Guest Author - Carissa Vaughn

Schizophrenia is a diagnosis distinguished by symptoms that show one has an altered perception of reality, commonly followed by hallucinations, and variant forms of delusional or disorganized thinking and speech.

There are different types of this disorder that can manifest. The following types are listed by the DSM IV, a common diagnostic tool.

Catatonic type: People with catatonic schizophrenia display extreme inactivity or activity that's disconnected from their environment or encounters with other people (catatonic behavior). These episodes can last for only minutes or up to hours.

Disorganized type: This type is characterized by marked disorganized behavior and speech including word salad (random speech consisting of a mixture of words not making sense), and flat or inappropriate emotion and mood. Unlike the paranoid subtype of schizophrenia, delusions and hallucinations are not the most prominent feature, although scattered delusions and hallucinations may be present.

Paranoid type: People with paranoid schizophrenia hold false beliefs(delusions)or may experience auditory and visual hallucinations.

Residual type: This type is defined as a chronic stage in the development of a schizophrenic disorder in which there has been a clear progression from an early stage (comprising one or more episodes with psychotic symptoms meeting the general criteria for schizophrenia described above) to a later stage characterized by long-term, though not necessarily irreversible, "negative" symptoms.

Undifferentiated type: Undifferentiated-type schizophrenia is characterized by some symptoms seen in all of the above types but not enough of any one of them to define it as another particular type of schizophrenia.

Symptoms of schizophrenia will indeed vary from one individual to another, depending on the severity, length and medical complications involved. These symptoms are defined as either positive, or negative.

Positive symptoms include unusual thoughts or perceptions, including hallucinations, delusions, thought disorder, and disorders of movement. Positive symptoms are easy-to-spot behaviors not seen in healthy people and usually involve a loss of contact with reality. They include hallucinations, delusions, thought disorder, and disorders of movement. Positive symptoms can come and go. Sometimes they are severe and at other times hardly noticeable, depending on whether the individual is receiving treatment.

Negative symptoms refer to a decrease in normal emotional and behavioral states. The Nat'l Institue of Mental Health (NIMH) includes the following symptoms: flat affect (immobile facial expression, monotonous voice), lack of pleasure in everyday life, diminished ability to initiate and sustain planned activity, and speaking infrequently, even when forced to interact.

An important fact the NIMH points out is that "people with schizophrenia often neglect basic hygiene and need help with everyday activities. Because it is not as obvious that negative symptoms are part of a psychiatric illness, people with schizophrenia are often perceived as lazy and unwilling to better their lives."

There are many treatments and medications available at this time to treat the disorder. With consistent monitoring, medication compliance and an awareness of themselves one can continue to live a fulfilling life. New research and trends and observations of treatment can bring hope to the patient and to the family members supportingly involved.