Echoes of thoughts and 7 more signs that you have a schizophrenic

What is schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a complex mental illness with many forms. Its main feature is that a person's idea of reality and his personality changes.

Where schizophrenia comes from, no one can say for sure. Most likely, genetics is to blame for everything. But illness or stress can help her.

Unfortunately, a lot of people just don't make it to the experts. This is due to fears and myths about psychiatry, and to the fact that schizophrenics do not consider themselves sick. A person with such a disorder is confident that he is healthy. Or that great truths were revealed to him, or that his great mission in the world is more important than the daily hustle and bustle.

With weak signs of schizophrenia, a person does not receive psychiatric help, and the disease gradually progresses and subjugates his life.

Schizophrenia is one of the most common diagnoses in psychiatry. But not every psychiatrist will be able to understand its forms. For an ordinary person, the main thing is to notice dangerous signs and either reach the doctor, or help the patient and persuade him to be examined.

How schizophrenia begins

The initial signs of schizophrenia are difficult to see. Most often it manifests itself at the age of 18–35. But you can always get sick.

Sometimes the first signs of schizophrenia appear in childhood or adolescence. Then the strangeness of behavior is attributed to the transitional age or to character traits.

A person becomes isolated, communicates little with people, does not make contact and loses interest in what previously pleased him. Sometimes physical sensations are dulled: the patient does not notice hunger, forgets to wash and change clothes. Unexpected emotions appear: for example, a request to transfer salt can cause irritation, aggression.

All of this would fit the description of a rebellious teenager, a child under stress, or a person weakened by an illness.

The signs listed above are not a reason for a diagnosis, but just a warning that it is worth talking to a loved one and, perhaps, going to a psychologist to overcome stress and trauma.

Is it worth dragging a person to a psychiatrist about every whim or because the relationship has soured? No. Attempts to find a disease where it does not exist are even worse than the disease itself.

The main signs of schizophrenia

True schizophrenia has two types of symptoms: major and minor. To make a diagnosis, you need either one large symptom or two small ones.

Major symptoms of schizophrenia

Echo of thoughts … The patient believes that others can control his thoughts: read them, erase them, or, conversely, put strangers into his head. This is not a funny idea like "What would happen if my mind was read", but the certainty that it is.
Delusions of impact. The person believes that he is being controlled. Programmed, hypnotized, or beamed. Sometimes a schizophrenic thinks this way about other people: everyone has already been deceived, he alone sees the truth.
Vocal hallucinations. The patient may understand that the voices in his head only seem to him, or may not be aware of this, talk with an invisible interlocutor. The voice can simply communicate and tell something, or it can give instructions.
Crazy ideas, in which the patient truly believes. In the conspiracy of the reptilians, saving the world from aliens, encrypted messages from unknown civilizations, and so on.

Minor symptoms of schizophrenia

Persistent hallucinations (not just vocal) … Most often these are illusions, when the brain completes reality. For example, it seems to the patient that hooves are growing on the streets or that the scarf on the chair is alive.
Incomprehensible speech … The patient explains something very important to him, but it is impossible to understand him. There is no logical connection between the phrases, but the person does not notice this. Sometimes the patient uses words that he himself invented to name the phenomena that exist in his head: “There are exactly 340 steps from the house to the corner. And yesterday the gabags were digging up the balcony!"
Slow reactions … The patient does not respond to others, falls into a stupor up to complete immobility. A person can sit and look at one point.
Negative symptoms … They are called negative because some skill or skill is lost. A person loses emotions, interest in work, communicates little with people.

These signs are a clear reason to go to the doctor and figure out what is happening and how to return to reality.

What to do if a person has signs of schizophrenia

Some forms of schizophrenia lead to flare-ups. Roughly speaking, these are periods of illness when the symptoms are especially pronounced and the person falls out of reality.

Patients do not understand what they are doing, they are in their own world, therefore it is impossible to predict their behavior. In the worst-case scenario, the schizophrenic wakes up aggression directed at himself or at other people.

What to do? Call doctors. In the meantime, they are going, try to establish a trusting contact and calm the person down.

Do not prove to the patient that he is wrong, that the voices in his head only seem to him, or that he is delirious.

First, he won't believe it. Secondly, it will write you down as an enemy. But something completely different is needed.

Better try to understand what exactly the person seems to be, and play along. If the patient believes that the world has been invaded by reptilians and is eager to save the planet, tell them that you are an agent against aggressors and will now make him your colleague.

Sometimes a person does not lose touch with reality, but there are symptoms. The most difficult thing is to persuade him to go through the examination, but it is necessary. Unfortunately, no one will tell you exactly how to do this. If the patient refuses to go to the doctor, try to invite the doctor at home, contact private clinics. The main thing is to get to the treatment.

Modern therapies are good enough to successfully treat schizophrenia.