The Myths and the Malignment

By Neil Howard

 One day soon, schizophrenia must be replaced with a name that could be more scientific like NDD. (Neurotransmitter Dysfunction Disorder)  Why?  Because most people think that schizophrenia, whose etymology is split mind, refers to a person with a split personality.  Nobody who comes to this conclusion, and will do so by reading any dictionary, would ever understand that what Eugen Bleuler meant when he changed it in 1911 from dementia praecox was a split from reality.

But then we must qualify what a split from reality means.  What he meant was that a person develops thoughts and feelings that are irrational or delusional and were not part of his/her normal repertoire of thoughts and feelings before he/she got sick.
These symptoms consequently affect our ability to function in the real world and do the things that we were doing before getting sick such as working at a job or attending school.

Moreover, it doesn’t mean that we are “sleep-walkers” who walk around in an altered consciousness.  It is true, however, that we are sometimes unaware of the psychosis that we are experiencing and sometimes appear to be aloof because of being medicated.

If this were explained in an advertising campaign, it would debunk the myth of the split personality and would begin to eradicate some of the stigma involved with having this illness.

What really is bothersome is that the media still say things like – “he was schizophrenic about this matter,” when reporters are trying to convey that a person can’t take one side of an argument.  This continues to happen even today in movies and in television sitcoms.

In addition, movies are partly to blame for the myth that people with schizophrenia have a propensity for aggression.  In fact, people with schizophrenia are more likely to hurt themselves or jeopardize their own well being when psychosis compromises our ability to look after ourselves. 

One day, schizophrenia will be replaced again, like Bleuler did, but this time with a word that will promote more dignity, understanding and respect.  Until this happens we will continue to be stigmatized and misunderstood.

If people who perpetuate the myths really knew what awful things we go through and were aware of the problems that we have with side-effects etc. they would think twice before using the word schizophrenia in an erroneous and hurtful way.