Schizophrenia Symptoms & Diagnosis

Symptoms

Symptoms usually start in adolescence or early adulthood. They often appear slowly and become more disturbing and bizarre over time, or they may occur in a matter of weeks or months.

Symptoms include:

• Hallucinations—seeing or hearing things/voices that are not there
• Delusions—strong but false personal beliefs that are not based in reality
• Disorganized thinking
• Disorganized speech—lack of ability to speak in a way that makes sense or carry a conversation
• Catatonic behavior—slow movement, repeating rhythmic gestures, pacing, walking in circles, negativism, repetitive speech
• Emotional flatness—flat speech, lack of facial expression, and general disinterest and withdrawal
• Paranoia—a psychosis characterized by systematized delusions of persecution or grandeur
• Inappropriate laughter
• Poor hygiene and self-care

Associated conditions include:

• Obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Substance abuse (of drugs , alcohol , caffeine, nicotine)
• Self-injury , including suicide

Diagnosis

Early diagnosis is extremely important. People who are diagnosed early are able to:

• Stabilize their symptoms
• Decrease the risk of suicide
• Decrease alcohol and substance abuse
• Reduce the chance of relapse and/or hospitalization

A person must have active symptoms for at least two weeks, and other symptoms for at least six months before a diagnosis can be made. The doctor will rule out other causes such as drug use, medical illness, or a different mental condition.