The mental chaos present in people who live with schizophrenia isn’t easily treatable, even with our available roster of antipsychotic drugs and psychological therapies.
Though pharmaceutical aids can quiet the intrusive (or positive) symptoms of delusion or hallucination that schizophrenia is best known for, they’re ineffective at restoring a person with schizophrenia’s sense of motivation, emotional affect, or willingness to socially interact (these symptoms are often referred to as negative symptoms). Antipsychotic use, especially when sustained for a long time, can bring along unpleasant side effects like weight gain as well.
And while many with schizophrenia are able to manage their recurrent episodes of psychosis, there remains an undercurrent of cognitive dysfunction, lasting long after the voices in the head go silent. Frightening as a delusion must be, it’s the inability to learn new information, recall memories clearly, or express yourself verbally that truly makes living a normal life difficult for a person with schizophrenia.
According to new research published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B today, however, there might be a way to restore some degree of cognitive functioning for those struggling with the condition, and all it’ll take is a few minutes on an IPad.
The study authors, in conjunction with game designers and people with schizophrenia, spent nine months creating Wizard, a brain game intended to improve a person’s episodic memory through a series of fun and easy activities performed by a customizable avatar.