Schizoaffective Disorder is manageable if appropriate treatment methods are followed. Some of the methods are listed below.
Medication: Antipsychotics, anitdepressents, and antianxiolytics (anti-anxiety
medications) are the typical medicinal treatments. Combinations of the
above medications have shown to have positive results in most cases.
The mixture of the drugs is to help treat both the psychotic symptoms
(i.e. hallucinations or delusions), as well as the affective, or mood
symptoms (i.e. depression or mania).
Psycho-Therapy:
Several different types of therapy have proved beneficial to
patients suffering from Schizoaffective Disorder.
1) Group Therapy: This form of therapy helps to relieve isolation, and allows the patient to know they are not the only person having these issues. The therapy helps the patients focus on real life problems, make plans for dealing with their disorder, and helps to set up positive relationships. Also, this form of therapy helps to promote positive attitudes toward medication use.
2) Family Therapy: This therapy focuses on ways for the family of the patient, and for the patient him or herself, to be able to communicate more effectively when a problem is occurring. Family therapy has shown to be able to lower relapse rates, as solutions to family problems regarding Schizoaffective Disorder are brought to the forefront.
3) Supportive Therapy: This is a type of therapy directed at educating and reassuring the patient. This form of therapy proves more affective than typical psychotherpay, as Schizoaffective patients often have low self-esteem, and normal therapeutic styles can be too hard on them. Limit setting and reality testing also play a large role in this form of therapy.
Hospitalization:
In most acute cases, some level of hospitalization occurs.
Family support can help to shorten the hospital stay, and can
help prevent further hospitalization in the future. Many times,
if the patient is careful, monitors his symptoms, and sticks to his doctor's orders,
Schizoaffective Disorder patients can be treated on an out-patient
basis. Home General Information Diagnosis Subtypes Treatment Resources
Site Created by Adam Zimmer
atzimmer1@catamount.wcu.edu
2008