Schizophrenia Support - Pre-natal origins of schizophrenia?

Author

Pre-natal origins of schizophrenia?

Newton's Cat

2004-08-25, 11:06 am

Statistical studies have shown that if a mother experiences severe physical illness (e.g.
influenza) or intense emotional trauma during the fifth month of pregnancy the child is
likely to develop schizophrenia in adult life.

My thoughts on the matter are that a further factor is if the mother in some way blames
the child. Some psychiatrists have noted that mothers of schizophrenics often have
very negative memories of their pregnancy.

When I asked my mother if anything happened when she was carrying me she went
silent - then told me that she had had a "blazing row" with my father, during which he
told her that he didn't love her.

I have met a lot of schizophrenics, hundreds. The mothers of a high percentage of
them were "not normal".

Why is psychiatry so hell bent on sticking its "head in the sand" on this issue?

The "purely biological" causative theories of schizophrenia (and mental illness in
general) are, to quote a group of psychologists working for a UN agency - 'International
psychiatric myths having no foundation in fact'.

blip

2004-08-25, 11:06 am

"Newton's Cat" <flyingpussy@antigravity.com> wrote in message
news:412a788c$0$13687$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com...
>
> Statistical studies have shown that if a mother experiences severe
physical illness (e.g.
> influenza) or intense emotional trauma during the fifth month of pregnancy
the child is
> likely to develop schizophrenia in adult life.
>
> My thoughts on the matter are that a further factor is if the mother in
some way blames
> the child. Some psychiatrists have noted that mothers of schizophrenics
often have
> very negative memories of their pregnancy.
>
> When I asked my mother if anything happened when she was carrying me she
went
> silent - then told me that she had had a "blazing row" with my father,
during which he
> told her that he didn't love her.
>
> I have met a lot of schizophrenics, hundreds. The mothers of a high
percentage of
> them were "not normal".
>
> Why is psychiatry so hell bent on sticking its "head in the sand" on this
issue?
>
> The "purely biological" causative theories of schizophrenia (and mental
illness in
> general) are, to quote a group of psychologists working for a UN agency -
'International
> psychiatric myths having no foundation in fact'.
>
>

You might like to take a look at

http://news.bbc.co.uk/

and key in the word schizophrenia in the search news section - there are a
lot of stories here like the one mentioned above where various reasons are
given as to the actual cause of schizophrenia.

I agree with you that mothers play a huge part and I am convinced
schizophrenia is hereditary. The chances are that many people have "latent"
schizophrenia but it never manifests as they live boring/well adjusted
lives. In my own case mine was forced to develop by a huge dose of LSD - I
am convinced that if I had not taken this LSD I would have got married, had
children and lived a perfectly normal life. I am quite sure about this - so
I do wonder how many other millions if not billions of people there are out
there like me, living perfectly normal lives, who do have hereditary latent
schizophrenia that would have developed in the same circumstances.

Incidentally, I had a second cousin who also had schizophrenia - he had it
all his life right from when a child and he committed suicide at the age of
sixteen. Another member of my family, on losing the girl they were going to
marry had a complete breakdown and was convinced that someone had buried his
girlfriend and he ran around the town hearing her voice and trying to dig
her up until he was arrested by the police, taken inside and put on
medication. He recovered fully within about 3 months and now lives a normal
life and does not take medication. It does seem to run in my family.

Michelle

jerasmus

2004-08-25, 11:06 am

.... or intense emotional trauma during the fifth month of pregnancy the
child is
> likely to develop schizophrenia in adult life.
>

JFK assassination 11/22/63
jerasmus birth 01/11/64

not quite the 5th month, but its a theory i've considered

also, I am the last of five (older father)
I was born in the winter to a mother with depression who smoked
I worked for 10 years with pesticides, herbicides, and solvents

take your pick

Lone Deranger

2004-08-25, 11:06 am

Newton's Cat wrote:

> Statistical studies have shown that if a mother experiences severe physical illness (e.g.
> influenza) or intense emotional trauma during the fifth month of pregnancy the child is
> likely to develop schizophrenia in adult life.

I have a book by E. Fuller Torrey on this. It seems that most
schizophrenics have abnormal physical characteristics that hint at early
problems.

m.

Lone Deranger

2004-08-25, 11:06 am

Newton's Cat wrote:

> Why is psychiatry so hell bent on sticking its "head in the sand" on this issue?

It's still debated. It's just a positive correlation, much like the
identical twin studies. No one knows what it means yet.

It appears though that some people are just predisposed to mental
disorders. The problem is that we can't predict who will crack or not.
It seems to depend on certain life events, or some element of chance.

If we could predict certain things, like violent behaviour or suicide,
that would be valuable.

m.
(aka Dr. Freud)

Charon926

2004-08-26, 2:06 am

>I have a book by E. Fuller Torrey on this. It seems that most
>schizophrenics have abnormal physical characteristics that hint at early
>problems.
>
>m.

what abnormal characteristics are they?

Lone Deranger

2004-08-26, 2:06 am

Charon926 wrote:

>
>
> what abnormal characteristics are they?

Things like fingerprint whorls and differences in length between toes.

http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi...pe2=tf_ipsecsha

That's the abstract to the first study I know of (Torrey of Surviving
Schizophrenia fame).

Here's what they looked for in another study:

"The following anomalies were scored: head—fine electric hair, hair
whorls, large or small head circumference (measured by positioning a
tape measure over the points on the forehead and occiput that gave the
maximal circumference); eyes—epicanthal fold, hypertelorism;
mouth—high-steepled or flat and narrow palate, furrowed tongue, tongue
with smooth/rough spots; ears—asymmetrical ears, low-seated ears,
adherent earlobes, malformed ears, soft and pliable ears; hand—markedly
or slightly curved fifth finger, single transverse palmar crease;
feet—third toe longer than or equal to the second, webbed toes, large
gap between first and second toes."

m.