People with schizophrenia generally live about 15 to 20 years less than those without the condition. Schizophrenia is a complex disease. There are many ways it can result in serious complications.
People with schizophrenia often die at a considerably younger age than the rest of the population. Reasons for this include: late diagnosis and poor treatment of physical illnesses, metabolic side effects of antipsychotic medication, unhealthy lifestyle and high risk of suicide (reviewed by Laursen et al, 2014).
The last stage is the residual phase of schizophrenia. In this phase, you're starting to recover, but still have some symptoms.
Schizophrenia treatment includes medication, therapy, social and family support, and the use of social services. Treatment must be ongoing, as this is a chronic illness without a cure. When schizophrenia is treated and managed over the long-term, most people can live normal, productive, and fulfilling lives.
Nevertheless, research has shown that with proper treatment, many people with schizophrenia can experience significant, albeit rarely complete, recovery from their illness. Many can, for example, live relatively normal lives outside a hospital, holding down a job and socializing periodically with family and friends.
Past studies have reported that offspring of affected mothers have a higher risk of schizophrenia than the offspring of affected fathers; however, other studies found no such maternal effect [Gottesman and Shields, 1976].
Early Warning Signs of Schizophrenia
One is that people with the disorder often don't realize they're ill, so they're unlikely to go to a doctor for help. Another issue is that many of the changes leading up to schizophrenia, called the prodrome, can mirror other normal life changes.
Schizophrenia is a chronic disorder that may wax and wane in severity, but it does not typically worsen with age. 1 For some people, the symptoms of schizophrenia will improve over time while for others the symptoms will stay the same or get worse.
Newman adds that with support, parents with schizophrenia can provide for their children by working, as well as teaching and loving them just like parents without mental health conditions.
New research shows that people who have schizophrenia can still live independently, pursue higher education or hold down a demanding job. In fact, many do manage their illness and live full and highly productive lives.
In most people with schizophrenia, symptoms generally start in the mid- to late 20s, though it can start later, up to the mid-30s. Schizophrenia is considered early onset when it starts before the age of 18. Onset of schizophrenia in children younger than age 13 is extremely rare.
The peak age of onset of schizophrenia is 15 – 25 years in men and 20 – 30 years in women. It is often preceded by a prodromal phase of vague symptoms, some odd behaviours and a decline in functioning at school or work and interpersonally.
Schizophrenia does not have a sudden onset—meaning a person does not wake up one day with schizophrenia. Instead, the illness usually develops slowly over months or years and often comes with warning signs.
“Adults with schizophrenia are about 10 times more likely to die of COPD and 7 times more likely to die of diabetes,” says a co-author of the study, Mark Olfson, MD, a psychiatrist at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City.
Another factor that can contribute to the worsening of the condition is dementia. As cognitive decline can occur in people with schizophrenia and those living with dementia, those living with schizophrenia may experience further cognitive decline if they develop dementia later in life.
Abstract. Schizophrenia is associated with premature mortality and a high rate of sudden, unexpected deaths. Autopsy data are scant, and in studies using death certificates or root cause assessments, a majority of sudden deaths remained unexplained.
Childhood schizophrenia is rare, and affects an estimated 0.4 percent of children. Childhood schizophrenia may be hard to diagnose, especially in young children, because the symptoms are similar to those of other mental health conditions.
The risk for schizophrenia has been found to be somewhat higher in men than in women, with the incidence risk ratio being 1.3–1.4. Schizophrenia tends to develop later in women, but there do not appear to be any differences between men and women in the earliest symptoms and signs during the prodromal phase.
Having schizophrenia does not mean someone can't be a loving and functional parent, particularly if the condition is being treated. But because the condition impacts a person's functioning, moods and emotional well-being, it will inevitably affect their children too.
Schizophrenia has been described as the “worst disease” to afflict mankind. It causes psychosis, which is an abnormal state of mind marked by hyperarousal, overactivation of brain circuits, and emotional distress. An untreated episode of psychosis can result in structural brain damage due to neurotoxicity.
Connecting face-to-face with others is the most effective way to calm your nervous system and relieve stress. Since stress can trigger psychosis and make the symptoms of schizophrenia worse, keeping it under control is extremely important.
Researchers found a significant increase in the risk of developing dementia when a person also had schizophrenia. Another 2018 study found a close correlation between very late onset schizophrenia and developing dementia. People with very late onset schizophrenia had a threefold increase in dementia rates.
Schizophrenia usually involves delusions (false beliefs), hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that don't exist), unusual physical behavior, and disorganized thinking and speech. It is common for people with schizophrenia to have paranoid thoughts or hear voices.
Schizophrenia does not mean split personality or multiple-personality. Most people with schizophrenia are not any more dangerous or violent than people in the general population.
Psychopathy and schizophrenia are both frequently represented in popular culture—in thrillers and on TV shows—and they are both significantly more common among men than women, with the result that they are often confused and conflated. However, psychopathy and schizophrenia are two very different conditions.