The Bottom Line
Better outcomes seen among women during the first 3 years after FEP occurred in the context of more favorable premorbid and baseline characteristics. After an average of 10 years of follow-up, with the exception of negative symptoms, outcomes for women approximated those for men
That is very interesting. So men and women experienced roughly the same level of symptoms after 10 years, but women were more likely to be living independently with a partner. That basically tracks with what we see here. Sexism is brutal to disabled men.
It was said by a pdoc of mine that I’d never be able to have a relationship. I was with my wife 22 years, and married to her nearly 19 years. It was a relationship that was frowned upon when we were both in hospital and frowned upon when we left hospital together. A lot of relationships that were formed in hospital did breakdown sooner or later, when couples were living together in the community.
A possible reason why men are less likely to live independently is the earlier age at which schizophrenia strikes. That means that the life skills needed to live independently are sidelined by the illness at a point where people without illness are learning the necessary life skills. Women are more likely to learn those life skills before illness strikes.
It would be interesting to see how things would pan out if research was focussed on both males and females with sz that developed in the late teens vs sz that developed in both males and females in the mid 20s.
I dont agree with that. I got sick at age 14 and still managed to live independently. I think a lot of it might be how much responsibility is placed on girls from a young age. I was changing diapers by age 6, left in charge of my siblings home alone by age 8, doing household chores since I was old enough to walk. A lot of boys are encouraged to just play and get messy, while little girls are taught housekeeping and relationship-building.
I also think a guy is more likely to settle down with a nutty woman than a woman is to enter a relationship with a nutty guy.
Men are still presumed to be the breadwinners and if the dude can’t work it’s tougher to find a mate.
Yeah I think thats also a big part of it. It is easier for a girl to find a partner than a guy when they both have the same traits. Except for physical appearance. i think it is still easier for unattractive guys to find partners than unatteacrive women. But girls get a lot more parience and understanding about emotional and mental issues.
I did a gender test on the BBC website about 5 years ago. It took about an hour and it tested things such as finger length ratio, ability to see visual patterns, face shape preferences, etc etc. It wasn’t trivial. I came out as a 2 out of 7 on the male side of the axis, so I’m sort of more towards the center of the continuum as regards gender. I always found that my softness and kindness got a favorable reaction from people. Guys who are too masculine and hardheaded just end of alienating everyone around them and people abandon them in the end.