Hearing the word “schizophrenia” may be devastating to patients, although they may not know what it signifies. The stigma of the illness might disrupt the flow of the initial interview if the clinician throws the diagnosis at the patient. Schizophrenia has serious consequences for both the patient and the doctors. This essay will delve into the concept of symptoms in schizophrenia and underline the implications for the patient’s treatment.
Akin, the patient, is given a provisional diagnosis of schizophrenia. It means that he actively exhibits one of the three positive symptoms and potentially one negative symptom of the disorder (Miller & Rockstroh, 2016). The former are hallucinations and delusions that were discussed as the general manifestations of psychosis, while the latter include social withdrawal, apathy, and loss of motivation (Lotterman, 2015). The difference between the two groups of syndromes is that the negative symptoms relate to the absence or reduction of normally present functions, while the positive symptoms are brand new behaviors for a patient (Marder, 2014). The negative symptoms also have a stronger effect on one’s functional sphere, affecting both neuro- and socio-cognitions (Lin et al., 2013). Thus, out of the two groups of schizophrenic symptoms, the negative ones appear to have a more debilitating impact.
After analyzing the symptoms, the question of how to treat them arises. The positive symptoms have a strong association with dopaminergic hyperactivity, so they can be treated with dopamine receptor blockers (Pogarell et al., 2012). Meanwhile, the negative symptoms seem to persist even with antipsychotic treatment (Kruse & Schulz, 2014). It does present a problem, as the positive symptoms can be mild and tolerable, while the negative symptoms affect one’s social and cognitive functions (Marder, 2014). Clozapine may be used, although it has several aggravating side effects (De Sousa & Shrivastava, 2020). Certain forms of psychotherapy, including cognitive-behavioral therapy and family-based therapy, are also recommended (Kern et al., 2014). In general, schizophrenia treatment largely depends on the individual and their susceptibility.
In conclusion, schizophrenia is a complex mental disorder with a variety of symptoms. Positive symptoms include behavioral changes along with hallucinations and delusions; they can be treated. Negative symptoms, consisting of motivation loss, blunting of effect, and social withdrawal, impact the cognitive sphere more significantly; there is no treatment as of now. However, medical intervention for positive symptoms might still have a positive effect on the patient’s well-being.
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