03-15-2006, 08:19 PM
This thread is posted for information purposes.
If someone is trying to find out if they have Asperger's or autism, there could be other conditions that have instead that can share some features. Or they may have been misdiagnosed with one of these conditions and actually have autism or Aspergers, (though this is rare and should not be assumed without medical advice.)
Some people have autism or Asperger's as well as bipolar disorder, and very rarely someone can be diagnosed with autism, and then receive an additional diagnosis of schizophrenia.
Someone who has already been diagnosed with schizophrenia is highly unlikely to get a diagnosis of autism as well, as autistic features can be factor within schizophrenia itself.
This is an online test for schizophrenia -
http://www.schizophrenia.com/sztest/
This is information on schizophrenia -
The current view of schizophrenia began with the pioneering clinical observations of Emil Kraepelin, a German psychiatrist, who in 1896 identified a group of psychotic patients with an early age at onset, usually at the end of the second or beginning of the third decade of life, which permanently impaired cognition and usually ended in poor outcome.
The term schizophrenia was coined by Eugen Bleuler about one decade later. Schizophrenia was intended to reflect the splitting of affect, or feelings, and cognition. It does not refer to split personality. Bleuler emphasized four types of symptoms: autism, ambivalence, flat affect and disturbances in volition, or will. The current view of schizophrenia is an integration of both Kraepelin's and Bleuler's views, emphasizing characteristic symptoms and cognitive disturbance in a disorder which generally comes on between the ages of 16 and 45.
The pendulum has swung back to the view that cognitive impairment, which consists of deficits in attention; vigilance; working, semantic and storage memory; and executive function, is central to the illness. Diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia may be found in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-IV of the American Psychiatric Association.top link
The psychopathology of schizophrenia is usually described in terms of three somewhat independent syndromes, or symptom clusters
These are positive, disorganized and negative symptoms. Positive symptoms consist of the florid psychotic symptoms, mainly delusions and hallucinations. The delusions in patients with schizophrenia are usually paranoid, that is, delusions of persecution. Other characteristics are delusions of control, thoughts being inserted or removed from one's mind, grandiosity, somatic and tactile delusions and other bizarre ideas, from the perspective of normal people. Hallucinations are usually auditory in nature and may be experienced as coming from internal or external sources. Recent studies have shown abnormal temporal lobe activity in auditory sensory areas during the experience of auditory hallucinations. Disorganization as a syndrome of schizophrenia includes incoherence, illogicality, loose associations, inappropriate affect and poverty of thought content. Negative symptoms include withdrawal, impoverished emotional state, motivational difficulties, lack of energy, affective flattening, loss of spontaneity and lack of initiative. Depression and anxiety are also frequently present in schizophrenia and are independent of the three syndromes described above, which are core features of the diagnosis of schizophrenia.
Not all of these symptoms are present at any one time. They also vary in severity over time. Neurochemical studies of schizophrenia are, thus, carried out on heterogeneous populations of patients from the point of view of psychopathology. Such studies must distinguish between so-called state characteristics, such as transient increases in positive symptoms which respond to treatment, and trait characteristics, such as negative symptoms and cognitive impairment which are relatively stable. Even negative symptoms may be variable. So-called primary negative symptoms are stable and not related to positive symptoms, depression or side effects of antipsychotic drugs, while secondary negative symptoms are, as the name implies, believed to be the results of other disease processes in schizophrenia.
If someone has previously had a diagnosis of schizophrenia, and autism was mentioned, it needs to be understood that autistic features can occur with schizophrenia, but this is not referring to the 'pervasive developmental disorder' called autism. If in doubt, consult a doctor about it.
Information on bipolar disorder -
Introduction
Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in a person's mood, energy, and ability to function. Different from the normal ups and downs that everyone goes through, the symptoms of bipolar disorder are severe. They can result in damaged relationships, poor job or school performance, and even suicide. But there is good news: bipolar disorder can be treated, and people with this illness can lead full and productive lives.
About 2 percent of the population have Bipolar disorder. It typically develops in late adolescence or early adulthood. However, some people have their first symptoms during childhood, and some develop them late in life. It is often not recognized as an illness, and people may suffer for years before it is properly diagnosed and treated. Like diabetes or heart disease, bipolar disorder is a long-term illness that must be carefully managed throughout a person's life.
What Are the Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar disorder causes dramatic mood swings—from overly "high" and/or irritable to sad and hopeless, and then back again, often with periods of normal mood in between. Severe changes in energy and behavior go along with these changes in mood. The periods of highs and lows are called episodes of mania and depression.
Signs and symptoms of mania (or a manic episode) include:
* Increased energy, activity, and restlessness
* Excessively "high," overly good, euphoric mood
* Extreme irritability
* Racing thoughts and talking very fast, jumping from one idea to another
* Distractibility, can't concentrate well
* Little sleep needed
* Unrealistic beliefs in one's abilities and powers
* Poor judgment
* Spending sprees
* A lasting period of behavior that is different from usual
* Increased sexual drive
* Abuse of drugs, particularly cocaine, alcohol, and sleeping medications
* Provocative, intrusive, or aggressive behavior
* Denial that anything is wrong
A manic episode is diagnosed if elevated mood occurs with three or more of the other symptoms most of the day, nearly every day, for 1 week or longer. If the mood is irritable, four additional symptoms must be present.
Signs and symptoms of depression (or a depressive episode) include:
* Lasting sad, anxious, or empty mood
* Feelings of hopelessness or pessimism
* Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, or helplessness
* Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed, including sex
* Decreased energy, a feeling of fatigue or of being "slowed down"
* Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions
* Restlessness or irritability
* Sleeping too much, or can't sleep
* Change in appetite and/or unintended weight loss or gain
* Chronic pain or other persistent bodily symptoms that are not caused by physical illness or injury
* Thoughts of death or suicide, or suicide attempts
A depressive episode is diagnosed if five or more of these symptoms last most of the day, nearly every day, for a period of 2 weeks or longer.
A mild to moderate level of mania is called hypomania. Hypomania may feel good to the person who experiences it and may even be associated with good functioning and enhanced productivity. Thus even when family and friends learn to recognize the mood swings as possible bipolar disorder, the person may deny that anything is wrong. Without proper treatment, however, hypomania can become severe mania in some people or can switch into depression.
Sometimes, severe episodes of mania or depression include symptoms of psychosis (or psychotic symptoms). Common psychotic symptoms are hallucinations (hearing, seeing, or otherwise sensing the presence of things not actually there) and delusions (false, strongly held beliefs not influenced by logical reasoning or explained by a person's usual cultural concepts). Psychotic symptoms in bipolar disorder tend to reflect the extreme mood state at the time. For example, delusions of grandiosity, such as believing one is the President or has special powers or wealth, may occur during mania; delusions of guilt or worthlessness, such as believing that one is ruined and penniless or has committed some terrible crime, may appear during depression. People with bipolar disorder who have these symptoms are sometimes incorrectly diagnosed as having schizophrenia, another severe mental illness.
As this thread is for information, please start a new thread if you wish to discuss these topics.
If someone is trying to find out if they have Asperger's or autism, there could be other conditions that have instead that can share some features. Or they may have been misdiagnosed with one of these conditions and actually have autism or Aspergers, (though this is rare and should not be assumed without medical advice.)
Some people have autism or Asperger's as well as bipolar disorder, and very rarely someone can be diagnosed with autism, and then receive an additional diagnosis of schizophrenia.
Someone who has already been diagnosed with schizophrenia is highly unlikely to get a diagnosis of autism as well, as autistic features can be factor within schizophrenia itself.
This is an online test for schizophrenia -
http://www.schizophrenia.com/sztest/
This is information on schizophrenia -
The current view of schizophrenia began with the pioneering clinical observations of Emil Kraepelin, a German psychiatrist, who in 1896 identified a group of psychotic patients with an early age at onset, usually at the end of the second or beginning of the third decade of life, which permanently impaired cognition and usually ended in poor outcome.
The term schizophrenia was coined by Eugen Bleuler about one decade later. Schizophrenia was intended to reflect the splitting of affect, or feelings, and cognition. It does not refer to split personality. Bleuler emphasized four types of symptoms: autism, ambivalence, flat affect and disturbances in volition, or will. The current view of schizophrenia is an integration of both Kraepelin's and Bleuler's views, emphasizing characteristic symptoms and cognitive disturbance in a disorder which generally comes on between the ages of 16 and 45.
The pendulum has swung back to the view that cognitive impairment, which consists of deficits in attention; vigilance; working, semantic and storage memory; and executive function, is central to the illness. Diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia may be found in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-IV of the American Psychiatric Association.top link
The psychopathology of schizophrenia is usually described in terms of three somewhat independent syndromes, or symptom clusters
These are positive, disorganized and negative symptoms. Positive symptoms consist of the florid psychotic symptoms, mainly delusions and hallucinations. The delusions in patients with schizophrenia are usually paranoid, that is, delusions of persecution. Other characteristics are delusions of control, thoughts being inserted or removed from one's mind, grandiosity, somatic and tactile delusions and other bizarre ideas, from the perspective of normal people. Hallucinations are usually auditory in nature and may be experienced as coming from internal or external sources. Recent studies have shown abnormal temporal lobe activity in auditory sensory areas during the experience of auditory hallucinations. Disorganization as a syndrome of schizophrenia includes incoherence, illogicality, loose associations, inappropriate affect and poverty of thought content. Negative symptoms include withdrawal, impoverished emotional state, motivational difficulties, lack of energy, affective flattening, loss of spontaneity and lack of initiative. Depression and anxiety are also frequently present in schizophrenia and are independent of the three syndromes described above, which are core features of the diagnosis of schizophrenia.
Not all of these symptoms are present at any one time. They also vary in severity over time. Neurochemical studies of schizophrenia are, thus, carried out on heterogeneous populations of patients from the point of view of psychopathology. Such studies must distinguish between so-called state characteristics, such as transient increases in positive symptoms which respond to treatment, and trait characteristics, such as negative symptoms and cognitive impairment which are relatively stable. Even negative symptoms may be variable. So-called primary negative symptoms are stable and not related to positive symptoms, depression or side effects of antipsychotic drugs, while secondary negative symptoms are, as the name implies, believed to be the results of other disease processes in schizophrenia.
If someone has previously had a diagnosis of schizophrenia, and autism was mentioned, it needs to be understood that autistic features can occur with schizophrenia, but this is not referring to the 'pervasive developmental disorder' called autism. If in doubt, consult a doctor about it.
Information on bipolar disorder -
Introduction
Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in a person's mood, energy, and ability to function. Different from the normal ups and downs that everyone goes through, the symptoms of bipolar disorder are severe. They can result in damaged relationships, poor job or school performance, and even suicide. But there is good news: bipolar disorder can be treated, and people with this illness can lead full and productive lives.
About 2 percent of the population have Bipolar disorder. It typically develops in late adolescence or early adulthood. However, some people have their first symptoms during childhood, and some develop them late in life. It is often not recognized as an illness, and people may suffer for years before it is properly diagnosed and treated. Like diabetes or heart disease, bipolar disorder is a long-term illness that must be carefully managed throughout a person's life.
What Are the Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder?
Bipolar disorder causes dramatic mood swings—from overly "high" and/or irritable to sad and hopeless, and then back again, often with periods of normal mood in between. Severe changes in energy and behavior go along with these changes in mood. The periods of highs and lows are called episodes of mania and depression.
Signs and symptoms of mania (or a manic episode) include:
* Increased energy, activity, and restlessness
* Excessively "high," overly good, euphoric mood
* Extreme irritability
* Racing thoughts and talking very fast, jumping from one idea to another
* Distractibility, can't concentrate well
* Little sleep needed
* Unrealistic beliefs in one's abilities and powers
* Poor judgment
* Spending sprees
* A lasting period of behavior that is different from usual
* Increased sexual drive
* Abuse of drugs, particularly cocaine, alcohol, and sleeping medications
* Provocative, intrusive, or aggressive behavior
* Denial that anything is wrong
A manic episode is diagnosed if elevated mood occurs with three or more of the other symptoms most of the day, nearly every day, for 1 week or longer. If the mood is irritable, four additional symptoms must be present.
Signs and symptoms of depression (or a depressive episode) include:
* Lasting sad, anxious, or empty mood
* Feelings of hopelessness or pessimism
* Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, or helplessness
* Loss of interest or pleasure in activities once enjoyed, including sex
* Decreased energy, a feeling of fatigue or of being "slowed down"
* Difficulty concentrating, remembering, making decisions
* Restlessness or irritability
* Sleeping too much, or can't sleep
* Change in appetite and/or unintended weight loss or gain
* Chronic pain or other persistent bodily symptoms that are not caused by physical illness or injury
* Thoughts of death or suicide, or suicide attempts
A depressive episode is diagnosed if five or more of these symptoms last most of the day, nearly every day, for a period of 2 weeks or longer.
A mild to moderate level of mania is called hypomania. Hypomania may feel good to the person who experiences it and may even be associated with good functioning and enhanced productivity. Thus even when family and friends learn to recognize the mood swings as possible bipolar disorder, the person may deny that anything is wrong. Without proper treatment, however, hypomania can become severe mania in some people or can switch into depression.
Sometimes, severe episodes of mania or depression include symptoms of psychosis (or psychotic symptoms). Common psychotic symptoms are hallucinations (hearing, seeing, or otherwise sensing the presence of things not actually there) and delusions (false, strongly held beliefs not influenced by logical reasoning or explained by a person's usual cultural concepts). Psychotic symptoms in bipolar disorder tend to reflect the extreme mood state at the time. For example, delusions of grandiosity, such as believing one is the President or has special powers or wealth, may occur during mania; delusions of guilt or worthlessness, such as believing that one is ruined and penniless or has committed some terrible crime, may appear during depression. People with bipolar disorder who have these symptoms are sometimes incorrectly diagnosed as having schizophrenia, another severe mental illness.
As this thread is for information, please start a new thread if you wish to discuss these topics.