Mental illness is an ongoing problem in our world. In America alone, one in five adults experience a mental health issue. One in 25 Americans have a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depressive disorder. Even children can experience mental health problems. Several mental health disorders, including schizophrenia, show signs of development before a person turns 14, and 75% of disorders begin before age 24. That being said, less than 20% of children/adolescents with mental health problems receive treatment. Some mental health disorders are easily treatable with either therapy, medication, or both. Some of the more serious mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, are not so easily treatable. One reason why is because there has not been a ton of research regarding treatments.
What is schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia is a mental health disorder in which people interpret reality abnormally. Symptoms of schizophrenia include a range of problems in cognition, behavior, and emotion. Some symptoms include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized thinking, disorganized or abnormal motor behavior, and negative symptoms such as lack of emotion, loss of interest in everyday activities, or being socially withdrawn. Schizophrenia symptoms usually show up during adolescence. In men, it typically starts around early 20s, while in women it starts in the late 20s. People with schizophrenia require lifelong treatment. Early treatment is best but isn’t always the easiest.
Why is it so hard to treat?
Schizophrenia is a complicated illness to treat because we do not know the cause of it. Researchers have ideas that it is a combination of genetics, brain chemistry, and environmental factors, but are still unsure as to what causes the disorder to develop. Some believe neurotransmitters such as dopamine and glutamate may contribute to schizophrenia. Others believe it has to do with specific signaling pathways in the brain. These pathways include the Wnt signaling pathway, an important pathway in organism development Research has shown that problems with this pathway can lead to cognitive deficits in animal models, implying that it is involved in cognitive development. Problems in development may contribute to abnormalities resulting in mental disorders such as schizophrenia.
- https://magellanhealthinsights.com/2018/05/23/7-mental-health-myths-and-facts/#targetText=Fact%3A%20Mental%20health%20problems%20are,bipolar%20disorder%2C%20or%20major%20depression
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/symptoms-causes/syc-20354443
- https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/schizophrenia/schizophrenia-treatment-challenges
- https://moodle.cord.edu/pluginfile.php/798923/mod_resource/content/2/2013%20wnt%20GSK%20and%20schizophrenia.pdf
- Images
- <p style=”font-size: 0.9rem;font-style: italic;”><a href=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/141608731@N06/38843081961″>”schizophrenia”</a><span>by <a href=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/141608731@N06″>johnbill552</a></span> is licensed under <a href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=ccsearch&atype=html” style=”margin-right: 5px;”>CC BY 2.0</a><a href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=ccsearch&atype=html” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” style=”display: inline-block;white-space: none;opacity: .7;margin-top: 2px;margin-left: 3px;height: 22px !important;”><img style=”height: inherit;margin-right: 3px;display: inline-block;” src=”https://search.creativecommons.org/static/img/cc_icon.svg” /><img style=”height: inherit;margin-right: 3px;display: inline-block;” src=”https://search.creativecommons.org/static/img/cc-by_icon.svg” /></a></p>
- <p style=”font-size: 0.9rem;font-style: italic;”><a href=”https://www.behance.net/gallery/81938079/Schizophrenia”>”Schizophrenia”</a><span> by <span>Ahmed Emad Eldin</span></span> is licensed under <a href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/?ref=ccsearch&atype=html” style=”margin-right: 5px;”>CC BY-NC-ND 4.0</a><a href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/?ref=ccsearch&atype=html” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener noreferrer” style=”display: inline-block;white-space: none;opacity: .7;margin-top: 2px;margin-left: 3px;height: 22px !important;”><img style=”height: inherit;margin-right: 3px;display: inline-block;” src=”https://search.creativecommons.org/static/img/cc_icon.svg” /><img style=”height: inherit;margin-right: 3px;display: inline-block;” src=”https://search.creativecommons.org/static/img/cc-by_icon.svg” /><img style=”height: inherit;margin-right: 3px;display: inline-block;” src=”https://search.creativecommons.org/static/img/cc-nc_icon.svg” /><img style=”height: inherit;margin-right: 3px;display: inline-block;” src=”https://search.creativecommons.org/static/img/cc-nd_icon.svg” /></a></p>
