What are the precursors to a relapse of schizophrenia?

  First, we need to know what is a relapse? Let’s look at an example. A certain 16-year-old boy has been experiencing headaches, dizziness, weakness, poor mental performance, and a decline in academic performance for almost 3 months, often not turning in homework and asking inexplicable questions in class, such as “Why don’t people have wings? “What is the difference between aliens and humans?” and so on. Sometimes he laughs for no reason, says he has special powers and may hear aliens, and refuses to visit his grandfather, who loves him most, when he is sick in the hospital. He also refused to go to the hospital for medical treatment. After 3 months of forced hospitalization, the above abnormal performance gradually eased, claiming that he seemed to have nightmares for a period of time, actively cooperated with the treatment, and had a clear remedial study for the future, his grades picked up significantly, and he was successfully promoted to high school to continue his study. But unfortunately, he stopped taking the medication after only six months, and soon he started talking nonsense again, crying and laughing erratically, going out and not returning, etc. He had to be suspended from school and hospitalized again, this time for six months, and after he was discharged from the hospital, he refused to take the medication voluntarily, had no plans and intentions for his future study and life, and refused to admit that he was sick. Although he joined the workforce and started a family, his ability to work and socialize has significantly decreased. In this case, the second hospitalization was due to a relapse, and the subsequent hospitalizations were due to an exacerbation of the disease. Relapse means that all the psychiatric symptoms disappear, the recognition of the disease is complete, and the person can adapt well to normal study, life, labor, and social interaction, and this state should be maintained for more than 1 month before the psychiatric symptoms appear again. If the original symptoms are not completely relieved or temporarily relieved, and if new psychiatric symptoms appear later or the original symptoms are aggravated, it cannot be said to be a relapse, but rather it should be called aggravation or deterioration. People often say “anti-sickness”, including both the relapse of the disease, but also the meaning of the aggravation of the disease in it.  By understanding the meaning of relapse, we can better understand the problems related to relapse. The relapse of mental illness does not enter a very serious state all of a sudden, the second is slowly aggravated, which requires family members to pay attention to early observation and understanding of this knowledge, so that early detection, timely treatment, which is undoubtedly very important. After a large number of clinical observations, about 70% of patients can appear before the relapse of the omens, these omens can be the same as the original symptoms, but there are also different, the following are some of the relapse of the omens: 1. sleep changes: this is also the most common, manifested in difficulty in falling asleep, shallow sleep, easy to wake up, early awakening, dreamy, and even sleep hallucinations, etc. 2.  2. physical discomfort: such as headache, dizziness, weakness, panic, loss of weight, poor appetite, slow reaction, etc.  3. mood changes: mainly mood swings and instability, such as less silence, anxiety, irritability, agitation, sensitivity and suspicion, or excitement and talk a lot, nosiness and sociability.  4. incomprehensible behavior or excessive behavior.  5. Self-decrease or refusal to take medication.  6. Previous similar phenomena such as self-talk, suspicion, apathy, dullness, laziness, indiscipline, and fear for no reason. There are also intermittent hallucinations, delusions and obsessive-compulsive and hypochondriac symptoms.  Some patients may know that certain symptoms are abnormal and actively seek medical advice, but they do not actively seek medical advice, and their emotional responses are not vivid, and their speech is not pertinent, and some of their words are even puzzling. If these phenomena occur, you should follow up with a specialist as soon as possible to avoid delaying treatment.