Schizophrenia is a serious psychiatric illness that causes
strange thinking, strange feelings, and unusual behavior. It is uncommon in children and hard to
recognize in its early phases. The cause of schizophrenia is not known. Current
research suggests a combination of brain changes, biochemical causes, and
genetic and environmental factors. Early diagnosis and medical treatment are
important. Schizophrenia is a life-long disease that can be controlled but not
cured.
When childhood schizophrenia begins very early in life, it
is quite difficult to notice the symptoms but later on the symptoms may build
up gradually. The early signs and symptoms may be so vague that you can't quite
decide what's wrong, or you may attribute them to a developmental phase.
This is some of the early sings. Trouble discerning dreams
from reality, Seeing things and hearing voices that are not real, Confused
thinking, Vivid and bizarre thoughts and ideas, Extreme moodiness, Peculiar
behavior, Behaving younger than chronological age, Severe anxiety and
fearfulness, Confusing television or movies with reality, Severe problems in
making and keeping friends.
Early diagnosis and medical treatment are important. Kids
with the symptoms listed above must have a complete evaluation. These children
may need individual treatment plans involving other professionals. A combination
of medication and individual, family, and specialized therapy is often necessary.
Psychiatric medication can be helpful
for many of the symptoms and problems identified.
I agree that schizophrenia in childhood is very uncommon. There are many other disorders that might have the same or similar symptoms. We know very little of this disorder and I find it disturbing that many of the young children are receiving antipsychotic drugs to treat a disorder we know very little about. However I do understand the pain parents go through when they are seeing their child go through the schizophrenic episodes. Although very controversial, antipychotic drugs might be their only hope. Sad but true. Good post
ReplyDeleteIt really got my attention the fact that children had to go through so much when diagnosed with schizophrenia, and I can only imagine how agonizing must be for the parents as well. In the video the narrator talks about when we should draw the line between what is normal behavior in a child or something more, and it got me thinking that once you see or heard your kid talking about hate, or wanting to kill someone, that is a red flag right there. At least for me that I have two children I cannot imagine having to make a decision about giving strong medication or take them to a stay-in facility and leave them there, I would go crazy.
ReplyDeleteYou also talked about some factor that could contribute to the development of schizophrenia, genetic and developmental, and it is scary because many mothers have to go through so much when pregnant. When I was pregnant with my second child I was having so much personal problems and going through my divorce that stress was there during the nine months. I was so worried about my kid because I could feel him trembling like if he was having a seizure and that made me cry even more. My concern was the effects of that situation when he became a toddler, and sure enough he has a speech problem but I’m working with him and he is getting much better. Now that I read about schizophrenia I thank God I don’t have to go through the families of those children in your video, I guess you have to become very strong to deal with that kind of situation. Now on another note, as I mentioned before, I believe many doctors diagnose very lightly and give strong medications to children without knowing the effects of these drugs on the children’s lives, but at least from what I see on this video I can say that these children do need some type of medication to stop the symptoms before hurting themselves or somebody else. Great post.
I enjoyed reading your post because honestly, I can't imagine being a child and having to deal with the symptoms of schizophrenia. I think it is important for parents to take note if their child is suffering from the symptoms so that you can take charge of what needs to happen. Schizophrenia is not something to be taken lightly especially because as the child gets older the symptoms can get a lot worse and can eventually lead to them harming themselves.
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