Manji

@manji1680344876 · 19 Mar 2022

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What Are The Causes Of Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a mental problem that affects your thinking, feeling and behavior. It usually appears in people in their late adolescence or early adulthood. Signs and symptoms of schizophrenia develop earlier in males than in females. According to World Health Organization, schizophrenia is not a common mental disorder.

Causes of Schizophrenia

The precise cause of schizophrenia is unknown but there are factors which increase the risk of developing it. These factors are:

a.    Genetics

If one parent or both have schizophrenia, there is a ten percent chance that the children will develop the disorder. For identical twins, if one twin has schizophrenia the other has a 1 out of 2 chance to develop the condition, but the risk is minimal in fraternal twins.

b.    Stress

Stressful people often become anxious, irritable and unable to concentrate, these factors are the onset of schizophrenia.

c.    Chemical changes in the brain

Low levels or imbalances of neurotransmitters like dopamine in the brain trigger the development of schizophrenia. Dopamine causes an overstimulation in the brain which arises some symptoms of the condition.

d.    Pregnancy or birth complications

Complications like low birth weight, infections, lack of oxygen, premature labor and maternal obesity put pregnant women at risk of developing schizophrenia.

e.    Childhood trauma

People who developed trauma as children due to abuse, neglect or loss of parents do experience hallucinations which is a symptom of schizophrenia.

f.    Drug abuse

Use of harmful alcohol and other drugs like cannabis and amphetamine may trigger psychosis causing schizophrenia


Symptoms and remedies of schizophrenia

There are positive, negative and cognitive symptoms associated with schizophrenia. Some of the symptoms are:

i.    Hallucinations - These are things that people with schizophrenia see, hear, smell or taste but they do not exist.

ii.    Delusions - People with delusions have false beliefs about things that may seem strange or illogical to others.

iii.    Disorganized thinking - This affects the order of a person’s thought or speech.

iv.    Concentration and memory problems - These symptoms affect their decision making and learning ability.

v.    Overly excited – Persons who are hyperactive move and speak fast.

vi.    Grandiosity – People with schizophrenia think they are superior to others maybe in fame, smartness, wealth or power, yet they are not.

vii.    Emotional withdrawal – a person becomes less caring and uninterested in conversing.

viii.    Lack of emotional expressions – one lacks tonal variation and may not react to a message.
ix.    Difficulty with abstract thinking – their level of intelligence to interpret things is very low.
x.    Catatonic behavior – this is unusual smiling or laughing or conversing with oneself.

Remedies of schizophrenia are medication; use of antipsychotic drugs which affect the brain’s neurotransmitter dopamine, and therapy like joining support groups and rehabilitation centers, psychological counselling and psychoeducation.

Conclusion

Although schizophrenia is not a common mental disorder, it is better to take precautions to avoid being a victim of the condition. Health organizations should offer education on mental health to spread knowledge on schizophrenia. We should care, love and show affection to people with schizophrenia to help them recover.