Author:
Monica Porter
Date Of Creation:
18 March 2021
Update Date:
1 July 2024
Content
For people with schizophrenia, living a normal and happy life is not easy. However, that doesn't mean it's impossible. To do this, you need to find a way (or ways) to treat effectively, manage your life by avoiding stressors and creating a support system for yourself. Even if you have been diagnosed with schizophrenia, do not despair. Instead, harness your inner strength and deal with the circumstances in front of you. In this article there is also valuable information to help you learn how to live with someone with schizophrenia.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Seek treatment
Starting early. You do not linger in the treatment of schizophrenia. If you haven't been diagnosed with an official diagnosis, see a medical professional as soon as possible for immediate treatment as soon as you notice symptoms. The earlier treatment is started, the better the results. In men, symptoms usually start from a very young age through the mid-twenties, while in women, symptoms usually appear in the late twenties. Signs of schizophrenia may include:
- Feeling of mistrust.
- Unusual or strange thoughts, such as believing that your neighbor is trying to harm you.
- Appearance of hallucinations or change in sensory experience; for example, seeing, tasting, smelling, hearing, or feeling things that others cannot see in the same situation.
- Confusing thoughts or words.
- “Negative” symptoms (impairment in specific behavior or function) such as lack of emotion, lack of eye contact, lack of facial expression, lack of hygiene and / or retraction.
- Abnormal and disturbing motor behavior, such as having an odd posture or moving meaningless or excessively.
Learn about your risk factors. There are many factors that put a person at an increased risk of developing schizophrenia:- Family history of schizophrenia.
- Use drugs when you are a child or teen.
- Experiencing some special condition while in the womb, such as a virus or poison exposure.
- Increased immune system activation due to conditions such as inflammation.
See your doctor for treatment. Unfortunately, schizophrenia doesn't go away on its own. Treatment will be an essential part of your life, and planning a treatment will help you make treatment a part of your daily routine. To plan your treatment, talk with your doctor about the medications and therapies that are best suited for your situation.- Remember that everyone is a different person. Not all medicines and treatments work for everyone, so you need to continue to find the treatment that works best for you.
Ask your doctor about medications you can choose from. Do not try to find drugs on the internet. There is too much information out there, and not all is accurate. You should talk to your doctor, as only he or she will be able to determine which medications are best suited to treat you. Your symptoms, age and medical history are factors in finding the right treatment.- If you are uncomfortable with your medications, let your doctor know. Your doctor may adjust the dosage or let you try a different medicine.
- Commonly used drugs to treat schizophrenia are antipsychotics that act on the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin.
- Atypical antipsychotics usually have fewer side effects, and are therefore often preferred, including:
- Aripiprazole (Abilify)
- Asenapine (Saphris)
- Clozapine (Clozaril)
- Iloperidone (Fanapt)
- Lurasidone (Latuda)
- Olanzapine (Zyprexa)
- Paliperidone (Invega)
- Quetiapine (Seroquel)
- Risperidone (Risperdal)
- Ziprasidone (Geodon)
- First generation antipsychotics often have more side effects (some of them can be too permanent), and are often cheaper. First generation antipsychotics include:
- Chlorpromazine (Thorazine)
- Fluphenazine (Prolixin, Modecate)
- Haloperidol (Haldol)
- Perphenazine (Trilafon)
Try psychotherapy. Psychotherapy can help you stick to your treatment regimen so that you can better understand yourself and your condition. Ask your doctor what form of psychotherapy is best for you. However, remember that psychotherapy alone cannot cure schizophrenia. Some common forms of psychotherapy are:
- Individual psychotherapy: With this therapy, you will meet in person with a therapist to talk about your feelings, problems you may face, relationships and other topics. A therapist will guide you through everyday life problems and better understand your condition.
- Family therapy: In this form of therapy, you and your close family members participate in therapy, through which people can understand your condition to communicate and interact with each other in a way. more effective.
- Cognitive therapy is a useful treatment for people with schizophrenia. However, the combination of psychotherapy and medication is the most effective method for treating schizophrenia.
Consider community therapy. If you are in hospital for treatment, consider community therapy. This therapy will help you rebuild yourself in the community, get the support you need, and develop daily habits and social interactions.
- Community therapy consists of a team of multidisciplinary professionals with different types of assessments and interventions. This team may include substance abuse therapists, occupational rehabilitation therapists, and nurses.
- You can look on the internet or ask your doctor for community therapy opportunities near you.
Method 2 of 3: Take control of life
Adhere to medication. It is common for people with schizophrenia to stop taking drugs. There are a number of strategies you can rely on to try to stick to your pill whenever you feel you want to stop taking it:
- Remind yourself that medicine is used to treat schizophrenia, not to cure it. So if you want to feel better, you need to keep taking the pills.
- Make use of all the social support you have. When you feel well, talk to your friends and family so they can encourage you to keep taking the medicine when you feel like you want to stop.
- You can record a message for yourself in the future, saying that you are continuing to take the medicine and the reason for it (medicine only for treatment, not cure) then have a family member turn it on for you. listen every time you want to stop taking a pill.
Try to accept your illness. Accepting your condition can make recovery a more pleasant experience. On the contrary, if you deny and think that everything is fine, or think that your illness will naturally go away, you can make your condition worse. Therefore, it is important that you initiate treatment and recognize two problems:
- Yes, you have schizophrenia, and it's a challenge to cure it.
- Yes, you can live a normal, happy life.
- Accepting your condition is important for finding treatment, and being prepared to fight for a normal life will help you live the life you want.
Tell yourself that there are many ways to have a normal life. The initial shock of being diagnosed can be very difficult for the patient and their family. However, you can live the same life as everyone else, even if it takes a while to adjust to your situation and find the right treatment regimen.
- Patients with schizophrenia who are treated with drugs and other therapies may experience less difficulty in social interactions, keep a job, have a family, or even excel in life.
Avoid irritants. Illness usually comes when you are too stressed. So, if you have schizophrenia, it's important to avoid the stressors that cause an outbreak. There are many methods of dealing with stress such as:
- The stressors are different from person to person. Getting therapy can help you identify stressors, whether it is a particular person, situation, or place. Once you know the triggers of stress, avoid them as much as you can.
- For example, you can practice relaxation techniques like meditation or deep breathing.
Exercise regularly. Exercise not only helps the body reduce stress but also secretes endophin, which helps to increase feelings of happiness.
- Try playing with music that inspires you while you exercise.
Get enough sleep. A poor night's sleep can contribute to feelings of stress and anxiety. Make sure you get enough sleep each night; Find out how many hours you sleep and try to obey.
- If you are having trouble sleeping, you can try making your bedroom dark and quiet by stopping any sounds from entering the room, changing your surroundings, and wearing an eye patch or earplugs while you sleep. Form a daily routine and do it every night.
Eat healthy foods. Eating unhealthy foods can cause a negative feeling, and this increases stress levels. Therefore, it is important to eat properly to combat stress.
- Eat lean meats, nuts, fruits and vegetables.
- A healthy diet also includes a well-balanced menu. Avoid eating too much of one type of food.
Try cognitive techniques. While it doesn't take the place of a therapist or therapist, you can also use cognitive methods to ease symptoms.
- For example, you can use a method called normalization. With this method, you will consider your psychotic experiences as part of a continuum that includes ordinary experiences, while also realizing that everyone has experiences that are very different from their own. live normal everyday. This will help you reduce loneliness and guilt, and this will have a positive impact on your health.
- To deal with auditory hallucinations such as hearing voices, try to find evidence against the content of the words. For example, if your wrong voice causes you to do something bad like theft, list the reasons why it is not a good idea (you may get in trouble, it is wrong behavior. with social morality, which is damaging to others, most people will advise you not to do it, so don't listen to this awkward voice).
Try distracting. If you are experiencing hallucinations, try distracting yourself somehow, like listening to music or creating art. Try to completely immerse yourself in the new experience to prevent unwanted experiences.
Fight off misleading thoughts. To deal with the social anxiety that can accompany schizophrenia, you need to work to identify and combat false thoughts. For example, when you have thoughts like "everyone in this room is looking at you", try questioning that statement. Look around the room for proof: is everyone really looking at you? Ask yourself if you pay much attention to someone who just passed by in public.
- Tell yourself that a room is crowded with many people, so everyone is just glancing at everything and probably not just focusing on you.
Try to keep yourself busy. Once you have control of your symptoms with medications and therapies, try to start your normal life again and keep busy. Free time can lead to stressful thoughts and flare-ups. You can keep yourself busy in the following ways:
- Focus your efforts on your work.
- Organize time for family and friends.
- Find a new hobby.
- Help a friend or volunteer.
Avoid drinking too many caffeinated beverages. A sudden increase in caffeine intake can worsen the “positive” symptoms of schizophrenia (ie the addition of undesirable symptoms such as delusions or hallucinations); Even if you normally drink a lot of caffeine, drinking or stopping caffeine won't make your symptoms any better or worse. The key here is to avoid large and sudden changes in caffeine habits. As recommended, a person should take no more than 400 mg of caffeine a day. Keep in mind, however, that each person's chemistry and caffeine intake are different, so your tolerance may be slightly higher or lower.
Avoid alcoholic beverages. Alcohol consumption leads to poor treatment outcomes, increased symptoms, and increased rates of hospitalization. You will feel better if you abstain from alcohol. advertisement
Method 3 of 3: Create a support system
Stay with people who understand your situation. Be with someone who can understand what you are going through so that you won't be stressed by explaining your illness to someone you are not familiar with. Spend plenty of time with someone who is understanding, honest, and sincere.
- Avoid people who are insensitive to what you are going through or who might stress you out.
Try not to shy away from social interaction. It may be difficult to focus your energies and stay calm in order to communicate with people in social situations, but interaction is essential. Humans are creatures that need to live in a social environment, and then our brains release chemicals that can help us feel safe and happy.
- Set aside time to do things you enjoy with people you like.
Express your feelings and fears to someone you can trust. Schizophrenia can make you feel lonely, so you can reverse this feeling by talking to a close friend about what you're going through. Sharing your experiences and emotions can be very effective in healing and relieving stress.
- You should share your experiences, even if your audience has no advice to you. You can be calmer and more in control just by speaking out your thoughts and feelings,
Join a support group. Joining a support group has many benefits of accepting schizophrenia as a part of your life. By understanding that others have problems like you and finding ways to cope, you can better understand and accept your situation.
- Joining a support group can also help you feel more confident about your abilities, less fear of the disorder and its effects on your life.
Advice
- Living with schizophrenia is not as tragic as many people think. Although this is a disease that makes it difficult for the patient and the whole family, the patient's life does not have to change much because of the disease.
- You will have a happy and fulfilled life, as long as you accept what is happening and are ready to follow the treatment regimen.
Warning
- Note that schizophrenia has a high suicide rate compared to the average person. If you have suicidal thoughts or thoughts, you need to seek immediate help to ensure your safety.
