Symptoms
On:

Communication difficulties in schizophrenia can involve expressing ideas, following conversations or interpreting another person’s meaning. Formal thought disorder is one contributor, but attention problems, reduced speech, anxiety, hearing difficulties and medication-related sedation can also matter.…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Thought blocking is a sudden interruption in the flow of thought or speech. A person may stop mid-sentence and report that the idea has disappeared, even though they intended to continue. The pause can be…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Incoherent speech is communication whose meaning becomes very difficult to understand because words, phrases or sentences do not connect in an intelligible way. Severe examples are sometimes called word salad, although that expression can sound…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Tangential speech moves away from a question or topic and does not return to provide the requested answer. Someone asked about an appointment might describe the bus route, the weather and a childhood memory without…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Loose associations describe speech in which connections between ideas become weak or difficult for a listener to follow. A person may move from one topic to another through links that feel meaningful internally but are…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Paranoia can make relationships difficult because the person’s usual sources of reassurance may themselves feel unsafe. Questions may seem like interrogation, advice may sound controlling and ordinary disagreements may be interpreted as evidence of betrayal.…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Stress and sleep disruption can influence the intensity of paranoid thinking. Tiredness may reduce concentration, increase emotional reactivity and make ambiguous events harder to interpret. Worry can then interfere with sleep, creating a cycle in…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Social cues include facial expressions, tone of voice, gestures and the context of a conversation. Most are ambiguous and require interpretation. During paranoia, laughter may seem mocking, a glance may feel like surveillance or a…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Threat perception is the process of identifying possible danger and deciding how urgently to respond. It normally protects people, but can become overly sensitive. In paranoia, ambiguous situations may feel threatening even when there is…Continue Reading

Symptoms
On:

Suspiciousness is a tendency to question whether others have hidden or harmful intentions. It can be understandable after betrayal, discrimination or danger. In psychosis, suspicion may become unusually intense, spread to unrelated situations or persist…Continue Reading