Schizophrenia is a major and severe mental illness. However, it is also probably the most misunderstood disease. In this article, we examine some myths about schizophrenia. The person having the illness is called schizophrenic though this practice is being discouraged. The politically correct term is people with schizophrenia in order to separate the afflicted individual from the mental illness. You don’t call a person suffering from cancer a cancerite, do you?
- Myth: Schizophrenia is caused by some curse or is an act of god.
Schizophrenia is a disease of the brain just as cancer is a physical illness. There are medicines that treat this brain disease. Just like diabetes cannot be cured but can be controlled so is schizophrenia.
- Myth: Marriage will cure Schizophrenia
Only medicines can treat schizophrenia. While marriage might provide emotional support to the schizophrenic it is never going to treat or cure the condition. It is advisable to reveal the condition before getting married. Otherwise, it will lead to problems later.
- Myth: Willpower will cure Schizophrenia
Just as diabetes or any other physical illness cannot be cured by willpower and requires medicines so does a brain disease like schizophrenia. People with this illness are not weak or lack willpower.
- Myth: Schizophrenics do not try hard enough to cure their condition
Schizophrenia is a serious brain disease. The sufferer cannot just try and come off it. It is not caused by a character flaw.
- Myth: Bad parenting causes Schizophrenia
Many times the parents are blamed for causing schizophrenia. This myth is absolutely false and lacks basis.
- Myth: Schizophrenia is multiple or split personality
Split personality is a different disorder altogether. Schizophrenics don’t have several personalities. The brain doesn’t function properly in this illness.
- Myth: Schizophrenics can’t work
This assumption is only partly true. While some schizophrenics cannot work or can do only low- stress jobs there are some schizophrenics leading independent and productive lives. The ability to work depends on the severity of the illness.
- Myth: All Schizophrenics have the same illness
The severity of the illness varies from individual to individual and from time to time. You will find schizophrenics having normal periods as well as times when they are unwell.
- Myth: Eating non-vegetarian food makes Schizophrenics violent
This assumption is totally false. There is no evidence supporting it. Vegetarian schizophrenics have the same prognosis as non-vegetarian schizophrenics.
- Myth: Schizophrenics are violent or dangerous
While there is a possibility that schizophrenics can have violent episodes if they go off their medicines the violence is usually directed against a known person or persons. Schizophrenics are more likely to be victims of violence than perpetrators. If they are regularly taking their medication the risk of violence is only the same as that of the general population.
- All Schizophrenics need to be hospitalized
While this was true a generation back, improvements in psychiatric medicines have resulted in a majority of schizophrenics being able to live healthily and safely in their own homes. Note that this is no small achievement. Today a majority of schizophrenics have very few or no hospitalizations. Only the most severe cases require prolonged hospitalization.