Schizoaffective disorder

Schizoaffective (say "skit-so-af-FECK-tiv") disorder is a complex mental illness. People who have it have the symptoms of both schizophrenia and a mood disorder.

The disorder affects how clearly you can think. It can also make it hard to manage your emotions and connect with others. And it affects how happy or sad you feel.

Many of the symptoms of schizoaffective disorder are the same as schizophrenia and a mood disorder.

Mood disorder symptoms include:

• Depression.
• Feeling extremely happy or having lots of energy (mania).

Schizophrenia symptoms include:

• Not feeling emotions.
• Having hallucinations. This means that you see or hear things that aren't really there.
• Having delusions. These are beliefs that aren't real.

Your doctor or mental health professional usually can tell if you have schizoaffective disorder by talking with you. He or she will look at the order and timing of your symptoms and how long your symptoms last.

Your doctor will ask you about other things too. These may include questions about:

• Any odd experiences you may have had, such as hearing voices or having confusing thoughts.
• Your feelings.
• Any changes in eating habits, energy level, and interest in daily tasks.
• How well you are sleeping.
• If you can focus on the things you do.

Finding out that you have schizoaffective disorder can be scary and hard to deal with. But it can be treated. Medicines help your symptoms. Counseling and therapy help you change how you think about things and deal with the illness.

The goal of treatment is to lower your stress and help your brain function normally. Ongoing treatment with medicines and counseling can keep the disorder under control.

Take your medicines on schedule to keep your moods even. When you feel good, you may think that you don't need your medicines. But it's important to keep taking them.

You will work with a mental health professional such as a psychologist, a licensed professional counselor, a clinical social worker, or a psychiatrist.