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| The Burden of Schizophrenia; What to expect as a caregiver | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Aug 5 2012, 07:11 PM (15 Views) | |
| Post #1 Aug 5 2012, 07:11 PM | Scarred Heart |
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The family burden of mental illness may be greater than previously known, according to a national survey examining attitudes and behaviors associated with schizophrenia. In a survey conducted by Consumer Health Sciences (CHS) and the National Mental Health Association (NMHA), data was gathered from 1,328 family caregivers and 879 patients that reveals the mental health of many family caregivers borders dangerously close to clinical depression due to the stressful demands of treating and living with a person suffering from schizophrenia. Among other items, the survey found that family members who care for loved ones with schizophrenia face a host of distressing, burdensome problems. Oftentimes, patients who are not treated properly turn to drugs and alcohol, occasionally become aggressive and many -- estimates range from 25 to 40 percent -- attempt suicide. Close to one-third of caregivers surveyed said that the emotional and behavioral symptoms of the illness caused them extreme hardship. Drug abuse, suicide threats and violent behavior, while not necessarily daily realities, exist as constant sources of anxiety and are cited by more than half of caregivers as their most pressing concerns. Schizophrenia is the most common and disabling of the major mental illnesses, affecting nearly 2.7 million Americans. The illness is characterized by delusional and confused thinking, hallucinations and social isolation. In fact, more than 40 percent of schizophrenia patients participate in no structured activity on a daily basis, according to the survey. Symptoms of schizophrenia generally appear as people approach their late- teens and early twenties. Because family members tend to ascribe "bizarre" behavior to typical adolescent problems rather than mental illness, many patients are improperly diagnosed and remain untreated for several years. In many instances, unfortunately, they wait four years, on average, to see a doctor after first noticing problems with their child. For many years, people suffering from schizophrenia were confined to state mental hospitals, however a movement towards deinstitutionalization shifted much of the caregiving burden for chronic schizophrenia patients from state hospitals to families. According to the CHS survey, 77 percent of caregivers said they play an extremely important role in the treatment of the person for whom they care. Seventy-eight percent of the caregivers surveyed say health care professionals do not understand the problems they face in caring for a person with mental illness. Survey data confirms that caregivers' involvement in treatment is broad. Almost one-third of the respondents said they speak frequently with health care providers about the treatment plan for the patient. The survey also reveals that caregivers' relative ease in living and helping to treat patients varies with the choice of antipsychotic medication. Antipsychotic drugs have been used for more than 30 years, but they are hampered by a variety of disturbing side effects that often interfere with patients' compliance to the prescribed dosing. The introduction of "atypical" medications, such as clozapine, olanzapine and risperidone, offered many patients relief from symptoms without the misery of side effects such as uncontrollable twitching of limbs. John Docherty, M.D., a psychiatrist at Cornell University Medical College and advisor to the schizophrenia survey, says that, based on the survey, patients and caregivers alike are more satisfied with the atypical medications than the older medications, such as haloperidol. "Our research suggests that the new atypical antipsychotics provide caregivers and patients with an increased level of assurance compared to the traditional antipsychotics. They are most satisfied with the medication clozapine and importantly, caregivers report clozapine patients in particular are less prone to violent or threatening behavior." When asked what most worried them on a daily basis, 53 percent of caregivers said drug abuse was at the top of their list of concerns, followed closely by suicide and violent or threatening behavior. |
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10:54 AM Jul 11