I’ve read that it is and read that it isn’t in respectable literature. I’ve had a psychiatrist tell me it is but my therapist says no. I know the Dx manual separates the two. What do you think? Have you any compelling evidence one way or the other?
Schizoaffective is schizophrenia with a mood disorder ie bipolar.
I was told that I had schizoaffective by two reputable hospitals. I have had some serious psychotic episodes but my current doctor tells me often that I am not schozophrenic. So there is a distinction but the treatment with antipsychotics is the same.
Schizoaffectives are on more medication than schizophrenics usually because they take mood stabilizers and anti depressants too
According to the DSM5 Schizoaffective belongs under the Schizophrenia Umbrella.
It’s a psychotic disorder.
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Thanks Wave,
I was given misinformation, apparently. I asked specifically about the DSM5 and was told that it wasn’t.
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Schizoaffective disorder is elements of schizophrenia with elements of a mood disorder. It is very similar to bipolar disorder, which is a mood disorder with elements of a psychotic disorder. It’s all very confusing.
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I was originally diagnosed with bipolar disorder with psychotic features – that was confusing.
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Till this day doctors including my current psychiatrist are not sure whether I suffer with Schizoaffective or bipolar with Psychotic features.
It’s frustrating.
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Me too @Wave me too. My doctor calls me bipolar and says that I can come off the atypicals when my depression lifts but I seem to think I’m schizoaffective and going to have a relapse. I guess I will find out soon which one it is although I’m not sure even that will tell which one it is.
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In the bigger scheme of things, I don’t think it really matters.
The Meds are usually identical.
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Bipolar with psychotic features is a specific type of schizoaffective disorder.
There are two different types of Schizoaffective disorder - depressive type and bipolar type
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That’s what they say I am now – schizoaffective - depressive type (was bipolar type for a few years). I think they should spend more time discussing caffeine abuse combined with pot and alcohol consumption before they call someone bipolar. I may have had the symptoms but they were largely self-induced. Depression, on the other hand, is just me. I don’t remember ever not having depression.
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Yes, it is according to my pdoc.
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I have Sza and I’m not in the least confused about it. Sza is a type of schizophrenia that looks like schizophrenia and bipolar at the same time. That is what my pdoc told me.
Wrong. Schizoaffective is PARTS of Schizophrenia with a mood disorder.
I bet some people on here think that they are schizoaffective and really have bipolar disorder. I think the same is true for people with bipolar disorder being diagnosed as schizoaffective.
The doctors make mistakes
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lol at the confusion in this thread… google will know…
Schizoaffective disorder
Medical condition
Schizoaffective disorder is a condition in which a person experiences a combination of schizophrenia symptoms - such as hallucinations or delusions - and mood disorder symptoms, such as mania or depression
so it looks like yes sza = sz + mood disorder… I get manic as im headed into psychosis… like a pre game warm up… still labeled sz… I have d,i,d + sz should we have a new name for that… schizodid lol… the name game is crap in the mental health world… despite the name you get pretty much the same drugs and have the same crap stigma…
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What’s in a name?
That which we call schizoaffective
By any other name would still suck
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