By Julie Fast
Bipolar Disorder Symptoms plus Schizophrenia Symptoms equals Schizoaffective Disorder.
There is a lot of confusion surrounding Schizoaffective disorder. This is probably because schizophrenia itself is so hard to understand when you only have knowledge of bipolar disorder.
What is the difference between bipolar disorder and schizophrenia?
There is a big difference between bipolar and schizophrenia. Bipolar is a mood disorder where a person has trouble regulating their emotions. It's episode, which means it can come and go- some people have chronic symptoms as I do- others can literally go for years without an episode. For example, my former partner Ivan who has bipolar I (one) went 12 years between manic episodes. Stress is often a factor in when a person has episodes. Bipolar disorder can definitely have psychosis- but it is not usually chronic. And most importantly, psychosis with bipolar almost always comes with other mood swings such as psychotic depression or psychotic mania.
Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder which means its main symptom is psychosis. People with schizophrenia can be chronically psychotic or experience episodes, but the psychosis is persistent if a person doesn't get medication treatment.
Both illness are difficult to treat- but schizophrenia is more difficult as there is not enough information on how it affects the brain- which means the medications are more limited. Bipolar treatment focuses on mood stabilizer medications where the focus for schizophrenia is antipsychotics.
What is Schizo-Affective Disorder?
The schizoaffective disorder diagnosis means that a person has bipolar mood swings along with discrete psychosis. In other words, the psychosis can be present with mood swings, but it can also exist alone. This is not the case with bipolar where the psychosis almost always attaches itself to a mood swing. This is why is why a different diagnosis is used for people who have the symptoms of bipolar combined with the more chronic psychosis of schizophrenia. Schizo affective disorder is naturally much more difficult to treat than bipolar. But there is hope as new medications come on the market and the illness is more researched and understood.
There is a lot of confusion surrounding Schizoaffective disorder. This is probably because schizophrenia itself is so hard to understand when you only have knowledge of bipolar disorder.
What is the difference between bipolar disorder and schizophrenia?
There is a big difference between bipolar and schizophrenia. Bipolar is a mood disorder where a person has trouble regulating their emotions. It's episode, which means it can come and go- some people have chronic symptoms as I do- others can literally go for years without an episode. For example, my former partner Ivan who has bipolar I (one) went 12 years between manic episodes. Stress is often a factor in when a person has episodes. Bipolar disorder can definitely have psychosis- but it is not usually chronic. And most importantly, psychosis with bipolar almost always comes with other mood swings such as psychotic depression or psychotic mania.
Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder which means its main symptom is psychosis. People with schizophrenia can be chronically psychotic or experience episodes, but the psychosis is persistent if a person doesn't get medication treatment.
Both illness are difficult to treat- but schizophrenia is more difficult as there is not enough information on how it affects the brain- which means the medications are more limited. Bipolar treatment focuses on mood stabilizer medications where the focus for schizophrenia is antipsychotics.
What is Schizo-Affective Disorder?
The schizoaffective disorder diagnosis means that a person has bipolar mood swings along with discrete psychosis. In other words, the psychosis can be present with mood swings, but it can also exist alone. This is not the case with bipolar where the psychosis almost always attaches itself to a mood swing. This is why is why a different diagnosis is used for people who have the symptoms of bipolar combined with the more chronic psychosis of schizophrenia. Schizo affective disorder is naturally much more difficult to treat than bipolar. But there is hope as new medications come on the market and the illness is more researched and understood.
JULIE A. FAST, best selling author of Take Charge of Bipolar
Disorder, Loving Someone with Bipolar Disorder and Get it Done When
You're Depressed is a critically acclaimed six-time author, national
speaker, and sought after expert in the fields of bipolar disorder and
depression. Julie was diagnosed with rapid cycling bipolar disorder in
1995 at the age of thirty-one, after she had unknowingly lived with the
disorder for over fourteen challenging and chaotic years. She regularly
experiences mood swings, especially depression and uses the same
treatment strategies she writes about in her books in order to continue
her outstanding success as an author- even while struggling with bipolar
disorder daily. Julie thrives on helping people with bipolar disorder
(and those who love them) manage mood disorders so that they can live
well in spite of the illness. To learn more about effectively managing
bipolar disorder visit: http://www.bipolarhappens.com
One major cause of schizoaffective disorder seems to be stress. Stress can not only trigger initial episodes of illness but it is often also responsible for triggering subsequent episodes of illness. It is therefore important for people with schizoaffective disorder to live in an environment with as little stress as possible, and to identify the particular types of stress that can trigger episodes.schizoaffective disorder symptom
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