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Strategy to Improve Concentration of a Schizophrenic

Schizophrenia is a seriously debilitating mental illness which causes the patient to endure a multitude of symptoms that can prevent him from achieving success both professionally and personally. There are two types of schizophrenia symptoms: positive and negative. Although progress has been made in treating positive symptoms, little resources exist for negative symptoms which are just as debilitating.

  1. Problems in Treating Negative Symptoms

    • Cognitive issues associated with schizophrenia include deficiencies in normal brain functions such as concentration and clarity of thoughts. Because there is a shortage of these functions, the symptoms are classified as "negative" symptoms. Although these negative symptoms are usually the first signs noticed in patients before they are diagnosed, they are also the most difficult to assess and treat. Treating positive symptoms of schizophrenia like hallucinations and delusions, where the patient sees, hears, smells or tastes things that are not there, is easier to assess because these are more frequent and apparent. It is easier to observe a patient who is yelling at the wall and recognize he is sick than it is to observe a patient who is confused or cannot focus, and realize that he is sick.

    Clozapine and Poor Concentration

    • Some schizophrenic patients do not suffer from poor concentration and other negative symptoms, leading researchers to believe the disease may not be the primary cause of these problems. Although many studies, like the 2007 Modafinil study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, have been conducted to indicate an effective medication for treating the negative symptoms, to date there has not been much success. The antipsychotic medication clozapine is typically used to treat schizophrenia. This drug is effective at lessening positive symptoms of the disease; however, it is less successful in the modification of the negative symptoms like poor concentration. Unfortunately, clozapine can actually increase negative symptoms and make the patient more confused and less able to focus.

    Alternative Medications for Treating Poor Concentration

    • To help patients who are plagued with poor concentration, physicians recommend an alternative medication. More recent drugs like risperidone and olanzapine, which don't have as great a success rate for positive symptoms, are less likely to increase problems with concentration. As a result doctors attempt to treat negative symptoms by switching or modifying dosages of medication.

    Other Therapy for Poor Concentration

    • Encouraging patients to continue participation in social activities also helps to curb negative symptoms. For example, patients who experience social withdrawal benefit from engaging in social situations. With proper guidance from a clinical psychologist patients can work to improve antisocial behavior. In the same way, problems with poor concentration can be aided with exercises in focusing and comprehension. Practicing memory and therapy games that exercise concentration levels can help to preserve these functions.

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