Veterans, is it PTSD or Schizophrenia? – Part 2

Part 1 of the article explored the various types and symptoms of schizophrenia as well as some general characteristics of the disease such as who develops it and at what age. The article also touched upon how schizophrenia is one of many mental illnesses that plagues combat veterans, and even contrasting schizophrenia with PTSD, a common psychological ailment that many veterans experience. Part 2 explores the many treatment options available for those suffering from all types of schizophrenia, as well as defining and dealing with PTSD, since many symptoms of both psychological diseases coincide.

When it comes to treatment options for all types of schizophrenia, methods are limited to only medication and therapy. The NIMH lists antipsychotics as the main medication of choice that psychiatrists prescribe patients diagnosed with all forms of schizophrenia. However, many consumers of antipsychotics feel as if the medication is sometimes worse than the actual disease itself, since the medication can come with a vast array of side effects that can completely hinder daily functioning. Sensitivity to the sun, involuntary bodily movements, restlessness, and drowsiness are only some of the side effects that patients have reported while on antipsychotics. However, it is imperative that if a patient has been prescribed antipsychotics that they take their medication regularly in order to keep their symptoms under control. Otherwise, patients pose the risk of slipping in and out of reality, mostly without other peoples’ knowledge, which depending on the severity of the type of schizophrenia and the emotional toll it poses on patients, can be dangerous for family and friends as well.

Various types of therapy are also a great supplement to medication, since the NIMH claims that therapy can help patients through the day-to-day struggles, including those caused by not only schizophrenia, but also the antipsychotic medication. Patients are also given the opportunity to speak individually with a regular therapist and learn about “living with the illness and learning how to manage symptoms, like hearing voices or having delusions”. Self-help groups also exist so that patients who possess all forms of schizophrenia can share their personal battles with the disease as a whole and learn coping techniques while simultaneously receiving deep emotional support that they are otherwise denied by coexisting with non-affected individuals.

But probably one of the most invaluable types of therapy available to patients is drug and alcohol abuse treatments. Substance, alcohol abuse, and even suicide are all common tendencies among individuals who suffer from all types of schizophrenia. These habits, including suicidal ideation, all arise after a patient becomes depressed due to either the disease itself and how it makes everyday living a never-ending battle, or just the medication which can make a patient feel completely numb to the world around him or her. The NIMH warns the dangers of adopting these habits, such as when a patient begins abusing drugs, since they will probably be less likely to follow a regular medication program. Smoking cigarettes is even highly discouraged because physicians have found that smoking makes antipsychotics less potent, yet patients continue use because they feel it helps numb their schizophrenic symptoms.

So how does schizophrenia tie into PTSD and the battlefield? Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder can occur after a person has either witnessed or endured a traumatic event. Like schizophrenia, the symptoms of PTSD can greatly alter an affected individual’s outlook on life. Coincidentally, some of the symptoms of PTSD coincide with those of schizophrenia, especially the paranoid-type.

An affected individual with PTSD can experience flashbacks that mentally transport them back to the initial traumatic incident. This type of experience can be greatly likened to the hallucinations of paranoid-type schizophrenia. PTSD nightmares act much in the same way, disallowing for a person to find peace of mind even in sleep because their dreams take them right back to the traumatic event. Other side effects include emotional changes such as newfound anger and anxiety, social withdrawal, and extreme paranoia.

For a while, like schizophrenia, PTSD only had two rehabilitation options: medication and therapy. The VA began prescribing veterans a series of narcotics in order to nullify their symptoms, but medication only provides short-term relief. Therapy is also offered to veterans, but more and more since 2002, the VA has greatly shifted from individualized therapy treatments to simply relying on medication to help combat the amount of affected veterans consulting the VA for relief. In short, the demand for PTSD rehabilitation is too overwhelming for the VA to adequately accommodate. For this reason, many news outlets like CNN have reported that the rate of military suicides among combat veterans has risen to 22 a day. Most of these daily suicides count for veterans who have suffered from PTSD and have either let their symptoms go undiagnosed, or they have been refused proper help from the VA. Fortunately, other organizations have stepped forward to offer many treatment options to combat veterans, particularly those who have served in either Iraq or Afghanistan.

One of those organizations is Operation: I.V. The organization, a 501(c)3 non-profit founded in 2012, helps combat veterans heal from both PTSD as well as traumatic brain injuries. Its founder, Roxann Abrams, is a Gold Star Mother who lost her son SFC Randy Abrams in 2009. Randy took his own life after experiencing a PTSD flashback from his service in Iraq. As a result of her son’s death, Abrams founded Operation: I.V. so that combat veterans who served in either Iraq or Afghanistan have a place to receive treatment through a specialized “VIP”, or “Veteran Intervention Plan” program. “VIP” offers ten different rehabilitation programs, including hyperbolic oxygen therapy, service dogs, and anxiety reduction therapy. Additionally, veterans may also partake in programs such as job retraining, business mentoring, and educational assistance. Again, while there is no cure for PTSD, the programs provided by Operation: I.V. can drastically improve a veteran’s mental health and overall outlook on life!