Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to examine Schizotypal personality disorder from a case study standpoint. There are three cases this paper will examine. Furthermore, inferences and observations will be made in an attempt to gain further insight. In the first case study, a man named himself El-Or (real name George) is on a mission to save the Earth from an impending alien invasion. The second case study is about a woman named R, Dottie who developed symptoms of Schizotypal Personality Disorder after a turbulent childhood. She worked at a church briefly before being admitted to a psychiatric ward. The third case study examines a lifelong case study of Ludwig II, King of Bavaria.
Keywords: Schizotypal Personality Disorder, behavioral eccentricities, ideas of reference, bodily illusion, El-Or, Lucifer, Bavaria, Royal
Curious Cases of Schizotypal Personality Disorder
“The locust days are here and the wise shall behold and not see, hear the deafening and yet not be lifting.” (Vaknin, 2007) This was but one example of a statement made by a man named George during his first therapy session. Schizotypal Personality Disorder is a mental illness characterized by “extreme discomfort in close relationships, very odd patterns of thinking and perceiving, and behavioral eccentricities” (Comer, 2008, p. 379). In the United States, the prevalence of Schizotypal Personality Disorder was 2-4 percent. Males are affected slightly more than females. Although Schizotypal displays symptoms very similar to Schizophrenia, there is a distinct difference between the two. Analyzing case studies to identify distinct traits present in various mental illnesses aids clinicians in their diagnoses and students in their objectiv...
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According to (Barlow, 2001), Schizophrenia is a psychological or mental disorder that makes the patient recognize real things and to have abnormal social behavior. Schizophrenia is characterized by symptoms such as confused thinking, hallucinations, false beliefs, demotivation, reduced social interaction and emotional expressions (Linkov, 2008). Diagnosis of this disorder is done through observation of patient’s behavior, and previously reported experiences (Mothersill, 2007). In this paper, therefore, my primary goal is to discuss Schizophrenia and how this condition is diagnosed and treated.
... Psychoses.” Criticism & Lacon. Eds. Patrick Colm Hogan and Lalita Pandit. Athens: U of Georgia P, 1990. 64–73.
In my lifetime, I have spent months with my Grandmother, Florence Ernstead, who is a diagnosed paranoid delusional schizophrenic. During this time I have realized that schizophrenics have difficulty realizing the seriousness of their disorders. This inability to acknowledge a problem is known by psychiatrists as lack of insight.
“I’m sure I am a schizophrenic, the problem is I cannot tell the difference between which one’s which, which one is the real me” (Nick Rhodes). In A Beautiful Mind, John Nash begins to have schizophrenic symptoms during his graduate years at Princeton University. Just like Rhodes, John is not able to recognize the problem for himself. Schizophrenic individuals deal with situations that they are not able to control. The stigma of schizophrenia categorizes individuals in a situation of no return, and at many times they are highly neglected and judged. Schizophrenia is considered a blemish of individual character as it rarely develops right after birth, but rather in later stages of life. In A Beautiful Mind, the stigma of schizophrenia portrayed by John Nash
Personality disorders and mental illnesses are viewed by the general public as similar attributes that are equally harmful. However, when one delves into the diagnostics and patterns of the individual disorders and illnesses, it can be seen that there are major differences between each one. There are many levels of severity of the effects each disorder or illness has on society as a whole. They range from affecting only the individual on a solely personal basis to affecting a large amount of people on a highly violent level. Generally, it is found that mental illnesses have an influence on an individual level while personality disorders have an influence on a widespread level. As in every medical topic, there are outliers, or cases that are far outside the expected outcome, but for the most part, illnesses have less far reaching effects than disorders. On the spectrum of the societal effects of personality disorders and mental illnesses, the obsessive-compulsive disorder, which is actually a mental illness, is on the lowest level in terms of widespread consequences; just above this illness is schizophrenia which has the ability to affect more than the individual unless treated; the narcissistic disorder has farther reaching effects in society, such as in bureaucratic situations, than the two previously mentioned illnesses, placing it higher on the spectrum, and last, but not least, the schizoid personality disorder has proven to have the most wide spread consequences in the form of both emotional trauma and violence allocating it the highest level.
It has been stated that schizophrenia plays a very large role pertaining to who a person is and how that person’s actions are interpreted by the culture they live in. To contain the context of what schizophrenia is, the textbook definition reports it as a “severe disorder of thought and emotion associated with a loss of contact with reality” (Lilinfeld 479). The author of this textbook has put in the time and done the research to discover the most socially accepted and understood definition that could be possible. This definition in itself is almost overwhelming to consider that this is a disorder that currently has lifetime affects. Thought and emotional aspects come into play by realizing that any deviation from what a person normally thinks and feels will, without a doubt, affect how their thoughts and emotions change. By changing thoughts and emotions, actions will inevitably be affected in how they are carried out. This is where the culturally accepted portion becomes an issue because anything that is away from the normal action will have attention drawn to...
People typically think of personality disorders as a simple concept, but they are truly a complex topic with several different classifications. The most major division of the types of personality disorders is into clusters, the first being Cluster A (Burton). Cluster A is comprised of odd, bizarre, and eccentric personality disorders, such as paranoid, schizoid, and schizotypal personality disorder (Burton). Paranoid personality disorder is best described as a severe lack of trust, even in the people closest to the affected (Burton). Those with paranoid personalit...
Schizotypal personality disorder (SPD), is considered by many as part of the schizophrenic spectrum. It is characterized by discomfort with other people, peculiar patterns of thinking and behavior, and eccentricity. These may take the form of cognitive or perceptual disturbances. Yet, unlike schizophrenia, these psychotic symptoms are not as fully developed as delusions or hallucinations but instead can be characterized as perceptual illusions. A person suffering from SPD might become extremely anxious in social situations, especially those involving strangers. Schizotypal patients also tend to be overly suspicious of others and are not prone to trust others or to relax in their presence.
Personality disorder. Encyclopedia Britannica Online Academic Edition. Encyclopedia Britannica Inc. 2014. Web. 08 Feb 2014
Schizophrenia is a type of psychological disorder that affects a person’s brain and affects how they think and act on a daily bases. The disorder is known to be one of the most disabling and puzzling psychological disorder. People that suffer from this disorder have stated experiences that it is almost like a break from reality. It seems that schizophrenia in the past years has become a larger issue in our society. Moreover, people who develop the disorder seem to be disengaged from the common things in our lives such as working a job and having a relationship with others. There are many reasons why schizophrenia is one of the most bizarre and disabling types of mental disorders.
Schizophrenia is a serious, chronic mental disorder characterized by loss of contact with reality and disturbances of thought, mood, and perception. Schizophrenia is the most common and the most potentially sever and disabling of the psychosis, a term encompassing several severe mental disorders that result in the loss of contact with reality along with major personality derangements. Schizophrenia patients experience delusions, hallucinations and often lose thought process. Schizophrenia affects an estimated one percent of the population in every country of the world. Victims share a range of symptoms that can be devastating to themselves as well as to families and friends. They may have trouble dealing with the most minor everyday stresses and insignificant changes in their surroundings. They may avoid social contact, ignore personal hygiene and behave oddly (Kass, 194). Many people outside the mental health profession believe that schizophrenia refers to a “split personality”. The word “schizophrenia” comes from the Greek schizo, meaning split and phrenia refers to the diaphragm once thought to be the location of a person’s mind and soul. When the word “schizophrenia” was established by European psychiatrists, they meant to describe a shattering, or breakdown, of basic psychological functions. Eugene Bleuler is one of the most influential psychiatrists of his time. He is best known today for his introduction of the term “schizophrenia” to describe the disorder previously known as dementia praecox and for his studies of schizophrenics. The illness can best be described as a collection of particular symptoms that usually fall into four basic categories: formal thought disorder, perception disorder, feeling/emotional disturbance, and behavior disorders (Young, 23). People with schizophrenia describe strange of unrealistic thoughts. Their speech is sometimes hard to follow because of disordered thinking. Phrases seem disconnected, and ideas move from topic to topic with no logical pattern in what is being said. In some cases, individuals with schizophrenia say that they have no idea at all or that their heads seem “empty”. Many schizophrenic patients think they possess extraordinary powers such as x-ray vision or super strength. They may believe that their thoughts are being controlled by others or that everyone knows what they are thinking. These beliefs ar...
Coon, Dennis, John O. Mitterer, and Art VanDeventer. "Schizophrenia." Psychology: a journey. 3rd ed. Australia: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2008. 493.
Schizophrenia can be described by a wide-ranging spectrum of emotional and cognitive dysfunctions. These can include hallucinations, delusions, disorganized speech and behavior, as well as inappropriate emotions. Consequently, this disease can affect people from all walks of life. Since schizophrenia is such a complex disorder it can ultimately affect a person’s entire existence and their struggle to function daily. With a chronic disease like this, most people have a difficult time functioning in society. This can make it hard for someone who is schizophrenic to relate to others as well as maintain significant relationships. Life expectancy for those who suffer this illness tend to be shorter than average. This is due to the higher rate of accident and suicide. The symptoms of schizophrenia can be broken down into different categories: positive, negative and disorganized. Positive symptoms include hallucinations and delusions. These tend to be the more obvious signs of psychosis. On the other hand negative symptoms indicate deficits or absence of normal behavior which can affect sp...
Mental health complications are common personal traits in human beings. However, there are those that are implausibly real, though they are quite rare to find. Such unusual features include voices, visions, and multiple personalities. According to psychiatrists who will be mentioned in this paper, these psychological disorders are caused by high levels of stress or traumatic situations that happen in the victims ' lives. Voices and visions are sometimes normal dissociations that fade away quickly without the need to see a mental specialist. Nevertheless, those who acquire prolonged dissociations are said to have mental disorders, which make the victim 's life quite a struggle. Although mental health aberrations are not easy to encounter, numerous
History shows that signs of mental illness and abnormal behavior have been documented as far back as the early Greeks however, it was not viewed the same as it is today. The mentally ill were previously referred to as mad, insane, lunatics, or maniacs. W.B. Maher and B.A. Maher (1985) note how many of the terms use had roots in old English words that meant emotionally deranged, hurt, unhealthy, or diseased. Although early explanations were not accurate, the characteristics of the mentally ill have remained the same and these characteristics are used to diagnose disorders to date. Cultural norms have always been used to assess and define abnormal behavior. Currently, we have a decent understanding of the correlates and influences of mental illness. Although we do not have complete knowledge, psychopathologists have better resources, technology, and overall research skills than those in ancient times.