Everyone experiences schizophrenia differently. Living with the condition can mean that at times it is better and at others more intense. For some people it exists as a constant.
Up to 3 in 10 people who have schizophrenia have a lasting recovery and 1 in 5 show significant improvement.
It is thought that half of people who are diagnosed with schizophrenia will continue to have live with it in the long term.
Many people with schizophrenia enjoy art therapy as a way of expressing what’s going on for them.
Other people benefit from mindfulness-based therapy where they can learn to buy themselves a moment in which they choose how to respond to the symptoms they are experiencing.
Group therapy can help someone to feel less alone in that they’re not the only one struggling with a different type of reality. It can also help to hear other people’s methods of coping.
It is recommended by NICE that people with schizophrenia are offered both medication and talking therapies.
In terms of medication, you may be offered an ‘antipsychotic’ drug which works to reduce the symptoms of schizophrenia. These have in the past had negative side effects but some people find the newer drugs easier to take. It is always good to talk to your GP or psychiatrist about side effects.
The talking therapy that NICE recommends for people with schizophrenia is cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) which will work to manage your feelings and symptoms. It also recommends family therapy for family members of people with schizophrenia.
