallucinations, catatonic behavior, social withdrawal, and disorganized speech.
Other symptoms may include: lack of energy, poor hygiene, apathy, etc. These
are all very similar to schizophrenia, but they will disappear spontaneously
after 1-2 months (but less than 6 months).
V. Magnan described this disorder in the 19th century as one
with an unexpected debut, unsystematic symptoms, and delirium prone to mystical
and persecutory themes, aprosexia, and spatiotemporal confusion.
The prevalence of schizophreniform disorder is distributed
among sexes equally, but the peak onset will be between ages of 18-24 years in
men and 24-35 years in women.
Prognosis
If the symptoms persist beyond 6 months we no longer face a
schizophreniform disorder diagnosis, but one of schizophrenia. There is also a
significant risk associated with schizophreniform patients, especially if they
go into a depression after their psychotic episodes. This is where
psychotherapy may help patients understand their psychotic episodes and it is
likely to improve the prognosis and recovery as patients are less prone to
experience relapse.
I. Barrelet published a statistical prognosis regarding this
disorder in 1986 showing the following evolution: 1 out of 7 cases are actually signs of schizophrenia,
1 out of 4 cases was the sign of bipolar
disorder psychosis, and in 1 out of 10 cases it was an acute symptom of bipolar
disorder. However, despite this statistic, prognosis is usually optimistic. A
relapse is influenced by physical health, use of substances and alcohol, family
history, environment, and other episodes.
Scary !!! (It's a voice in my head talking - just joking!)
ReplyDeleteWow - that is scary. I can only imagine what it must be like and it's so heart breaking to those who have it and their families.
ReplyDeleteAre you always so melodramatic? Jesus Christ.
Deletehi andreea, for a while, momentarily, i thought i experience this mental disorder too, after reading the symptoms like delusions, hallucinations, social withdrawals and lack of energy...but when i read the part on poor hygiene and disorganized speech, i knew for sure i am not ill ...ha ha,
ReplyDelete"Disorganized speech" is just how a shrink describes anything he doesn't want to hear. Just a typical-shrink weasel-word.
DeletePoor hygiene? I'm a Massage Therapist in the most wealthy and privileged country in the world, and I don't mind telling you that if poor hygiene is an indication of schizotypal disorders, then 90% of Americans are afflicted.
hello Andreea I'm glad your back..ok been there..done that..oh no your saying I had it once?..been into too much depression, hallucinations, social withdrawals, and I didn't eat for about four days,disorganized speech..it happened when my daughter and I where physically abused by my exhusband and I was 32 then so I am on the age bracket scary..it's good at least now I am ok..I was a little bit scared while reading this post..I should be careful.
ReplyDeleteThe abuse by your husband, while unpleasant, induced the beginnings of a process of primal awakening of all the feelings of your true individual self that have been sublimated your entire life. Abuse is bad, but sudden trauma often brings up these sublimated primal feelings.
DeleteBut, if you have a kid, you're hopelessly integrated into the organized structure of conventional society, and obligated to immerse yourself in the effort to maintain your culturally conditioned sense of identity. NO PRIMAL AWAKENING FOR YOU, sorry!
I think I had that disorder in 18 years of age but that happened for 2 months. I was not able to speech and deal any social matter for a very little time. I think that was due to deep thinking (depresion). But then In a workshop by our organization I learned of mediation budist trick and tried only 3 time and got peace.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations. Your true animal-self was merely involved in a painful process of trying to break through your cultural conditioning, and you learned a trick to stifle it with more culturally conditioned pseudo-spiritual BULLSHIT.
DeleteGood for you, I'm sure your family was delighted to get their 'good little girl' back.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtLXGQu-OF4
LOL, I have had this a few times and it's really not that big of a deal. It was merely a necessary part of breaking my personality apart into the "real me" and the things I truly feel vs: the "fake me" of who other people thought I was supposed to be and who my subconscious didn't want to be but thought I had to pretend to be in order to live among others, the conditioning that comes from outside social and cultural sources but isn't me at all and was only ever intended to keep me away from the real me.
ReplyDeleteIt was just a process of letting go of all the parts of me that weren't real, but had only been constructed to try to fit into "normal life" with "normal people". The solution was merely to learn to accept myself the way that I truly am, admit that it's okay to be the way I really want to be, because the truth is I am anything but a "normal person", and it's okay because there's nothing at all about the way I really am that could harm any other person or living being.
Our culture constantly preaches to "be different, be yourself!", but what it really means is "be unconventional or eccentric in ways that are validating of other peoples' 'normalcy'", and "be yourself, as long as it doesn't disturb other peoples' notion of your obligation to validate them by being who they want you to be."
Or "Be a rebellious nonconfomist, as long as you buy the right nonconformist products and look and act the way we expect a nonconformist to act, you Rebel, you!" (for example,OWS, anyone? see what I mean?)
They mean, "Be different, but not too different! Be yourself, as long as that doesn't mean you stop being who we need you to be, you precious and unique Consumer Unit/member of our family/co-worker/lover. Be different, but only in ways that are cool and compatible with OUR needs!"
It's not really respectful of the individual, quite the opposite; it's oppressive, condescending, infuriating, dishonest, and INESCAPABLE. Sooner or later something's gotta give, that's all.
But, I was lucky. I am willing to do an unconventional job in order to avoid close contact with others, to choose doing drugs with myself instead of enduring other peoples' boring, obtuse company, and generally accept that being alone and crazy is preferable to being with the rest of you and being crazIER. It's a process, and I cherish it.
Most of what shrinks and society refer to as "terrifying psychotic/schizotypal episodes" are really nothing more than the struggle of the true individual personality against cultural and societal structures which pretend to respect individuality while not respecting it at all. The hypocrisy and dishonesty naturally just periodically become intolerable, and a "break-down" is often nothing more than the individual's true character attempting to "break-through" all the BULLSHIT.
Have you ever read case studies on treatment of schizophrenia? It's nothing more than a ridiculous and condescending process of replacing an unacceptable, unworkable delusion with a slightly more acceptable, slightly more workable delusion. Shrinks are as useless as politicians.
This is probably the most intelligent comment I ever got on my blog. Thanks for reading it, I've been fantasizing about a reader like you, to come and put things into a different perspective.
DeleteAlthough I agree with your point, yes society wants us in one way or another and we are allowed to act rebellious in a limited way;however, some serious mental issues need treatment with medication otherwise the patient's condition will get worse. I'm just talking from a medical point of view, like they might lose contact with reality completely or their cognitive function might get worse.
But for other aspects, people are allowed to do whatever they want, I don't care if someone talks with the voices in their head or they are completely eccentric. It's everybody's right to live their life the way they want to.And let's be honest, nobody is different, we are all part of a category if people which may be more popular or not, but I'm sure there's a stereotype for everyone out there. I hate this be different need of people nowadays, like they get validated if they simply reject whatever is popular or actively try to present the complete opposite of characteristics desired by society. Society is shit, but acting completely against you is also part of it. Whatever we do, it has been done.
"This is probably the most intelligent comment I ever got on my blog. Thanks for reading it, I've been fantasizing about a reader like you, to come and put things into a different perspective."
Delete--LOL, ouch, and I thought I was the master of subtly-brutal sarcasm! I bow to you, ma'am!
"Whatever we do, it has been done. "
--totally agree, but I do love the cultural phenomenon of generational compartmentalization, don't you? As if babyboomers invented self-reliance, as if hippies invented drugs and compassion, as if the current porno-generation invented sex--it's all just so silly!
Yes,I absolutely love that. it's silly but entertaining. Sometimes I'm amazed of how generally stupid people can be. How they find validation in these matters. A few days ago I looked at some FB profiles of people considered "succesful" by the society, it made me so sad. Proactive, superficial, sociable idiots; yes, a bit over average in intelligence, but not enough to actually see what's going on, but enough to be arrogant idiots.
DeleteI used to get angry on this, make fun of them and hate them with a passion, but it's not worth it anymore.
The confluence between traits which make a successful business man and which qualify someone as a psychopath have been noted by several researchers of late, and I find an absurd validation in seeing that others are also noticing something I've been acutely aware of my whole life.
DeleteI saw a History Channel special a few weeks ago, I'll try to link it, about "Were the Great Leaders of the Past Actually Psychopaths?!?!" with horror-movie music and all. In it, a psychologist makes a chart eventually absolving all conventionally accepted (in the western world) great leaders as "Great leaders and not psychopaths, despite their mass-killing, because they were just killing-with-a-goal", while classifying all Leaders who've ever stood against the leaders of the Western world as bloodthirsty, psychopathic tyrants. I love how psychologists split-hairs to absolve behaviors in one individual while classifying the exact same behavior as a 'disorder'in another. It did make me yell at the TV; such blatant propaganda is ridiculously intellectually condescending, and would be laughable, if it weren't so effective.
GWBush: over a million Iraqi civilians dead for reasons of pure western hubris; Great Leader.
Gaddafi: killed some dissidents in an effort to maintain order while he brought his country up from the mud and chaos left by western wars, shared the oil wealth of the nation directly with it's people, gave free healthcare and housing and education to citizens, as well as employment opportunities for immigrants from neighboring economically devastated countries; bloodthirsty tyrant.
I think this is the one, or something similar:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancients_Behaving_Badly
As Vonnegut said, 'so it goes...'
So psychopaths are either killing us or ruling us. Great.
DeletePsychologists depress me; I have a bachelor's degree in Psychology and I never met people so stupid. Besides a few people, most of them were women who thought they will get to manipulate others and becomes some sort of mind-controlling bimbos or men who thought they might get more fucking if they become psychologists. Also, they lacked critical thinking and most of them were still quoting the "our brain only works at 1/2/10% capacity", although it probably applied to them.
Besides the fact that they work like the mob and the referencing system and getting into the field is absolutely crazy, they are positive, brainless, idiots all looking for the creative and different in you. They pride themselves that they don't judge but stereotyping and prejudice are the essential characteristics of their thinking pattern. It would be extremely hard for me to work in that field.
PS:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtLXGQu-OF4
I mean really, "poor hygiene" as an indication of mental illness?
ReplyDeleteMOST people (especially men, but women too)are revealed to have absolutely awful hygiene once you get their clothes off.
Offer to have casual sex with almost any man, from any walk of life, be he a business-suit or a laborer, and you'll usually find he's got raging diaper-rash from not keeping himself clean once you get his clothes off; and if, god-forbid, you go through with sex in spite of it, know that he will not shower afterward.
People are just generally disgusting, and thinly-disguised mental illness is just the natural state of the typical human being. The longer people live, the more horrible odors they produce, and the less time they spend cleaning them off. That's why I'm a a staunch advocate of dying young.
I can't wait for Logan's Run to be an accepted version of society.
It's not the only indicator, let's not be extreme about it. It's among the "other symptoms". Just like any other disease, it may help to get a clear diagnostic, just like headaches on their own are not an indicator of a brain tumor, but associated with seizures, hearing loss, fatigue or motor loss may be a strong indicator of brain tumor.
DeleteYou're right, I'm being a bit facetious now out of boredom, but thank you for indulging me.
DeleteBtw, "the lives of the philosophers" was in a collection called "The View From the Seventh Layer" if you want to check it out. I found it for a dollar in a used-book bin totally at random, I just love it when I find an unexpected gem like that.
Like finding your blog. <3
You mean this http://www.amazon.com/View-Seventh-Layer-Vintage-Contemporaries/dp/0307387763
DeleteBelaboring the point now, but I just had to mention this to you anyway.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058294/
GREAT movie, I thought, and something you might really enjoy if you haven't already seen it.
I generally detest being around other people, but right now I am actually wishing I could smoke a joint and watch this with you to witness your take on it. I don't want to give too much away and spoil it for you, but if you get the chance to see it, watch the character of the Director/Lead Psychiatrist of the Institution. I got the feeling he was much more aware and in control of the situation than he ever let on, and I loved that.
That looks like a really cool movie; I'm going to probably watch it this week; also I got the book you told me about today in electronic format(I know you recommended it to me on another occasion)and I'm probably going to read it during my 6 hour train ride later. Thanks :)
Deletethat's kew!
Deletehave a safe trip.