How to Treat Schizophrenia Naturally Through Diet and Supplements

In this article I will show exactly how to relieve schizophrenic symptoms quickly and easily using natural methods.

Schizophrenia is a severe mental health condition that is more common than many people realise. It has many causes, and nutritional therapy can assist most of these. It is, however, advised that you consult a nutritionist who will test for biochemical imbalances before devising a specific programme to assist you.

Some nutrients that help schizophrenia include B3, folic acid and essential fatty acids - however, in some cases these can have a negative effect, and so it really is crucial that you consult a professional before considering any supplement programme.

Allergies are often an underlying cause of schizophrenia and, again, a nutritionist would be able to test this for you.

You will benefit from following a healthy, balanced diet containing a wide variety of fruits and vegetables and their juices, choosing organic options wherever possible. You should limit the amount of meat in your diet, as a way of reducing your saturated fat intake, and should choose fish instead for protein. Your whole diet should be made up of organic food wherever possible. You should avoid refined carbohydrates and stimulants such as sugar, chocolate, coffee and alcohol, as well as salt and foods containing added salt. You should drink plenty of water to cleanse the body.

Supplements will be very important in allowing your body to return to good health. You should consult a nutritionist to devise a supplement programme tailored specifically to your needs.

Mothers of Schizophrenics

In the interests of scholarly research for a book I am writing, I paid a visit to the local university psychology library to track down the 1961 edition of the British Journal of Medical Psychology (BJMP). It was well worth the trip. Almost the entire journal that year was devoted to the subject of schizophrenia, reminding me once again that schizophrenia used to be the exciting and perplexing main focus of psychiatric research. Coincidentally, 1961 was also the year that Carl Jung died, and there was a nice tribute to him in the Journal that singled out his interest in schizophrenia.

In one study, mothers of schizophrenics were subjected to a battery of Rorschach tests, word association tests and were interviewed by a psychiatrist. He reports: "The speech of most of the group was so rapid and spontaneous as to be irrelevant and incomprehensible. In these cases the subjects moved from one topic to another with bewildering rapidity, their replies invariably being irrelevant to the questions asked."

Elsewhere in the article she is described as controlling, manipulative, sexually frigid, and unable to remember exactly when her child began and ended toilet training.

Flipping through the 1961 edition, the peculiarities of the mother are a running theme. The descriptions of her are stereotypical of women at that time and the British woman in particular. These days with reality television and Essex girls, one has the distinct impression that all British women are sexually available and flaunting it. Not so back then. Post-war Britain was a fairly grim, repressed place. The BJMP bequeaths such nuggets as the mothers confiding to the interviewer that they couldn't stand their husbands "pawing and slobbering" over them for sex. Several mothers tried to ingratiate themselves with the interviewer by asking him personal questions and bringing him restorative "tonics" over the course of several meetings. One mother confided that her husband was such a non-entity that she almost dusted him, too, when she hoovered and cleaned the house.

The BJMP is a telling snapshot of the prevailing attitudes to women at the time perpetuated by a male psychiatrist, a British psychiatrist at that. It is also possible that the findings tell us more about the psychiatrist than the mothers. What background did he come from? Was he a product of the British public school system, removed from his mother and sent to an all male boarding school at the age of six or eight, thereafter forever frightened of women? Were his own parents talkative or was the only sound heard at dinner the clanking of eating utensils on the plate?

The study findings can also be viewed as a commendable attempt to understand the problems of schizophrenia by interviewing someone (the mother) who is a major influence on the child's early development. Nowhere in the 1961 Journal did I read anything about medication. The efforts were to link the family situation to the deep personal problems of the patients. There was an interesting anecdote of a woman who had been confined for years to a mental institution. It was only when she had to change institutions and came under the influence of the lively, warm woman who ran the nursing home where she found herself, that three months later she just up and left, beginning a active new life of volunteer work and complete recovery.

The prevailing negative attitude towards the mother (and fathers, too) lasted until the first generation of antipsychotics allowed patients to leave the institutions in greater numbers in the 1960s and 1970s. As this occurred, it became no longer acceptable to link the parents to the problems of the child. There are several reasons for this. One reason is that psychiatrists no longer had easy access to a pool of research subjects. Two, as a parent, I might prefer to believe that my child's problems were biochemical in origin, as the drug companies maintained, rather than worry that I had ruined my child through improper toilet training or being sexually frigid or being myself a diluted schizophrenic. Third, the woman's movement challenged just about everything that had been written and said about women.

I am not so sure that psychiatrist's attitudes changed about the parents, and the mother in particular. Scratch beneath the surface of psychiatrists' beliefs, and I think this is where you will find that the attitude to the mother hasn't changed. After all, once they come into regular contact with the relatives of their patients, they are going to judge them. Like most mothers of ill children, I no doubt come across to a doctor as protective, worried and manipulative. I am not there to win a popularity contest with them, and they will judge me accordingly. Institutional psychiatrists may be less judgmental as they are preoccupied with titrating the medications and barely have time for the patients, let alone studying their families. The research money is in studying the medications, so the spotlight has shifted away from the family environment as an indicator of schizophrenia.

If, indeed, the mother and the family environment are an incubator of schizophrenia in some vulnerable individuals, then serious research on this topic should once again be undertaken in order to provide more effective interventions.

US Citizenship Options For Elderly Applicants - Medical & Exam Waivers

I frequently receive calls from the adult children of US permanent residents (i.e. green card holders) who want to know how their parent can become a US citizen if the parent cannot study for the English history test and / or does not speak English very well. I have created an article for you on the two most common scenarios that I answer weekly in my US Immigration Law Office of Lena Korial-Yonan, P.A.:

1. My mom is eligible for US citizenship because she has had the green card for 5 years, and she does not have extensive travel or any criminal issues. The problem is that she does not speak or read English and cannot study for the history test. Any solution?

USCIS has specific rules that relate to an applicant's age and how long they have had the green card that can exempt them from having to take the US English History test and also exempt them from passing the interview portion of the N-400 as well as the reading and writing exam. Please see the next question for more details on this.

However, here the applicant has had the green card for only 5 years and so the only solution is to see whether the applicant is eligible for a medical disability waiver. A medical disability waiver is completed by a US licensed general medical doctor, licensed clinical psychologist or other specific doctor on USCIS form N-648, Medical Certification for Disability Exemptions. The form must be completed a specific way and with specific wording / answers before USCIS will approve the medical waiver. The doctor, in order to complete the medical disability form, must give your parent, the N-400 applicant, a test to determine whether he or she can learn or remember basic things. This test can include having to recite basic information just explained to your parent and may also include basic exams having your parent place a circle object with circle object, etc.

Applicants with dementia or Alzheimer's, for example, are eligible to file form N-648, Medical Disability Waiver, which states that because of their mental limits, they cannot study for the US history test. A major limitation for eligibility under form N-648 is that the resulting mental disability cannot be a result of drug use.

Our immigration law office has successfully completed medical waivers prepared by licensed doctors of applicant's own choosing for the mental conditions of dementia, Alzheimer's and schizophrenia. Please note that these cases are being mentioned are examples and in no way guarantee that your case will have similar results for both the mental conditions listed and for the USCIS district that you will file citizenship with. Please contact an experienced immigration lawyer of your choosing for a detailed analysis of your own specific case.

Although our immigration law office does not have any doctor(s) that we recommend for completion of Form N-648, we will let you know if a particular type of doctor can complete the form on your behalf. We also review the Form N-648 for completeness, as USCIS is strict in the language that they require from the licensed medical doctor in order for the US citizenship applicant to be approved. If the Form N-648 is approved by the US Immigration Officer, then the US citizenship applicant does not have to take any test in order to have their form N-400 approved and be sworn-in.

Also, at least in the USCIS district office located in Jacksonville Fl, we usually file a copy of the Form N-648 with the N-400 application, and we bring the original N-648 with us to the N-400 interview. You may of course provide the original N-648 in your initial filing if you wish. Just be sure to keep a copy of the form N-648, as it is not uncommon for USCIS to require a few changes to the form N-648 before your case can be approved.

2. My mom is 65 years old and she has resided in the US as a green card holder for over 20 years. Does she still have to take the English test, etc.?

No, your mom has to take a modified version of the civics test in her language of choice. She does not have to take the reading or writing test. The N-400 interview, which includes reviewing the details of the N-400 and asking whether your mom has ever been arrested, files US taxes, etc. is completed with the help of the translator that your mom brings with her to the N-400 interview. She must bring her own translator with her to the N-400 interview so that the translator can translate the civics questions in your mom's best native language.

The age qualifications that exempt applicants from the English, reading and writing tests are as follows:

· 65 years and has resided in US as a green card holder for 20 years or more.

· 55 years old and has resided in the US as a green card holder for 15 years or more.

· 50 years old and has resided in the US as a green card holder for 20 years or more.

Again, Applicants that meet one of the above categories must only take the civics test in their language of choice.

I hope that the above provides some answers to the questions asked of me weekly in my immigration law office of Lena Korial-Yonan, PA. by the adult children of elderly parents who have had the green card for 5 years and now want to become US citizens.

What Is Childhood Schizophrenia?

Childhood schizophrenia is a chronic disorder that occurs before adulthood. It involved abnormal thoughts, false ideas, strange perceptions, and unusual social behavior. This condition occurs more frequently during the teenage years.

Problems during the brain's development produce chemical abnormalities which can cause schizophrenic symptoms. When this kind of brain alteration happens, a person can have unusual emotions associated with hallucinations, delusions, and paranoia. Experts in the field do numerous schizophrenia tests to rule out other possible causes. Antipsychotic drugs are the most effective treatment to control symptoms, and counseling is also important in helping patients and their family members learn how to manage the disorder.

Fortunately, it is quite rare in children under the age of 7. This type of psychological disorder normally develops during late adolescence and early adulthood. One out of 40,000 children is being diagnosed with the disorder. The sad news is, the illness comes on very gradually in children and is often initially confused with other conditions. Autism or a disorder of neural development, OCD, and even ADHD were once believed as childhood schizophrenia but they are totally different disorders.

There is a big difference between the behaviors of young people with schizophrenia from that of adults who are suffering from this illness. As the symptoms develop gradually, it is rare for them to progress before the age of 12. At the start, children may talk about their strange fears and false ideas. They may have lack of ability to distinguish reality from fantasy. Moreover, the early warning signs may include extreme mood swings, behaving younger than one's age, paranoid thoughts, confused thinking, severe anxiety, and problems in maintaining good relationships with their friends.

Diagnosis of schizophrenia usually takes months of careful observation. When evaluating a child, it is very important to consider his or her behaviors. Some children may have unusual actions such as talking about imaginary friends or hearing voices. These are common in children; perhaps they have a greater desire for companionship due to their lack of playmates or siblings. But if a child who is already seven years of age or older with these same behaviors, it is advisable to have him or her evaluated.

During the medication, children are particularly at risk to the side effects of antipsychotic drugs to control schizophrenic symptoms. They can get side effects such as tremors, slowed movements, unusual actions, obesity and abnormal levels of fat in the blood.

It is very helpful to provide the patients the effective social skills training, vocational rehabilitation, as well as psychological and educational support. These are very crucial to help everyone not only the patients but also their families in dealing with the disorder and its consequences. Schizophrenic patients must have a complete evaluation. Parents and guardians should ask their doctors to refer them to a child and adolescent psychiatrist so they can evaluate, diagnose, and treat their children thoroughly. It is necessary to have a proper medication, individual therapy, and specialized programs to help the children with schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia - A Creative Response to Crisis

The New York Times recently ran an article How Nonsense Sharpens the Intellect. The study cited shows that new research is beginning to corroborate what I have long believed - that I have become more intelligent from my son's schizophrenia. The research also reassures me that Chris began looking for meaning when his familiar habits of thought came under pressure. Schizophrenia is a creative response to crisis, if you allow it to be. This is what writers like Hermann Hesse have been saying for years. As R.D. Laing says: "Madness need not be all breakdown. It may also be break-through."

The Times article is not about schizophrenia, but it could be. The article talks about experiences that violate all logic and expectation. Kierkegaard called it "a sensation of the absurd." The article goes on to say that "at best, the feeling is disorienting. At worst, it's creepy... Now a study suggests that, paradoxically, this same sensation may prime the brain to sense patterns it would otherwise miss - in mathematical equations, in language, in the world at large."

According to the article, "the brain evolved to predict, and it does so by identifying patterns. When those patterns break down - as when a hiker stumbles across an easy chair sitting deep in the woods, as if dropped from the sky - the brain gropes for something, anything that makes sense. It may retreat to a familiar ritual, like checking equipment. But it may also turn its attention outward, the researchers argue, and notice, say, a pattern in animal tracks that was previously hidden. The urge to find a coherent pattern makes it more likely that the brain will find one."

The previous sentence should give anyone hope that schizophrenia (or autism or OCD), properly understood and handled, is a quest for growth and that recovery is indeed likely. A caring individual can help the person with the diagnosis to find that pattern by understanding and appreciating that what is taking place is something quite extraordinary.

The study involved twenty college students who read a short story by Franz Kafka, wherein many strange and unexplainable things happened. Afterwards, they and a group of students who had read a different more coherent short story took a test of what researchers call "implicit learning" or knowledge gained without awareness. The test involved studying a series of "45 strings of 6 to 9 letters, like "X, M, X, R, T, V." The students later took a test on the letter strings, choosing those they thought they had seen before from a list of 60 such strings. In fact the letters were related, in a very subtle way, with some more likely to appear before or after others.

The Kafka readers outperformed the control group by 30% to 50%.

My own Kafkaesque experience went like this: After we got the "diagnosis" and as I struggled to stop panicking and remain calm, I started to do a lot of research about schizophrenia. The experience of schizophrenia in my son was so bizarre for me, so out of the ordinary, that in itself sharpened my intellect. I had to resort to more creative thinking after being confronted by nonsense talk and spooky behavior. I read up on and questioned everything I saw and heard. I began downing megadoses of the recommended niacin cure for schizophrenia. As a result, I found myself becoming even more focused and energetic, which allowed me to read and observe even more, putting me on a vicious cycle of intellect improvement. By observing my son and looking outward and inward, I began to see connections where previously I would not have seen any. I began to understand synchronicity as I began to understand schizophrenia better. I began to dimly perceive how the universe is connected. I took up writing. I am studying German.

The Kafkaesque journey of schizophrenia provides many side benefits.

Higher Risk of Schizophrenia - Maternal Stress During Pregnancy

It has been studied that maternal stress while a woman is pregnant is connected with higher level of risks with schizophrenia in the child. Many researchers have claimed that if a mother experiences higher levels of stress and tension during her pregnancy then it increments the probability of making the child schizophrenic in the adult age of the child. Moreover the maternal stress has also been associated with the child's lower IQ.

Of course the relationship is quiet complex when it comes to schizophrenia and the maternal stress. This risk reason of schizophrenia for sure connects to some conflicting details but there is agreement that the increment in the maternal stress increases the circulating position of stress hormones that cortisol, ACTH and CRH which further increments the usual occurrence of behavioral troubles or developmental detains in the coming offspring.

On the other hand the maternal stress has also been associated with many other elements which increments the danger of schizophrenia like less weigh of the offspring. This factor is very well acknowledged. It has also been said that this also lower the ability of the immune system of the child. Therefore it is true to say that the association between the schizophrenia and maternal stress during pregnancy is really composite. Therefore, if you go by the research that both maternal stress during pregnancy and schizophrenia are related to each other then they must try to keep the stress level really low while the women is pregnant. It will be better to keep her happy and fulfilling as much as possible. The BBC news "Pregnancy stress 'passed to baby'.." posted on September in the year 2005 is a related reading in relation to schizophrenia.

In the year 2005 in the month of November, a research was made at the Imperial College London which stated that a pregnant female who experiences stress increases the chances of offspring with 2 times more risk of having IQ less than average. Professor Vivette Glover was the man who conducted this research after observing 70 pregnant females and their offspring. These children scored just 90 in the related tests whereas children of lower stress experiencing mothers scored about 100 in the similar test. Therefore, lesser IQ of the children associates with double risk of suffering from schizophrenia in the later life. You can read more material on the relationship between maternal stress and schizophrenia and the association between lower level of IQ and schizophrenia.

How To Best Cure Schizophrenia

This days the perception of schizophrenia has changed drastically If we were to compare to how it was looked at in the past. With the help of new treatments , support and constant surveillance from the family the chances of treating the patient are greatly increased. Regular follow ups are also needed if the illness is to be completely beaten.

Although all this are now available and possible it is not uncommon not to be able to find a proper doctor for schizophrenic patients, and sometimes if the doctor is found risks exist that interest is not there. But these minor setbacks can also be avoided by knowing where you can get some proper answers. Asking the right people, or even better families with patients suffering from the illness, can save you from a lot of trouble searching for the best doctor or treatment. This way you are quickly put in touch with the right people. There is even an organization , very well prepared and informed, that deals with a lot of schizophrenic related problems.

Best thing to do would be to follow a short but important list that helps you a lot in getting the right help; a doctor should always think of schizophrenia as a brain disease, take and keep a detailed log of the patient, prescribe and review medication regularly and maybe the most important thing yet: include the family in the treatment and of course properly instructing all the members what the best thing to do would be.

Treating schizophrenia is a very serious and important process. Certain parts should always be kept in mind.

Medication is very important in keeping the symptoms of the illness under control. Unfortunately it's not always known witch medicine have the best effects so regular adjustments are needed, and as always a few side effects are going to be present.

Accepting the illness and starting to know more about is also a fact not to be forgotten and something that should be taken very seriously. Patients must learn how to work with the family and the family also must give and support the patient ass best they can. The community also has a lot of activities and groups that can help in the treatment of the patient.

A good diet, physically exercises are also very much needed in a good recovery following the treatment and actually completing it. Observation of the patient is very important if the treatment is to reach its desired goal..