Symptoms - Schizophrenia - NHS

Schizophrenia changes how a person thinks and behaves. The condition may develop slowly. The first signs can be hard to identify as they often develop ... Skiptomaincontent Home Mentalhealth Mentalhealthconditions Schizophrenia Backto Schizophrenia Symptoms-Schizophrenia Schizophreniachangeshowaperson thinksandbehaves.Thecondition maydevelopslowly.Thefirstsignscanbehardtoidentifyastheyoftendevelopduringtheteenageyears. Symptoms suchasbecomingsociallywithdrawnandunresponsiveorchangesinsleepingpatternscanbemistakenforanadolescent"phase".Peopleoftenhaveepisodesofschizophrenia,duringwhichtheirsymptomsareparticularlysevere,followedbyperiodswheretheyexperiencefewornosymptoms.Thisisknownasacuteschizophrenia. PositiveandnegativesymptomsThesymptomsofschizophreniaareusuallyclassifiedinto:positivesymptoms–anychangeinbehaviourorthoughts,suchashallucinationsordelusionsnegativesymptoms–wherepeopleappeartowithdrawfromtheworldaroundthen,takenointerestineverydaysocialinteractions,andoftenappearemotionlessandflatHallucinationsHallucinationsarewheresomeonesees,hears,smells,tastesorfeelsthingsthatdonotexistoutsidetheirmind.Themostcommonhallucinationis hearingvoices.Hallucinationsareveryrealtothepersonexperiencingthem,eventhoughpeoplearoundthem cannothearthevoicesorexperiencethesensations.Researchusingbrain-scanningequipmentshowschangesinthespeechareainthebrainsofpeople withschizophrenia whentheyhearvoices.Thesestudiesshowtheexperienceofhearingvoicesasarealone,asifthebrainmistakesthoughtsforrealvoices.Somepeopledescribethevoicestheyhearasfriendlyandpleasant,butmoreoftenthey'rerude,critical,abusiveor annoying.Thevoicesmightdescribeactivitiestakingplace,discussthehearer'sthoughtsandbehaviour,giveinstructions,ortalkdirectlytotheperson.Voicesmaycomefromdifferentplacesor 1place,suchasthetelevision.DelusionsAdelusionisabelief heldwithcompleteconviction,eventhoughit'sbasedonamistaken,strangeorunrealisticview.Itmayaffectthewaythepersonbehaves.Delusionscanbeginsuddenlyormaydevelopoverweeksormonths.Somepeopledevelopadelusionalideatoexplainahallucinationthey'rehaving.Forexample,iftheyhaveheardvoicesdescribingtheiractions,theymayhaveadelusionthatsomeoneismonitoringtheiractions.Someoneexperiencingaparanoiddelusionmaybelieve they'rebeingharassedorpersecuted.Theymaybelievethey'rebeingchased,followed,watched,plottedagainstorpoisoned,oftenbyafamilymemberorfriend.Somepeoplewhoexperiencedelusionsfinddifferentmeaningsineverydayeventsoroccurrences.Theymaybelieve peopleonTVorinnewspaperarticlesarecommunicatingmessagestothemalone,orthattherearehiddenmessagesinthecoloursofcarspassingonthestreet.Confusedthoughts(thoughtdisorder)Peopleexperiencingpsychosisoftenhavetroublekeepingtrackoftheirthoughtsandconversations.Somepeoplefindithardtoconcentrateandwilldriftfromoneideatoanother.TheymayhavetroublereadingnewspaperarticlesorwatchingaTVprogramme.Peoplesometimesdescribetheirthoughtsas"misty"or"hazy"whenthisishappeningtothem.Thoughtsandspeechmaybecomejumbledorconfused,makingconversationdifficultandhardforotherpeopletounderstand.ChangesinbehaviourandthoughtsAperson'sbehaviourmaybecomemoredisorganisedandunpredictable.Somepeopledescribetheirthoughtsasbeingcontrolledbysomeoneelse,thattheirthoughtsarenottheirown,orthatthoughtshavebeenplantedintheirmindbysomeoneelse.Anotherfeelingisthatthoughtsaredisappearing,asthoughsomeoneisremovingthemfromtheirmind.Somepeoplefeeltheirbodyisbeingtakenoverandsomeoneelseisdirectingtheirmovementsandactions.NegativesymptomsofschizophreniaThenegativesymptomsofschizophreniacanoften appearseveralyearsbeforesomebodyexperiencestheirfirstacuteschizophrenicepisode.Theseinitialnegativesymptomsareoftenreferredtoastheprodromalperiodofschizophrenia.Symptomsduringtheprodromalperiodusuallyappeargraduallyandslowlygetworse.Theyincludethepersonbecomingmoresociallywithdrawnandincreasingly notcaring abouttheirappearanceandpersonalhygiene.Itcanbedifficulttotellwhetherthesymptomsarepartofthedevelopmentofschizophreniaorcausedbysomethingelse.Negativesymptomsexperiencedbypeoplelivingwithschizophreniainclude:losinginterestandmotivationinlifeandactivities,includingrelationshipsandsexlackofconcentration,notwantingtoleavethehouse,andchangesinsleepingpatternsbeinglesslikelytoinitiateconversationsandfeelinguncomfortablewithpeople,orfeelingthere'snothingtosayThenegativesymptomsofschizophreniacanoftenleadtorelationshipproblemswithfriendsandfamily astheycansometimesbemistakenfordeliberatelazinessorrudeness. PsychosisSchizophreniaisoftendescribedbydoctorsasatypeofpsychosis.Afirstacuteepisodeofpsychosiscanbeverydifficulttocopewith,bothforthepersonwhoisillandfortheirfamilyandfriends.Drasticchangesinbehaviourmayoccur,andthepersoncanbecomeupset,anxious,confused,angryorsuspiciousofthosearoundthem.Theymaynotthinktheyneedhelp,anditcanbehardtopersuadethemtovisitadoctor.Readmoreabout understandingpsychoticexperiences. Morein Schizophrenia Overview-Schizophrenia Symptoms-Schizophrenia Causes-Schizophrenia Treatment-Schizophrenia Livingwith-Schizophrenia Diagnosis-Schizophrenia Pagelastreviewed:11November2019 Nextreviewdue:11November2022