Paranoid Schizophrenia: They’re Out To Get Me Essay example -- Mental

Introduction Paranoid Schizophrenia is a serious psychotic disorder that impairs a person’s perception of reality, causing the mind to lose contact with the real world. This disorder greatly affects one’s ability to negotiate the activities of everyday life, such as school, work, or social situations. In 1898, Emil Kraepelin was to the first to provide information regarding schizophrenia naming it â€Å"dementia praecox†, and defining it as a psychosis with an early onset of intellectual deterioration (Schiffman & Walker, 1998). Ten years later, a Swiss psychiatrist, Eugen Bluler renamed the disorder using a combination of the Greek words â€Å"skhizein† and â€Å"phren† meaning split mind (Barlow & Durand, 2011). He believed the unusual behaviors were a split from the basic functions of personality and reality. Today, there are misconceptions about the term schizophrenia in which society confuses a split mind with a split personality, or multiple persona lities. The broad definition of schizophrenia continues to be researched and narrowed into subtypes with specific presenting characteristics. Paranoid schizophrenia is one of the five major sub-types listed in the Fourth Edition of the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; Text-Revised (DSM-IV-TR) with the list continuing to expand as the criteria identifies specific related symptoms or behaviors (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Although this disorder only afflicts 1% of the total population of the United States, this amounts to over three million people living with the disorder. Diagnosis Diagnosis of this syndrome typically occurs in late adolescence through early adulthood with the onset of behaviors marking deterioration in the ability to perform normal... ...000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders- fourth edition-text revision. Washington, D.C.: Author. Barlow, D. H., & Durand, V. M. (2011). Abnormal psychology: An integrative approach (6th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. Foerschner, A. M. (2010). The history of mental illness: From "skull drills" to "happy pills". Student Pulse, 02(09), 1-4. Maguire, G. A. (2002). Comprehensive understanding of schizophrenia and its treatment. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacists, 59(5), 4-11. doi: 1079-2082/02/0901 National Institute of Health. National Institute of Health, National Institute of Mental Health. (2009). Schizophrenia (09-3517). Schiffman, J. & Walker, E. F. (1998). Schizophrenia. In H. Friedman (Ed.) The Disorders: Specialty Articles from the Encyclopedia of Mental Health. Academic Press: New York.