Schizoaffective disorder vs. Schizophrenia

What’s really the difference? The first time I was hospitalized they said it was schizophrenia- the second time they said schizoaffective.

Mood issues 1515

My understanding of it is that Schizoaffective has the added symptoms of depression or mania with it. It’s a subtle difference.

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I was first diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, mainly because my mother told me to tell the psychiatrist about my mood swings. Later, it was changed to just schizophrenia. My understanding is schizoaffective disorder is a combination of bipolar and schizophrenia.

maybe depression and mania also? I dunno…i read an article awhile back but the details are escaping me now.

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schizoaffective its schizophrenia plus a mood disorder.

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Personally, I wouldnt mind a little mania. Beats the “Flat effect” that I’ve got going on with Schizophrenia and my AP.

Schizoaffective has a mood component to it, along with psychosis. It is very similar to Bipolar, which is a mood disorder with a psychosis component to it. People will frequently bounce between bipolar and schizoaffective diagnoses. Schizoaffective has a slightly better prognosis than schizophrenia, possibly because the periods of hypomania make people more functional.

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I don’t know what I have between schizoaffective or schizophrenia I am just not well…I hate it. I have been told both…

Do people feel normal? with their meds?..the only thing that seems to help me is Perphenazine and low dose Sarcosine…but I am not gonna get into details but without these I feel evil.

And I guess everyone is different…high functioning people that can work/ be in a relationship and those of us who much of the time would rather be in our house/apartment.

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I seem to jump around from being motivated/having energy, to unmotivated anxious and depressed and I still feel like I have a flat affect- at least compared to what I felt like before.

What @Ninjastar said is true, sza you can be functional sometimes but with sz I am never functional. I don’t have mood at all because of severe negative symptoms like apathy, alogia, avolition, self neglect, asociality etc.

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I don’t have emotions at all, my brothers often hit me with aggression so I understand. Also I have inappropriate emotion, I laugh at sad things, kinda sadistic and silly. Sometimes I laugh for no reason.

Generally feel lethargic, unmotivated, with no emotions on risperidone. Is this the flat effect you are referring to? It makes it hard to work as I feel mentally diminished. Are you guys working with the diagnosis and meds and if so may I ask what kind of work are you guys doing?

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Its better to open new thread, you will get more answers but no I can’t work, I stay in bed all day everyday, only get up to eat and play video games
1-2x a week. Without strong coffee I sleep all day, 15+ hours.

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Schizoaffective disorder is basically Schizophrenia and bipolar combined.

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“The diagnosis is made when the person has symptoms of both schizophrenia (usually psychosis) and a mood disorder—either bipolar disorder or depression—but does not meet the diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia or a mood disorder individually.”

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That sounds worse…I think I have mania sometimes—not like I used to but it makes me think I am crazy…mania doesn’t always make you “happy”…you can feel too stimulated too…its a crazy feeling. Mania can be an evil thing—I don’t want Lithium though I will get terribly big.

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I’m speaking of SZA bipolar type. @Aziz

I first got diagnosed with bipolar then with schizophrenia before my last two pdocs found that schizoaffective disorder is more accurate diagnosis because I have symptoms of schizophrenia as well as bipolar.

With schizophrenia the mood disorder is not prevalent and long lasting and isn’t there for much of the time.

With bipolar the psychosis symptoms only happen with mood episodes

With schizoaffective the psychosis can happen with and without the mood disorder and vise versa.

In my case I had prevalent mood symptoms and also times when my psychosis happened without the mood symptoms. So I have schizoaffective disorder

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