Since being diagnosed with SZ I have been terrified that my brain is going to deteriorate and I am going to end up hurting someone I love. My friend said that isn’t true, because mental illness can’t create violence in a person with no violent tendencies. I read an article that said the violent crime rate for people with SZ is the exact same as the violent crime rate for the general population, but I couldn’t find any research to back it up. Does anyone have any insight into how far SZ can push someone outside their typical personality?
If your worried about it that’s healthy. This is an irrational fear that should pass in time. Sz is not typically a degenerative disease.
I asked my pdoc about this. he said mainly schizophrenics that believe the government is after them etc. that you might be a danger. we aren’t allowed to own weapons as a whole so that rules that out. I used to worry that I might be harmful when psychotic but truth is most schizophrenics are only a danger to themselves when delusional.
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I do not have the articles I read handy, but my understanding has always been that schizophrenics are at a higher risk of being harmed than the general populace. Szers are less likely than the average person to harm someone, other than themselves, that is.
I’ve read this many times. When someone with schizophrenia does a horrible act of violence such as you read about in the news such as school shootings or the theater massacre it is usually because they are not on medication or are not being treated for their schizophrenia. Another reason people may commit violence is if they are taking illegal street drugs. And yes, if someone had a history of violence before they got sick that could be a predictor of violence.
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I wrote a paper and gave a presentation on this. I got an A. Unless drugs or alcohol are involved, people with schizophrenia are not likely to hurt anyone. Some extreme outlier cases get blown up in the news, which is misleading.
I was violent once because I did not know I had schizophrenia, was on an SSRI, and had about twenty shots of liquor.
I think it depends on your psychosis. I can only speak for my own experience. I’m very far from a violent person, but when my psychosis is bad my delusions and hallucinations create reasoning where it makes sense to hurt other people or my animals. But it doesn’t just happen out of the blue. It happens when I get deeper and deeper into psychosis and I usually know I need to go in the hospital before anything happens. I’m not trying to scare you just give my experience and stress how important it is to comply with treatment and work with your pdoc. 
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I think it depends also on how prone to violence you were before your Dx’d too.
I have never (intentionally) hurt anyone (physically) before my Dx or after, and I can’t ever see myself doing so.
It’s just not my nature.
I walk away before it ever gets to that point, but I sure have been hurt, things thrown at me, holes punched in the wall an inch away from my face-twice, been bruised enough to be removed from my home for safety, and I won’t even talk about the mental abuse I’ve had to put up with.
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**My son was always pretty laid back…so it was a big surprise when he hit me. He was also withdrawing from drugs and was stressed and not on medication.
I think @77nick77 is right on this. **
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I do believe the rate of violence for schizophrenia is less then the general population. Maybe equal to that of substance abuse?
This problems arises when someone is experiencing psychosis and the lines between reality and non-reality can get confused. Anyone that feels like they need to defend themselves will do so.
My son is not violent and when stable doesn’t have violent tendencies. When in psychosis that is a different matter and he is unfortunately capable of lashing out and hurting those around him as he recently did during his last break.
Schizophrenia and/or it’s symptoms, in my opinion, can cause extreme reactions and circumstances to occur.
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I also think it depends on the nature of the psychosis… but for me other factors are involved.
Less then 3 or 4 years ago… my episodes were not violent. I am more the run and hide and try to escape.
But further back… when I was drinking heavily… that is when I got violent. I never hurt anyone, but I was much more aggressive and I was told I would shove people and throw things.
But having a mental glitch… no that didn’t just automatically drive me to hurt someone.
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Am I more likely to hurt someone because of psychosis? No, I am more likely to hurt myself. Sometimes if the voice is strong enough the urge is there. ‘Cut yourself to prove you’re real’ he says. I keep on remembering the promise I made to my husband and then I end up hurting myself in other ways like punching the walls or throwing myself against the wall. But I never have the urge to hurt others, the only problem is that when I have a violent rage episode - especially after an argument - I feel like throwing things around, and once I pushed my husband and made things worse. Anger is a terrible emotion when uncontrolled.
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