hi i have a friend who is 21years and thinks she s seeing someone who is dead,she s hearing voices ppl talking about her badly ,she is wearing sunglasses 24hours because she things ppl can read her mind ,she was abused as child,she cuts,burns,and bleed herself by a canulla so she has to get blood transfusion alot,she attempted suicide before,she doesnt trust anyone not even her family or psychiatrist or anyone ,does she has schizophrenia?how can i help her?
Hi, I do appreciate your concern regarding your friend. The symptoms that you have mentioned are highly suggestive of an underlying psychotic process and in this case it is likely that your friend is suffering from schizophrenia. She seems to be having visual and auditory hallucinations, thought broadcasting, etc. which are all symptoms of schizophrenia. She needs treatment with anti-psychotics. Generally such patients refuse treatment initially. But once treatment is started, and they start gaining insight regarding their illness, they do start complying. Depot injectables are something which can be tried in patients who refuse to take oral medications. As for you, if you are close to her, you can try to persuade her for treatment. You can also discuss with her family regarding the option for considering in-patient treatment for few days so that treatment can be initiated. Hope this information was helpful. Wishing your friend speedy recovery.