SchizophreniaMore than 2 Million

Americans suffer from it at any given time and

100,000 – 200,000 are newly diagnosed each year.

http://www.emedicinehealth.com/schizophrenia/article_em.htm

Despite the connotation of the word positive, positive symptoms of schizophrenia include,• Thought disorganization• Delusions• Hallucinations• Paranoiahttp://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/550755_13

All of which can cause the sufferer to feel, or appear to others, as though he or she were lost (even in an otherwise familiar setting). Social interactions can become overwhelming. Positive symptoms can cause schizophrenics to withdraw from society and isolate themselves.

Positive Symptoms

• Ambivalence

Having simultaneous and contradictory attitudes or feelings about an object or person

• Anhedonia

The inability to experience pleasure in acts which would normally produce pleasure.

• Affective FlatteningExpressions which appear, inappropriately, to be devoid of emotion.

• Impoverished speech Communication seems incoherent, sentences jump from one subject

to another, or words or complete thoughts seem to be missing from sentences. http://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/550755_13Definitions taken from http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/hp.asp

Negative symptoms can cause the sufferer to appear as though he or she is lacking important information during a given situation.

Negative Symptoms

• Anxiety• Agitation• Suicidality • Distractibility• Catatonic or trancelike states• Abstract thinking impairment (does not seem to

grasp generalizations and common concepts)http://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/550755_13

Mood and Neurocognitive symptoms can have a great impact on the sufferer’s ability to form and maintain relationships.

Mood & Neurocognitivesymptoms

ProblemsEveryone has them

Have you ever been

Lost?

Perhaps you’ve made gotten turned around in an unfamiliar part of town, or have gotten off the highway too soon or too late. In any case, most

of us hate that lost feeling.

http://www.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi

Have you ever felt as though

you were

Missing key information?Maybe a friend has asked you what the

population of Lexington Tennessee is, or, to name the capital of each State. Quick wit and

intelligence are highly coveted traits.

http://www.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi

Have you ever experienced

Relationship Troubles?Ah the al l too famil iar, “You forgot our

anniversary!” or “You don’t spend enough time with me!” How about, “We

have nothing in common!”

http://www.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi

And

YOU ARE NOT ALONE

THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT!

Thanks to advances in technology,

individuals can solve virtually any

problem!

With Google maps, you can plan a trip and your routes before you leave

home.

Smartphone owners need not worry

about getting lost on the go

There’s even an app in the event

of a missing smart phone! http://www.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi

Search engines like Google and Bing afford laptop and PC owners

the ability to access more information than most individuals

could fathom.

Thanks to apps, such as Pulse, the mobile BBC app, and a new dictionary.com app,

information is accessible from virtually any location. Heck, certain advances in

technology allow Smartphone users to enlist

the help of personal assistant-like AI to help them find information

http://www.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi

IF YOU ARE AMONG THE BILLIONS OF INDIVIDUALS, EITHER CURRENTLY OR BY PAST EXPERIENCE, INVOLVED IN A

A ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP, CHANCES ARE, AT ONE POINT OR

ANOTHER YOU EXPERIENCED RELATIONSHIP TROUBLES.

TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES CAN HELP SOLVE THOSE TOO. APPS LIKE

LOVE MAPS, KAHNOODLE, , FIX A FIGHT, AND AVOCADO WERE DESIGNED TO PROMOTE THE SUCCESS OF RELATIONSHIPS.

http://www.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi

So what does any of that have to do with

schizophrenia?

What if…

There were an app for schizophrenia?

Individuals experiencing normal daily issues utilize social media apps, thought to be helpful

in locating a destination, getting proper information, and apps reported to help with relationship problems. Though schizophrenia can be more disorienting than being lost, can

greatly confuse the sufferer with boat loads of inappropriate information about a situation, and can cause severe family and friendship

stresses, the same technological advances used to provide citizens with help during times of

need are providing new options in the treatment of schizophrenia.

•

Virtual RealityThis technology is currently being used by psychiatrists, during a patient’s psychotic

episode. The treatment is designed to relieve the patient of the notion that the auditory and visual hallucinations he or

she might experience, during a schizophrenic episode, are real.

Family members and doctors are also using the virtual reality programs to gain

a better understanding of what the patient might be experiencing.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn2459-vr-hallucinations-used-to-

treat-schizophrenia.html

Second Life

A second chance to make sense of a scattered reality

James Cook, MD MS (also known as Nash Baldwin on Second Life), is the creator of the Virtual Hallucinations Project, a space within the Second Life virtual reality venue, which allow an individual to experience a setting or environment with the virtual eyes and ears (examples of possible auditory and visual hallucinations) of a schizophrenic. The Second Life building was designed by Doctor Cook based on the descriptions he was given by two separate patients with schizophrenia. The project is intended to heighten awareness pertaining to the disease. According to Peter M. Yellowlees, M.B.B.S., M.D. and James N. Cook, M.D., M.S., “A common cause of frustration and alienation for sufferers of schizophrenia is that their therapists, family members, and caregivers cannot really understand their experiences.”

http://ap.psychiatryonline.org/article.aspx?articleID=50418

http

://ww

w.g

oogle

.com

/imgh

p?

hl=

en&

tab=

wi

Ceasing the Virtual Opportunity

As a schizophrenic, I appreciate the benefits of virtual reality therapy.The main cause of feeling the need to isolate myself stems from overwhelming public situations. Loud restaurants and super markets intensify auditory hallucinations.

While trying Second Life for the first time, I was able to enjoy virtual shopping, with little to no noise to distract and dissuade me for the first time in many years.Virtual reality settings allow the user to abort an uncomfortable or unpleasant experience immediately. Theses technological advances, available to the public through media and the internet afford the opportunity to explore therapy beyond a medical office setting.