However, it’s natural for caregivers of persons with schizophrenia to experience feelings of frustration, stress, and helplessness when placed in this role. Not only do you need to quickly learn about and understand the illness and the broad range of behaviors that it can involve, but you also need to determine how best to provide care without overstepping or creating undue stress. It’s a delicate balancing act that is not easy, to say the least. However, when done right it provides the best chance for the person with schizophrenia to thrive.
What Is Schizophrenia?
If you are a caregiver for someone with schizophrenia, you likely are already familiar with the signs and symptoms of this mental illness as shown below. A diagnosis of schizophrenia requires that two or more of the following criteria be met for at least a one-month period, of which at least one of them must be the first three symptoms on the list:
delusions hallucinations disorganized speech grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior negative symptoms such as diminished emotional expression
In addition, there must be impairment in work, interpersonal relations, or self-care for a significant period of time. As well, signs of the illness must have lasted for at least six months and include at least one month of symptoms that match the ones listed above. In order to be diagnosed with schizophrenia, it is also necessary to rule out other illnesses as the cause of symptoms such as schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, depressive disorder with psychotic features, use of substances, another medical condition, or autism spectrum or communication disorder.
Effects of Schizophrenia
Beyond the diagnostic criteria, a person with schizophrenia will show a number of signs of the illness that affect their daily life. These include the following:
reacting inappropriately to situations (e.g., laughing at sad news) sleep patterns that are disturbed anger, anxiety, depression, or phobias feeling disconnected from oneself feeling like things around them aren’t real problems with language, memory, and executive function an inability to see that one’s symptoms are caused by illness failure to properly interpret social situations becoming hostile or aggressive toward others
Need for Knowledge
As a caregiver, the more you know about schizophrenia, the better equipped you will be to help your family member. Do your part by learning about the symptoms, treatments, prognosis, and other details so that you are better prepared to be effective in this role.
Basic Daily Needs
A person with schizophrenia may need help with basic daily life tasks, and as the caregiver, it is part of your role to help with the organization of these tasks. If you are not naturally an organized person or are already struggling with your own daily life, you may want to consider whether the caregiver role is right for you. You may need to help with things such as scheduling appointments, transportation to appointments, creating routines and a predictable environment, and setting realistic goals.
Treatment
A person with schizophrenia will likely be taking a prescription medication and perhaps receiving therapy. As a caregiver, you also have tasks related to these areas.
Medication
Some of the tasks you might find yourself involved with include:
picking up medicationmonitoring use of medicationwatching for side effects and bringing these to the attention of the doctor or psychiatrist so that medications can be switched or other medications added to counter the side effectsencouraging the person with schizophrenia to take their medication regularlyusing a medication calendar to keep track of useencouraging use of a pillbox or timerhelping with long-acting injectable medicationsstaying on top of potential drug interactionskeeping a list of medications and supplements that are being takenensuring that alcohol and drugs are not mixed with medicationkeeping a medication log so you can see what is working
Therapy
A person with schizophrenia may also attend therapy to manage symptoms. Examples might include cognitive-behavioral therapy, group therapy, life skills training, or social skills training. Your role as the caregiver could be to assist in getting the person to therapy, ensure that therapy is continued, or help with homework assignments.
Social Support
One of the critical pieces of the puzzle when caregiving for a person with schizophrenia is to ensure that both you and the other person have adequate social support.
Social Support for the Person with Schizophrenia
Below are some of the social supports that you as the caregiver may want to ensure are in place for the person with schizophrenia. It’s important to realize that you can’t do this all by yourself and that you will need to have backup help to do things like driving the person to appointments, taking them to the movies or visiting, or bringing meals.
respite care (ask the doctor or caseworker for referrals)friends/family who have offered to helphire a coordinator (e.g., pay someone $100 a month to spend 5 hours building a support system for your loved one)other sources of support (e.g., shelter workers, roommates, case managers, clergy)
Social Support for the Caregiver
Don’t forget about supporting yourself! It can be physically and emotionally exhausting looking after a person with schizophrenia. The more support that you have for yourself, the better you will be able to provide excellent care. Below are some ideas:
join a support group with other people who are also caregiverscontact the National Alliance on Mental Illness for ongoing programs to support caregivers of those with mental illnesscontact Schizophrenics Anonymous for resources for friends/familytalk to friends, family, clergy, or a therapist if you are feeling burnt out
Self-Care
Practicing good self-care is important both for the person with schizophrenia and the caregiver. This doesn’t mean just taking bubble baths; it means doing basic things to ensure that your well-being is a priority. Below are some examples:
getting at least 30 minutes of exercise each day eating a healthy, balanced diet not abusing alcohol or drugs using relaxation techniques spending time with friends getting enough sleep engaging in enjoyable activities using mindfulness or breathing techniques maintain a sense of humor
Remember that the illness will take an emotional toll on both of you in terms of feeling frustrated, angry, fearful, guilty, or helpless. Always be sure to meet your own needs first and be accepting of the negative feelings that you have so that you find ways to cope instead of ignoring the problem.
Crisis Plan
Do you have a plan of what you will do in a crisis situation? The first thing to know is the signs of relapse, such as trouble sleeping, social withdrawal, lack of personal hygiene, paranoia, hostility, hallucinations, etc. As a caregiver for a person with schizophrenia, it’s important to know what to do in a crisis. Below are some key things you should have in place: Remember that as a caregiver, your job is to advocate for your family member even when they might be turning against you. You need to help the doctor understand the situation and stay connected to the treatment plan. Without your help, your loved one may not be able to manage basic tasks like eating, dressing, and finding shelter in a crisis. Remember that the sooner you can get them help, the better off they will be. Above all else, be sure to discuss the emergency care plan with the person when they are not in crisis. This will help reduce the feeling of being threatened when you actually find yourself in the situation. Finally, keep a diary of symptoms so that you can quickly tell when things have changed and relapse may have begun.
Coping Skills/Self Help
The more that a person with schizophrenia can do for themselves, the better off they will be in terms of their own self-esteem and having hope for the future. For this reason, as a caregiver, you should be encouraging the use of coping skills and self-help strategies for areas of life that are affected by the illness. For example, you could help your family member to set realistic goals that encourage taking action and striving for success in life, while at the same time alleviating some stress for this individual. In this way, you are helping to empower the person with schizophrenia by helping them to do all that they are capable of doing.
Dealing with Stigma
As a family caregiver, you might also worry about stigma that you may face due to the behavior of the person with schizophrenia. You might even feel tempted to hide their illness; however, this will only reinforce the stigma. Instead, try to be accepting of their illness while also working toward them living the best life possible.
Living Arrangements
A person with schizophrenia needs a stable place to live. Deciding where that will be depends on how well they can care for themselves and how much supervision they need. Living with the caregiver is often the best option if feasible, unless the person has serious issues that require a more supervised environment, such as substance abuse, medication refusal, or other behavioral issues. If there are other people in your home, it’s also important to consider the impact on them, particularly young children. Other options include a residential treatment facility or 24-hour care facility, a group home, or a supervised apartment.
A Word From Verywell
If you are a caregiver for a person with schizophrenia, it is important to strike a balance between providing the best care that you can and not burning yourself out. If you find that you are struggling to provide help, reach out to the care team and ask for referrals for support. While it may be tempting to try and do it all yourself, the role you have taken on involves a great deal of strain, and you will eventually need support. At the very least, try to join a group that can offer you support and with whom you can discuss problems and find solutions. Finally, be aware that your role as caregiver is crucially important for the person with schizophrenia. In a very literal sense, you may be the only one keeping that person from unemployment, homelessness, and other negative consequences of the illness. You should be proud of the work you are doing and recognize how critically important it is. Never underestimate the difference you are making for that person and how much their life has been impacted through your help.
