Schizoaffective Disorder
This post is the second Action Project of my second STEAM class of my sophomore year. Whereas in the first project my class was learning about diseases of the body, in this unit we specialized on mental disorders. We spent time reading the book "The Reason I Jump" by Naoki Higashida, and also researched individual disorders in the DSM-V, which is the official book used by medical professionals to diagnose disorders. We then all picked one disorder from the DSM-V to investigate further and educate our classmates about. Check out mine below!
Schizoaffective disorder is a mental health condition that includes symptoms of both schizophrenia and a mood disorder. In the DSM-V the exact definition is "An uninterrupted period of illness during which there is a major mood episode (major depressive or manic) concurrent with Criterion A of schizophrenia." The mood disorder is usually either depression or bipolar disorder, but my project focuses on bipolar disorder. Risk factors include having a genetic relative with schizoaffective disorder, going through a stressful event, or taking a mind altering drug.
One celebrity who has spoken publicly about having schizoaffective disorder is Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys. He said “when I was on stage I could hear voices telling me negative things about myself. Even today, when I sing I have to force myself not listen to them.” These are known as auditory hallucinations, and are a symptom of schizoaffective disorder. Other criteria for diagnosis include the symptoms not being attributable to drug use/another medical condition, that sometimes the person experiences delusions/hallucinations even when no symptoms of the mood disorder are present, Those who think they may have schizoaffective disorder, or who experience symptoms, should speak with their primary care provider, and potentially look into specialists near them. Treatment usually includes a mix of both therapy and medicine. On treatment, Brian Wilson said "I’ve been seeing a psychiatrist once a week for 12 years now, and he’s become a really close friend of mine. We talk and he helps me out. He tells me, “Well when you hear the voices, why don’t you make a joke and say to them, ‘How are you doing, Voices? How are you doing today?’ You know, talk humorously to them.” I tried that out and it works a little bit." (His interview was very interesting and very helpful on this project, it can be read here and I can't recommend it enough)
In the simulation, participants will listen to a 15 minute audio recording, and they will also watch a YouTube video at the same time. The simulation represents feelings of schizoaffective disorder by switching back and forth from songs participants indicated made them feel happy and songs they indicated made them feel sad. It also simulates auditory hallucinations with random clips of audio throughout. You can listen to a recording I made of songs of my choosing below, along with the YouTube video.
Schizoaffective disorder is a mental health condition that includes symptoms of both schizophrenia and a mood disorder. In the DSM-V the exact definition is "An uninterrupted period of illness during which there is a major mood episode (major depressive or manic) concurrent with Criterion A of schizophrenia." The mood disorder is usually either depression or bipolar disorder, but my project focuses on bipolar disorder. Risk factors include having a genetic relative with schizoaffective disorder, going through a stressful event, or taking a mind altering drug.
One celebrity who has spoken publicly about having schizoaffective disorder is Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys. He said “when I was on stage I could hear voices telling me negative things about myself. Even today, when I sing I have to force myself not listen to them.” These are known as auditory hallucinations, and are a symptom of schizoaffective disorder. Other criteria for diagnosis include the symptoms not being attributable to drug use/another medical condition, that sometimes the person experiences delusions/hallucinations even when no symptoms of the mood disorder are present, Those who think they may have schizoaffective disorder, or who experience symptoms, should speak with their primary care provider, and potentially look into specialists near them. Treatment usually includes a mix of both therapy and medicine. On treatment, Brian Wilson said "I’ve been seeing a psychiatrist once a week for 12 years now, and he’s become a really close friend of mine. We talk and he helps me out. He tells me, “Well when you hear the voices, why don’t you make a joke and say to them, ‘How are you doing, Voices? How are you doing today?’ You know, talk humorously to them.” I tried that out and it works a little bit." (His interview was very interesting and very helpful on this project, it can be read here and I can't recommend it enough)
In the simulation, participants will listen to a 15 minute audio recording, and they will also watch a YouTube video at the same time. The simulation represents feelings of schizoaffective disorder by switching back and forth from songs participants indicated made them feel happy and songs they indicated made them feel sad. It also simulates auditory hallucinations with random clips of audio throughout. You can listen to a recording I made of songs of my choosing below, along with the YouTube video.
Another thing we discussed in class was different types of brain waves. There are five different ones which are called gamma, beta, alpha, theta, and delta waves. I think this simulation switched between beta and alpha waves, as I believe the listeners will be actively listening most of the time, but it will probably be more/less relaxing at some times. One thing I wasn't able to include in this project but did learn in the research project was the relationship between gamma waves and schizophrenia. They tend to increase in people with schizophrenia according to one study. Gamma waves are difficult to measure so this may be unreliable, but it is worth checking out. Here is the link.
Schizoaffective disorder is something most people know relatively little about, so most stereotypes of it that people have come from their assumptions about schizophrenia. While they both can be difficult for people to cope with, it is not impossible, and many people know people with schizoaffective disorder without knowing it. If you know someone who has schizoaffective disorder, you should know they are still a person who likely often seems ok, but you shouldn't assume that they are or aren't ok, and should check in often. It's important to support them when they need it if you can. Another thing Brian Wilson said in his interview was "my friends constantly assure me I’m going to be okay, that they’re on my side and they’re my allies." If you have schizoaffective disorder, you should find people you love and trust, and reach out for help. That being said friends aren't a substitute for professional mental healthcare, and if you're able you should look into it. For more advice check out this website.
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