#shawleveryday2019 Day 42
Schizophrenia is an uncommon, but very serious mental illness. There used to be various distinct types of schizophrenia, but now they are considered part of a spectrum of disorders. Symptoms of schizophrenia include hallucinations (experiencing things with any of your senses that doesn't exist), delusions (false beliefs that are easy to prove wrong), extremely disordered thinking, and abnormal motor behavior.
People with schizophrenia are generally not violent or dangerous towards others. In fact, they are more often a danger to themselves, with about 10% of people diagnosed with schizophrenia dying by suicide.
Treatment for schizophrenia generally includes anti-psychotic medication and talk therapy. Prior medication for schizophrenia was generally sedative-based, which created the stigma that taking medication would turn you into a "zombie." However, modern anti-psychotic medications and increased knowledge of appropriate dosing has made treatment much more effective without as many negative side effects.
There's a lot of great information out there, so I encourage you to read more and get educated about schizophrenia.
