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Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

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Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#41

Post by a9h74j »

Dozens of potential mechanisms described, with none uniquely convincing IMHO. One interesting suggestion is the group splitting hypothesis:

> The group-splitting hypothesis of schizophrenia (Stevens and Price, 2000) posits that proliferating tribal communities must eventually split to maintain optimum numbers. According to this hypothesis, schizotypal traits in certain prominent individuals may be advantageous to ensure survival of the offshoot group. These prominent individuals could use paranoia, delusions, religious themes, and neologisms to fraction disaffected groups and to seed new cultures.

Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#42

Post by jasonhansel »

Dig1t wrote: post #13

> It is therefore possible that the behavioral changes induced by Toxoplasma in humans, including suicidality, are a part of its adaptations to increase the probability that our ancestors were eaten by lions or leopards What the what

Does cat ownership cause toxoplasmosis, or does toxoplasmosis make you want to be around cats?

Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#43

Post by HKH2 »

pyinstallwoes wrote: post #34
teshigahara wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have PTSD from extremely bad psychedelic trips and this comment made me cringe (my PTSD must be getting better because I think at one point it would have given me a panic attack). I don't think I could have handled 6 months of that.

I can share the sentiment. I got stuck in a few loops on psychedelics and it was tumultuous to say the least. Overall it was a net positive effect but it’s certainly not the only way for “enlightenment.” It’s perhaps the most masochist path to enlightenment. Perhaps Alan Watts said that.

Well we have to learn not to lie to ourselves, one way or another.

Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#44

Post by kayodelycaon »

berberous wrote: post #18
Dig1t wrote: post #13

> It is therefore possible that the behavioral changes induced by Toxoplasma in humans, including suicidality, are a part of its adaptations to increase the probability that our ancestors were eaten by lions or leopards What the what

I am skeptical that most suicidal people, who may idealize or even follow through on shooting or hanging themselves, would willingly let themselves be eaten by a lion. Fight or flight adrenaline in the face of big cats feels like a likely effective cure for suicidal ideation…

I'd think that likely. Ideation is easy. Actually pulling the trigger is difficult. Survival instincts are strong.

Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#45

Post by kayodelycaon »

pyinstallwoes wrote: post #38
berberous wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Similarly interesting: “The striking difference was that while many of the African and Indian subjects registered predominantly positive experiences with their voices, not one American did. Rather, the U.S. subjects were more likely to report experiences as violent and hateful – and evidence of a sick condition.“

Seems related to how one might associate oneself to perspectives under religion. Vedic adjacent religions seem to cater to having a relationship with many entities of various forms.

My Christian parents thought I was demon-possessed. That was quite helpful.

Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#46

Post by zoklet-enjoyer »

WhackyIdeas wrote: post #17

Fascinating. I self-diagnosed myself with schizophrenia once. A horrible 6 months locked in an alien world where all I could think about was time and space (at about a million miles a second). I would hear chatter in my head and was convinced I was overhearing random conversations people were having and was even certain of the locations they were having these conversations. The idea that we all shared one consciousne…

Sounds like manic psychosis too. My ex loses touch with consensus reality sometimes when she's manic. It's frightening trying to interact with her and it's like she's not there.

Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#47

Post by [deleted] »

jasonhansel wrote: post #42
Dig1t wrote: post #13

> It is therefore possible that the behavioral changes induced by Toxoplasma in humans, including suicidality, are a part of its adaptations to increase the probability that our ancestors were eaten by lions or leopards What the what

Does cat ownership cause toxoplasmosis, or does toxoplasmosis make you want to be around cats?

[deleted]

Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#48

Post by getpost »

This seems consistent with Chris Palmer's hypothesis, that mental disorders are metabolic disorders of the brain, discussed in his new book Brain Energy[0]. He's done lots of podcast interviews[1], if you don't want to read the book.

[0] https://www.chrispalmermd.com/ [1] https://www.listennotes.com/search/?q=chris%20palmer%20md&so...

Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#49

Post by refurb »

IAmGraydon wrote: post #28
WhackyIdeas wrote: post #17

Fascinating. I self-diagnosed myself with schizophrenia once. A horrible 6 months locked in an alien world where all I could think about was time and space (at about a million miles a second). I would hear chatter in my head and was convinced I was overhearing random conversations people were having and was even certain of the locations they were having these conversations. The idea that we all shared one consciousne…

What you are describing sounds like a protracted psychotic break. Schizophrenia doesn’t just come one day and disappear 6 months later.

Not usually, but schizophrenia is a waxing and waning disease like MS - patients tend to get episodes of worsening symptoms then remission (partial) where symptoms get better. Then they’ll get another relapse and often it’s worse, eventually resulting in a state of chronic symptoms.

Treatment with antipsychotic medication can actually “pause” the cycles and prevent the disease from getting worse if started early. It’s definitely a progressive disease.

I always thought of schizophrenia as a disease you just got and always had.

Re: Schizophrenia: The new etiological synthesis

#50

Post by bglazer »

getpost wrote: post #48

This seems consistent with Chris Palmer's hypothesis, that mental disorders are metabolic disorders of the brain, discussed in his new book Brain Energy[0]. He's done lots of podcast interviews[1], if you don't want to read the book. [0] https://www.chrispalmermd.com/ [1] https://www.listennotes.com/search/?q=chris%20palmer%20md&so...

In what way is this consistent? The authors describe toxoplasma infection forming cysts in the brain as a result of immune response. The cysts then release neurotransmitters, primarily dopamine and glutamate, which presumably causes the cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia.

What does that have to do with metabolism?

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