3 Ways to Live with Schizophrenia

2024 Author: Jason Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 10:50

Living a normal and happy life with schizophrenia isn't easy, but it's not impossible. To achieve this, you need to find one or more treatment methods that work for you, take control of your life by avoiding stressors, and create a support system for yourself. Don't despair if you are diagnosed with schizophrenia. Instead, manage your own strength and face this condition bravely. In addition, there is also valuable guidance or information on how to live with someone with schizophrenia.

Step

Method 1 of 1: Seeking Treatment

Step 1. Start early

Don't delay starting treatment for schizophrenia. If you haven't been officially diagnosed, see a medical professional as soon as you notice your symptoms, so you can start a treatment program right away. The earlier you start treatment, the better the results. Symptoms of this condition tend to appear in men in their early or mid-20s, and in women in their late 20s. Signs of schizophrenia include::

• suspicious feeling
• unnatural or strange thoughts, for example believing that someone close to you is plotting to harm you
• hallucinations, or changes in sensory experiences, for example, seeing, feeling, smelling, hearing, or feeling things that other people in the same situation as you are not experiencing
• disorganized way of speaking or thinking
• "negative" symptoms (i.e. a reduction in usual behavior or function), such as decreased emotion, reduced eye contact, lack of facial expression, neglect of personal hygiene, and/or withdrawal from social interactions
• Disorganized or abnormal motor behavior, such as an inappropriate body position or excessive or aimless movement.

Step 2. Learn the risk factors

There are several factors that make a person at increased risk of suffering from schizophrenia:

• have a family history of schizophrenia
• taking mind-altering drugs as a teenager or young
• experience certain things while being conceived in the mother's womb, for example exposure to viruses or toxic substances
• increased activation of the immune system against things like burns.

Step 3. See your doctor to discuss the treatment

Unfortunately, schizophrenia is not easy to cure at all. Treatment will be an important part of your life, and setting up a treatment program will help you turn it into a normal part of your daily life. To develop a treatment program, consult with your doctor about the most suitable medications and therapies for your specific condition.

Remember that everyone is different. Not every type of treatment or therapy will work for everyone, and you should keep trying to find the one that works best for you

Step 4. Ask your doctor for available treatment options

Do not try to determine the type of treatment that is right for you just by reading on the internet. There is so much information available online, and not all of it is accurate. Instead, talk to your doctor, who can determine which treatment is most appropriate for you. Your symptoms, age, and previous medical history will play a very important role in this process of determining the right treatment.

• If this medication you are taking makes you feel uncomfortable, tell your doctor. Your doctor can adjust your dose or recommend a different medication for you to try.
• Drugs commonly used to treat symptoms of schizophrenia are antipsychotic drugs, which act on the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin.

• Atypical antipsychotic drugs tend to cause fewer side effects and are usually preferred because of this. Examples are:

  • Aripiprazole ("Abilify")
  • Asenapine ("Saphris")
  • Clozapine ("Clozaril")
  • Iloperidone ("Fanapt")
  • Lurasidone ("Latuda")
  • Olanzapine ("Zyprexa")
  • Paliperidone ("Invega")
  • Quetiapine ("Seroquel")
  • Risperidone ("Risperdal")
  • Ziprasidone ("Geodon")

• First-generation antipsychotic drugs tend to cause more side effects (which can be permanent), although they are less expensive. Examples are:

  • Chlorpromazine ("Thorazine")
  • Fluphenazine ("Prolixin", "Modecate")
  • Haloperidol ("Haldol")
  • Perphenazine ("Trilafon")

Step 5.

Try psychotherapy.

Psychotherapy helps you stay on the treatment program while helping you understand yourself and your condition. Talk to your doctor about the type of psychotherapy he thinks is right for you. However, it is important to remember that psychotherapy alone cannot cure schizophrenia. Some common examples of psychotherapy include:

• Individual psychotherapy: This therapy involves you meeting one-on-one with a therapist to talk about your feelings, problems you are having, and your relationships, among other topics. The therapist will try to teach you how to deal with everyday problems and understand your condition better.
• Family learning: This is a method for you and your family members to go through therapy together so that everyone in the family can learn to understand your condition and try to communicate and interact effectively with each other.
• Cognitive therapy is also beneficial for people with schizophrenia. However, the most important thing is that psychotherapy combined with medical treatment is the most effective way to treat schizophrenia.

Think about getting involved in a community approach. If you have been hospitalized for this condition, you may want to consider a community approach, such as assertive community treatment (ACT), or community-based assertive care. This approach will help you reinvent yourself in society and get the support you need while redeveloping your daily habits and social interactions.

• ACT involves a cross-disciplinary team who jointly conduct testing and intervention in various forms. Members of this team, for example, are substance abuse specialists, occupational rehabilitation specialists, and nurses.
• To find information about the nearest ACT location to you, do an online search with the keywords "assertive community treatment + your city or area," or ask your doctor for recommendations.

Take Control of Your Life

1. Keep taking your medicines. People with schizophrenia usually stop their own medication. However, there are several ways to stay on the medication, especially when you want to stop:

   

   • Remind yourself that this medication will treat you for this schizophrenic condition, even if it doesn't cure it at all. This means that in order to continue to feel better, you will still have to take medication.

   • Use whatever social support you have, ask family and friends when you feel fine to encourage them to keep taking the drug when you want to stop.

     You can write a message to yourself in the future, asking you to continue your medication and why it is so (because it's a treatment, not a cure), and ask family members to read it to you when you want to stop medication

2. Try to accept your condition. Accepting your condition will help make your recovery experience easier. On the other hand, denying reality or thinking that your condition will go away on its own will only make it worse. Therefore, it is very important that you start treatment and accept the following two facts:

   

   • Yes, you do have schizophrenia and this condition will be difficult to deal with.
   • Yes, you can have a normal and happy life.
   • Receiving your diagnosis is important so you can get treatment, but being willing to fight for a normal life can help you get the life you want.

3. Remind yourself that there is always a way to live a normal life. The initial shock of receiving this diagnosis will indeed be very heavy for the patient and his family. A normal life is possible, but it will take time to adjust to your condition and find a treatment program that is right for you.

   

   People with schizophrenia who undergo treatment and therapy may succeed in greatly reducing the problems they experience in terms of social interaction, maintaining a job, having a family, and actually succeeding in achieving achievements in life

4. Avoid your stressors. Schizophrenia often occurs when you are under a certain level of stress by a stressor. Therefore, if you have this condition, it is very important that you avoid things that can stress you out and make your symptoms recur. There are many ways to deal with stress, and you can choose the one that's right for you.

   

   • Everyone has their own stressors. Going into therapy will help you identify the things that are causing you stress, whether it's a particular person, situation, or place. Once you know your stressors, do your best to avoid them if possible.
   • You can also practice relaxation techniques, such as meditation or deep breathing.

5. Do exercise regularly. Exercise will not only relieve the body from stress, but also release endorphins that increase the sense of well-being.

   

   Try listening to uplifting music while you exercise

6. Get enough sleep. Lack of sleep at night will lead to stress and anxiety. Make sure that you get enough sleep at night. Determine how many hours of sleep you need to get adequate rest, and stick to that guideline.

   

   If you're having trouble sleeping, try making your entire room dark and quiet by blocking out outside sounds or wearing eye patches and earplugs. Do a certain routine every night

7. Eat healthy food. Unhealthy food can make you feel negative, and this will increase stress. So, it is very important that you eat right to fight stress.

   

   • Try to eat lean meats, nuts, fruits, and vegetables.
   • Healthy eating means adopting a balanced diet. Avoid consuming too much of one type of food.

8. Try cognitive techniques. While it can't replace therapy or therapists, there are cognitive techniques you can try to relieve your symptoms.

   

   • For example, you can use the normalization technique. In this technique, you view your psychotic experiences as part of life as it goes on and also contains other normal experiences. You also recognize that everyone has a different experience than normal every day. This may be useful until you feel less isolated and "branded" as schizophrenic, which will have a positive impact on your health.
   • To deal with voice hallucinations, for example, if you hear certain voices, try to list all the evidence against the instructions in the voice. For example, if a voice tells you to do something negative (e.g. stealing), list the reasons that stealing is bad (e.g., you could get in trouble, it violates social norms, it harms others, most people will oppose theft, etc.). Then don't listen to that voice.

9. Try distraction techniques. If you're having hallucinations, try distracting yourself in certain ways, such as listening to music or making art. Do your best to completely immerse yourself in this distraction, to block unwanted experiences.

   

10. Fight "slanted" thoughts. To deal with the social anxiety that can accompany schizophrenia, try to identify and then counter "tilt" thoughts. For example, if you think that "everyone in this room is watching me," try to counter that thought by asking if it's true. Just scan the entire room and find the evidence. Is everyone really watching you? Ask yourself how much attention you pay to someone who is simply walking in front of other people.

    

    Also remind yourself that in a room full of many people, these people's attention is very likely to be swirling among themselves, making it almost impossible for them to focus solely on you

11. Keep yourself busy. Once you get your symptoms under control through medication and therapy, get back to your normal life and keep yourself busy. Idle time can trigger you to think about stressful things, so that your symptoms will recur. To stay busy, do these things:

    

    • Try to do your job to the best of your ability.
    • Arrange your time to be enjoyed with family and friends too.
    • Take up a new hobby.
    • Help a friend or volunteer somewhere.

12. Do not consume too much caffeine. The spike in your caffeine intake will make the "positive" symptoms of schizophrenia worse (for example, delusions and hallucinations increase). However, if you are used to consuming a lot of caffeine, stopping it or continuing to consume it will not have any effect on your symptoms. The key is to avoid sudden big changes in your caffeine consumption habits. The recommended serving is no more than 400 mg per person per day. However, remember that the chemical elements in each person's body are different. His history with caffeine is also different, so your body's tolerance level may be higher or lower than this recommended portion.

    

13. Avoid alcohol. Alcohol consumption is associated with worse treatment outcomes, worsening symptoms, and more frequent hospital stays. You're better off quitting alcohol altogether.

    

Creating a Support System for Yourself

1. Spend time with people who understand your condition. It's important that you spend time with people who know your condition, so you don't have to feel stressed about having to explain your condition to people who don't know. Give your time to people who are empathetic, sincere, and caring.

   

   Avoid people who are insensitive to your condition and tend to stress you out

2. Try not to avoid social experiences. You may find it very difficult to muster the energy and calm to interact with others in social situations, but this is important. Humans are social creatures, and being with other people makes our brains release chemicals that make us feel safe and happy.

   

   Take time to do the things you love with the people you love

3. Express your emotions and fears to people you trust. Schizophrenia can make you feel isolated, so talking to a trusted friend about what you're going through will help combat these feelings. Sharing experiences and feelings can be an excellent and helpful therapy for relieving stress.

   

   You should still share your experience, even if the person listening may not have any input or advice. Just expressing your thoughts and feelings will help you feel more calm and in control

4. Join a support group. When it comes to accepting schizophrenia as a part of your life, joining a support group has many benefits. Understanding that other people have problems similar to yours and finding ways to deal with those problems will help you understand and accept your own condition.

   

   Participating in a support group will also make you more confident in your own abilities and less afraid of the condition and its impact on your life

   Tips

   • Living with schizophrenia doesn't have to be as chaotic as many people imagine. While being diagnosed with this condition can be hard for both the sufferer and his family, your life doesn't have to change drastically because of this condition.
   • As long as you accept your condition and are willing to do your best to stay on the treatment program, you can still lead a happy and prosperous life, even if you have schizophrenia.

   Warning

   Be aware that schizophrenia is associated with a higher rate of suicide than in the general population. If you have thoughts or ideas about suicide, it's important to seek help immediately to keep yourself safe

   1. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/basics/symptoms/con-20021077
   2. https://psychcentral.com/lib/living-with-schizophrenia/
   3. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/basics/symptoms/con-20021077
   4. https://psychcentral.com/lib/living-with-schizophrenia/
   5. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/basics/risk-factors/con-20021077
   6. Comer, J. R. (2008). "Abnormal psychology". (7th Ed.) Princeton University Press, pp. 518-523.
   7. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/basics/treatment/con-20021077
   8. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/basics/treatment/con-20021077
   9. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/basics/treatment/con-20021077
   10. https://psychcentral.com/lib/schizophrenia-treatment/
   11. https://www.webmd.com/schizophrenia/guide/schizophrenia-therapy
   12. https://psychcentral.com/lib/schizophrenia-treatment/
   13. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(13)62246-1/abstract
   14. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/schizophrenia/index.shtml
   15. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20819983
   16. Rector, N., Stolar, N., Grant, P. Schizophrenia: Cognitive Theory, Research, and Therapy. 2011
   17. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3792827/
   18. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3792827/
   19. https://psychcentral.com/lib/schizophrenia-treatment/
   20. Keefe, R., Harvey, P, Understanding Schizophrenia. 2010
   21. https://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2014/10/10/what-its-like-to-live-with-schizophrenia/
   22. https://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2014/10/10/what-its-like-to-live-with-schizophrenia/
   23. Allen, Francis. “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” (4th Ed.), American Psychological Association, 1990.pp. 507-511.
   24. Allen, Francis. “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” (4th Ed.), American Psychological Association, 1990.pp. 507-511.
   25. https://psychcentral.com/lib/discontinuing-psychiatric-medications-what-you-need-to-know/?all=1
   26. https://www.cmha.bc.ca/get-informed/mental-health-information/improving-mh
   27. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18505314
   28. https://www.cmha.bc.ca/get-informed/mental-health-information/improving-mh
   29. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18505314
   30. https://www.cmha.bc.ca/get-informed/mental-health-information/improving-mh
   31. https://www.cmha.bc.ca/get-informed/mental-health-information/improving-mh
   32. https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/schizophrenia/abcs-cognitive-behavioral-therapy-schizophrenia
   33. https://www.neomed.edu/academics/bestcenter/list-of-60-coping-strategies-for-hallucinations.pdf
   34. https://www.neomed.edu/academics/bestcenter/list-of-60-coping-strategies-for-hallucinations.pdf
   35. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2811142/
   36. https://ps.psychiatryonline.org/doi/pdf/10.1176/ps.49.11.1415
   37. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/caffeine/art-20045678
   38. https://ovidsp.tx.ovid.com/sp-3.16.0b/ovidweb.cgi?WebLinkFrameset=1&S=CBPIFPFCMGDDLBBBNCKKICMCIPMAAA00&returnUrl=ovidweb.cgi%3fMain%2bSearch%2bPage%3dhttp1%26S%DDILBBBNCPIFPIC%3dDBPMBBNCPIFCIC%3dlink %2fgraphics.tx.ovid.com%2fovftpdfs%2fFPDDNCMCICBBMG00%2ffs047%2fovft%2flive%2fgv038%2f00005053%2f00005053-198907000-00004.pdf&filename=Alcohol+Use+and+Abuse+in+Schizophrenia+3+spective +Study.&link_from=S.sh.29%7c1&pdf_key=FPDDNCMCICBBMG00&pdf_index=/fs047/ovft/live/gv038/00005053/00005053-198907000-00004&D=ovft
   39. Keefe, R., Harvey, P, Understanding Schizophrenia. 2010

   40. Allen, Francis. "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders". (4th Ed.), American Psychological Association, 1990.pp. 507-511.