5 myths about schizophrenia, according to a mental health expert: ‘A huge stigma’

About 1% of Americans, or nearly 3.5 million people, are affected by schizophrenia. Yet this mental disorder remains highly stigmatized and misunderstood, experts say.

The reason, according to Brooke Kempf, psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner based in Indiana, is a general lack of knowledge about schizophrenia.

“People can see someone having hallucinations and think, ‘That’s schizophrenia,’ when there’s a lot more to the illness than that,” she told Fox News Digital in an interview. .

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“It’s important that people recognize that schizophrenia is a diagnosable and treatable illness.”

For World Schizophrenia Day, Kempf shared some of the most common myths and misconceptions about the illness.

Here’s a look at five.

Myth #1: People with schizophrenia are violent

One of the biggest and most harmful myths is the idea that people living with schizophrenia are “scary” or “violent,” Kempf said.

“There is a long history of confusion between television or movie characters who behave in strange, confusing or frightening ways and a diagnosis of schizophrenia,” she said.

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“However, we must not forget that these are invented and dramatized situations. A diagnosis of schizophrenia has nothing to do with what we see on the screen.”

When patients with schizophrenia experience an acute episode – perhaps having delusions or hearing voices – they may behave differently than they usually would, sometimes appearing angry or violent.

“The person is probably experiencing something within themselves that they could argue about or respond to, but they’re not targeting anything toward another person,” Kempf said.

When symptoms are treated with medication, “you probably have no idea what the diagnosis is,” she noted.

“Through my long experience working in community mental health and listening to their stories, I know that people living with schizophrenia are good, caring and loving people,” Kempf said.

“They are more likely,” she added, “to be victims of violent crime as the perpetrator of a crime.

Myth #2: People with schizophrenia have multiple personalities

There is a misconception that people with schizophrenia have multiple personalities, which may be because the Greek word “schizophrenia” means “split mind,” Kempf noted.

“However, people with schizophrenia do not have split personalities,” she said.

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“They may have different behavioral characteristics when they’re sick and having an episode, but it’s not because they have a split personality.”

Myth #3: People with schizophrenia are not intelligent

This assumption is completely false, according to Kempf.

“If the disease is not well managed and continues to progress, or if there are repeated relapses, patients will lose gray matter in their brain and their cognitive function may decline,” she told Fox News Digital.

“But that doesn’t mean they’re not smart.”

Some patients may experience cognitive decline in the early stages of the disease – called the “prodromal phase,” Kempf said – but early diagnosis and intervention can help prevent this.

Kempf said she has worked with a multitude of “very successful people who also live with schizophrenia.”

“People with schizophrenia do not have split personalities.”

In many cases, she noted, people can no longer see the “highly intelligent individual.” behind the disease.

“As long as people with schizophrenia receive the appropriate treatment – ​​ideally with a long-acting injectable (LAI) medication – they can control their symptoms and function very well,” Kempf said.

Myth #4: Symptoms of schizophrenia involve only hallucinations and delusions

Schizophrenia includes what are clinically called “positive” and “negative” symptoms, Kempf noted.

“Delusions and hallucinations, as well as changes in behavior and thoughts, are considered positive symptoms,” she said.

Patients with these symptoms may hear voices or have additional thoughts, delusions or false beliefs, the expert explained.

“Hallucinations aren’t just about hearing voices,” Kempf said. “They can happen in many ways depending on our senses: seeing, hearing, smelling or feeling things.”

Negative symptoms occur when people become disinterested in the world around them, withdrawn, or uninterested in everyday social interactions, according to Kempf.

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“Patients with schizophrenia may be characterized as ‘lazy,’ or they don’t seem as good together,” she said. “But it’s not about laziness. The person’s brain doesn’t connect these things as important.”

People with schizophrenia may also experience what are called “psychomotor” symptoms, Kempf said: They may seem unusually slow, and their speech and thought processes may be somewhat delayed or disorganized.

“Unfortunately, if these negative symptoms persist and there is no treatment, they can impact cognitive functioning.”

Myth #5: People with schizophrenia require long-term or lifelong hospitalization

Hospitalization for a person with acute symptoms of schizophrenia is usually very short, according to Kempf.

“For someone suffering from an episode of schizophrenia, the average length of stay can be around five days.”

“In a hospital setting, for someone suffering from an episode of schizophrenia, the average length of stay can be about five days,” she said.

“If a patient does not respond to medications and cannot function safely on their own, they may need to go to a higher level facility for a longer term.”

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Today, healthcare providers aims to provide people with schizophrenia with community services so they are able to function on their own, Kempf noted.

This could mean supporting them with employment services and housing opportunities to ensure they have affordable and safe housing.

“Some patients continue to live with family members; others might live in a group home,” Kempf said.

“People living with this illness deserve to be treated as human beings and with the same care we would give to someone with a physical illness.”

From a medical point of view, schizophrenia presents different levels of severity, the expert noted.

“But, again, if managed well, with early intervention, an individual can remain high functioning and live independently,” she said.

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“Our goal is to provide as unstructured an environment as possible, allowing the person to live a normal life where they can work, shop and drive on a daily basis.”

Ultimately, Kempf said, schizophrenia should be viewed as an illness, not a choice.

“Although schizophrenia is a mental health diagnosis, it should be considered no differently than a physical health diagnosis. diabetes diagnosisheart disease or kidney disease,” she said.

“It just affects a different organ: the brain.”

Other brain disorders, like epilepsy, tend to be more accepted by society, she said – but there is still a “huge stigma” surrounding illnesses like schizophrenia, “probably because of the Afraid of the unknown “.

“It’s treatable, and both medications and support services are available,” she told Fox News Digital.

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“We all have a role to play in helping to dispel myths, promote understanding and reduce stigma,” she continued.

“People living with this disease deserve to be treated like human beings and with the same care we would give to someone diagnosed with Physical illness“.

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