Posted by Squiggles on September 27, 2001, at 13:29:31
In reply to Re: Schizophrenia Question, posted by Mitch on September 27, 2001, at 12:55:11
> > > > Why are symptoms of schizophrenia refered to as positive or negative? They all sound pretty bad to me.
> > >
> > > Hi Sal,
> > >
> > > The "positive" symptoms have to do with hallucinations, delusions, disordered thinking, etc. The "negative" symptoms have to do with the *absence* of everyday activity such as social withdrawal, depression as a result of that, etc.
> > >
> > > Mitch
> >
> >
> > That sounds totally arbitrary imho - much would
> > depend on the type of hallucinations and the
> > type of everyday activity; also the hallucinations
> > may be so horrible that they disrupt any kind
> > of everyday activity. I tried to register at the
> > alt.schizophrenia group to see what people
> > experience in this illness, but I couldn't.
> >
> > I have been curious about the hallucinations --
> > are they true hallucinations, or distortions
> > of something like tinnitus, for example,
> > interpreted into the person's cognitive set?
> >
> > Squiggles
>
> Sorry, maybe this will make it a little clearer:
> http://www.mentalhealth.com/book/p40-sc01.html#Head_4bOh, I see. The positive are the "extroverted"
signs, while the "negative" are the withdrawn"
type. Well, what can I say. I understand why
Kraeplin wanted to find physical tests for
mental illness, such as blood tests; unfortunately,
the best we can hope for in that direction is
when a physical illness presents with mental
symptoms, e.g. syphillis or hyperthyroidism.It is a sad state indeed - maybe one day we
will have more specific diagnostic tools.I found this particular site to be very
helpful:Squiggles
poster:Squiggles
thread:79696
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010927/msgs/79734.html