Doctor thinks Dd has schizophrenia

[MHIssues]

I’m a little bit freaked out. She’s 20yo and this has pretty much come out the blue. I’ve known she’s been a bit depressed and had anxiety for years. We paid for her to have counselling last year which she said helped.

She’s been back to the doctor today as she is hearing voices and seeing things round the house. She says it’s been going on since she was 14yo, she’ll be fine for a few months and then it starts again and she says it’s been bad for the last week. She’s not told me about this before.

Dr has asked Dd to ask if anyone in our family has a history of psychosis. I always thought there was something seriously not right with my mother mentally though she thought she was fine and refused to see a doctor. Me and my dad thought she had bi polar as she was so up and down (violently so at times). One time she did tell me she’d heard God talking to her while she was cleaning!

Dd is going back to the doctors next week and has been told they probably want to start her on medication.

I have what is deemed a serious and complex mental illness and have been in and around the mental health system for a while now. Aside from depression/anxiety a gp doesn't diagnose schizophrenia. They refer to a psychiatrist who will make the diagnosis. They kind of medication that is needed for schizophrenia /psychosis is prescribed by a psychiatrist and I have never known a gp prescribe it other than on a repeat prescription as directed.

Jeannie the zebra

I was at a doctor's for homeless people. The CPN started me on the medication. I took it for a year stopped taking it when I found out I was pregnant and my new GP started me back on it 2 weeks after I gave birth. There and then didn't refer or ask anyone else.

@MHIssues sorry you are going through this, it's hard no matter the age of your child. If you don't already belong I would suggest joining a private FB group called Parenting Mental Health; so supportive and helpful it has been a lifeline for me.

Hi OP.

Haven’t read the whole thread but just wanted to comment.

A close family member was diagnosed a few years ago (age 28). It did feel like it came out the blue, it did get really bad because he was left unmonitored and had a psychosis incident. He didn’t hear voices, but slowly lost touch with reality because he wasn’t getting the help he needed. Paranoia was also a thing and he would spend a lot of time researching things.

However.. it sounds like your daughter is receiving the right care/ checks so this won’t happen.

If it is schizophrenia please know that it will be okay. My family member is doing amazing and is on medication. He is just a normal functioning person . I think serious mental health issues like this have such a negative stigma but so many people are simply living their life and dealing with it. The same as any other physical illness.

Ladder

That’s extremely unusual. I (student MH nurse/person with lots of lived experience with complex MH problems) didn’t realise that CPNs could have that kind of authority. Anti-psychotics are nasty drugs and even psychs will sometimes double check. I guess they must have been very experienced. Do you feel safe not having seen a psychiatrist? I would worry that homeless people are getting a lower standard of care but maybe I’m looking at this the wrong way? Anyway, I really hope you’re doing better now and that you weren’t thinking I didn’t believe you. It’s just not something I’ve come across before, but we all live and learn 🙂

Thanks for all the recommendations of groups, books, websites, etc. I will look into them all.

I’ve got a sibling with schizophrenia and it’s honestly not as frightening as what you’d be led to believe by newspapers and movies.

However- a GP cannot diagnose this.

Hopefully next week she’ll get a referral to someone who can put things in place. It must be really frightening for her too, and all you can do is be that rock of support- and to do that you need support too!

Whatever her diagnosis ends up being, the usual care steps will have to be followed- check in on her, does she have thoughts of self harm or suicide, keep sharps and medicines locked away, and be as patient as you can.

My experience has been with medication and time, life does return to normal. Thankfully my sibling is fine now, no medication, happily married and has a child. It doesn’t dictate your whole life if it does turn out she is schizophrenic.

She does need to see a psychiatrist. But for your reassurance, as long as she takes her meds, she should be fine

It sounds like your daughter has a wide range of diagnoses and needs. With diagnosed PTSD is she already under some form of mental health care? Perhaps the week is for the GP to agree options with them.

My partner has bipolar with psychosis. Not the same as szichophrenia, but the psychotic part is similar.
The key thing is learning how to manage the condition. That includes taking medication, not taking illegal drunks or drinking too much alcohol and getting enough sleep. Drugs do come with some side-effects, so some people stop taking them and get into a cycle of getting ill, on drugs again, stopping them because of side-effects, and getting ill again. If she can learn to manage it she has a high chance of being amongst those who do well.
There is some research that people with szichophrenia get less severe symptoms as they get into middle-age. So don't think that things will always be as they currently are.
It will be difficult at her age to know what is just being a young adult, what is her personality and what is part of her mental illness. But not everything will be down to her mental illness.
Also look at support for yourself. This is tough to deal with so find support for carers of people with szichophrenia. You need to talk to others who truly understand what this is like.

Another vote for her seeing a psychiatrist / mental health professional. I have worked as a community mental health nurse and we would often receive referrals from GP’s stating schizophrenia . The majority of the time they were wrong. That diagnosis is bandied around too much

@ItsAllOrangeAndYellow

It may be the GP is seeing her in a week to continue to assess her risk whilst a psychiatrist appointment is awaited. If there's any change in risk, they could request she's seen more urgently.

Hearing voices does not equal psychosis. The experience of previously called pseudohallucinations can also be part of the complex PTSD presentation or borderline personality disorder for example. I'm not saying it is either of those but voices doesn't equal schizophrenia is what I'm trying to emphasize.

Also, I'm a qualified psychiatrist.

That’s what I was thinking, psychotic features can be present in EUPD which is someone has a hx of trauma is not uncommon at all.

I think it would be good to see a consultant psychiatrist and a referral for Early Intervention for Psychosis if your area has that team.

I’d say you’re quite a long way from a schizophrenia dx at this point.

[quote MHIssues]@candylebonbon thank you. I'm always very careful to not come across to dd as being dismissive. I am genuinely aware that even when it seems like she's exaggerating, etc that it's all very real to her.[/quote]
I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to offend. I'm probably a bit sensitive to the the drama llama thing because of how I was treated so apologies for projecting. I wish you well.

She needs to see an early intervention in psychosis team.

This is unusual

Her vit b12 though when they tested it recently was abnormally high.

Has anyone investigated a cause for this?

Op, there’s a good Youtube channel called Living Well With Schizophrenia which you might want to look at. Also Dr Tracey Marks.