Nervous System
... genetic makeup of individuals combine with environmental factors to cause the psychoses. Schizophrenia does run in the family. Studies have examined the possible role of brain neurotransmitters in the development of schizophrenia, focussing on dopamine. The “dopamine theory of schizophrenia” says that schizophrenia is caused by an overactive dopamine system in the brain. + Effect on sufferers lifestyle: Schizophrenic can be terrifying. The person suffers from a world of madness that others cannot understand, The life of someone with schizophrenia can be deranged, empty, and without much contact with reality. The sufferer often feels alone, and finds it easier to withdraw than cope with a reality that doesn’t match their own world. Sufferers feel tormented by unusual perceptions and cannot distinguish what is real from what is not. Schizophrenia affects all aspects of the persons life. Their thoughts race and they feel very alone with their craziness. +Treatments – past, present and future: Drugs to treat schizophrenia are called antipsychotic medications. These drugs help relieve the delusions, hallucinations, and thinking problems associated with the disorder. It is believed that these drugs work by fixing imbalances in the chemicals that help brain cells communicate with each other. Drug manufacturers are working on new medications to treat schizophrenia. Older drug treatments have focussed on treating the positive aspects of schizophrenia, newer drugs are targeting the negative symptoms. Powerful new implants and injections could also change the treatment of schizophrenia, there are concerns of doctors and families that patients who stop taking the drugs (above) may return to their psychotic behaviour. These new forms of treatment supply medicine for weeks and maybe months at a time. 4) Drug dependence: The compulsion to use a substance or participate in a particular activity that we know is harmful to ourselves. P.T.O Tolerance: Over time the distribution and metabolising of a substance changes, and our bodies remove the substance more efficiently. This results in less of the desired effects, meaning you require a stronger dose to get the same effect again. Withdrawal Symptoms: Withdrawal symptoms vary depending on the drug used, and how strongly. They occur when the use of the drug is decreased or stops altogether. Symptoms can include anxiety, insomnia, irritablity, and tension etc. Severe symptoms include convulsions, high blood pressure, rapid heartbeat and perceptual distortion. 5) Short/ longterm effects of alcohol on the body: Alcohol depresses/ slows down the body’s cells and organs until they are less efficient. It effects the area in the brain responsible for controlling the senses; perception speed and judgement. It causes peoples speech to be slurred, and errors in the thinking process. Alcohol also affects coordination and balance, drinkers usually stumble, and are unsteady. Alcohol acts as an anesthesia, only 20% of ingested alcohol is absorbed through the stomach; the other 80% is absorbed through the intestinal linings straight into the bloodstream, reaching every cell in the body. Long term effects of alcohol consumption are: an increased risk of cancer the mo...