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Show DAvu jillions Schizophrenic Tireatmeiiit Helps Msuniy . Note. An article on schizophrenia appeared in . h,mn'a few weeks ago. Today's article presents ! r noint of view , one that suggests that there are ' rcesi in our community to aid families in coping. . resources comments are welcome and JJbe addressed to: P.O. Box 689, Farmington, - Lull I More than two million Americans (about 1 . every 100) have suffered at one time or ' ther from the mental disorder of schi-i schi-i zoohrenia. In the past, patients with schi- zoohrenia often spent many years in mental nitals. With availability of effective .; Bsychotherapeutic drugs, a growing number :, f community-based treatment centers, and improved treatment strategies , , it is no w pos-: pos-: ibe to maintain the majority of schizophre- - ic patjents in their communities. Yet despite ;,' ese advances and the large number of peo- 0ie affected, schizophrenia remains poorly V understood and largely feared by the public. SCHIZOPHRENIA is withdrawal from , reality, characterized by disordered thinking, unuSU'al perceptions and hallucinations, I ambivalence (bizarre love-hate feelings), and ' jnappropriate emotion which doesn't seem to ! . j, (he situation (laughing at a funeral). Most t: patients start to have the illness in their late teens, and with every psychotic episode, the person deteriorates a little bit more. The schizophrenic behavior can be grandiose, gran-diose, intimidating, rigid, silly, scary, agitated, agi-tated, withdrawn, unhappy, seemingly uncaring un-caring and unloving. If the onset of the illness is gradual, the prognosis is worse. THERE IS no single cause of schizophrenia. schizophre-nia. No "bad gene" has been found; no biochemical defect has been proven responsible; respon-sible; no one stressful event (such as a death in the family) seems sufficient, by itself, to produce such a shattering disorder as schizophrenia. schi-zophrenia. But scientists agree that it is likely that combinations of cultural, psychological, biological, and genetic factors produce schizophrenia. schi-zophrenia. The symptoms almost always are relieved in a fairly short time by neuroleptic medications medica-tions such as haldol, prolixin, thorazine, trila-fon, trila-fon, and others. However, the underlying deterioration, de-terioration, withdrawal, and joylessness remains. re-mains. YET THE outlook for schizophrenic patients pa-tients has improved over the last 25 years. Studies that have followed schizophrenic pa tients for long periods, from the first breakdown break-down to old age, reveal that a range of outcomes out-comes is possible. A review of almost 2,000 such patients' life histories suggests that 25 percent achieve full recovery, 50 percent recover re-cover at least partially, and 25 percent require re-quire lifelong care. (Schizophrenia: is there an answer? DHHS Publication No. (ADM) 81-74, 1981). At present there is no "cure" for schizophrenia. schi-zophrenia. Indeed it is probably unrealistic to expect cure in the sense of complete restoration restora-tion to former functioning. One would expect "scars" or changes from the pre-illness personality. per-sonality. Much as a survivor of a fire, the schizophrenic has lived through a powerful experience, and one should not expect him to remain untouched by it. IN THE PAST two years, there has been a national alliance support group formed, as well as many local family and friend support groups. The families are often left out of the process of rehabilitating the patient because they are ignorant of how to communicate with professionals, and many have unrealis-. tic expectations. As these groups learn more about the illness, they can become strong advocate groups for better care and can help with the socialization and dependency needs of their child. Davis County has such a group which meets in Farmington every third Wednesday of the month and more often if necessary. The advice and support of other families and friends give unmeasurable help to those persons per-sons who go through one crisis after another with their loved family member. The mental pain and anguish are not comprehended by anyone who has not experienced this process personally. THERE ARE some new books that have been written recently which help one to understand how to cope with schizophrenia: "Understanding and Helping the Schizophrenic," Schi-zophrenic," by Silvano Arieti, MD. "You Are Not Alone," by Park and Shapiro. "Coping "Cop-ing with Schizophrenia: A Survival Manual," by Wasaw. "The Caring Family," by Beale, Bernheim and Lewine. "Families in Pain," by Vine. Accurate information may help to remove misconceptions and thereby reduce the irrational irra-tional fear, shame and hopelessness too often associated with schizophrenia. |
