Psychosis Flashcards
What is psychosis?
Any disorder where the victim loses contact with reality
What the does word schizophrenia mean literally?
Split mind
When is schizophrenia usually diagnosed?
Early 20s in men
Early 30s in women
How many schizophrenics recover after first episode?
20%
How many schizophrenics successfully commit suicide and attempt suicide?
10% success
30% attempt
How many people with schizophrenia are employed?
19%
Describe the chronic phase of schizophrenia
Positive symptoms suppressed
More negative symptoms
May be years before another acute episode
What does lack of insight mean?
Patients cannot appreciate that delusions and hallucinations are a manifestation of the disorder
Can lead to problems with drug compliance
What are positive symptoms?
Symptoms that people with schizophrenia do not experience
e.g. hallucinations, delusions
What are negative symptoms?
Deficits
e.g. social withdrawal, blunted emotions
What are the cognitive deficits seen in Schizophrenia?
Sustained attention Planning Working memory Language Learning and memory Motor processing
Describe the process of social reality testing
When young people are trying to make sense of the world, they form theories about how it works and then test it on friends to see if they have the same social understanding
Why do schizophrenics not have a good understanding of social norms?
They are socially isolated so have few opportunities to carry out social reality testing
Misconceptions are never addressed and becomes their reality of the situation
Give an example of “ideas of reference”
Patient may be watching the news and think that the news reporter is specifically talking to them, not in fact the whole population of viewers
Describe the theory behind auditory hallucinations
Individual’s own thoughts are causing the auditory hallucinations, but the individual is unable to distinguish these as coming from an internal source not an external one
