my soon to be ex-husband was diagnosed, we have a one year old...

Dear Rose,

Please, I understand your concern yet since your daughter is only a year old, I would refrain from worrying so much that your worry rubs off on her or you get overly paranoid.  There is a slight chance she will develop SZ yet as you already suspect, the quicker you got her treatment, the better the prognosis would be.

I suggest you Google "schizophrenia early warning signs," as well as keep reading the Schizophrenia information under the Find menu, under "Schizophrenia Basics" on this Connection web site.  Educate yourself so that when you daughter is a teenager, you're alerted to anything out of the ordinary.

For now, I will tell you what I tell every mother or father to do as a measure of protection:  The so-called "pre-morbid" functioning determines how well a person fares after she develops SZ.  So, early on in her life, I suggest you get her involved with other children her age, take her to do things outside the house.  Then, as she gets older, encourage her to do things like volunteer or work at a part-time job, when she's a teen.  The more she's able to function, the better her chances will be should she develop SZ.

I would relax, enjoy your daughter as she grows up, and one last thing: read parenting books as I'm not an expert on babies and toddlers and children.  My main concern is that you could "read into" her behaviors and worry too much.

Most of all, show and tell her you love her, often.

By the way, I was diagnosed with SZ when I was 22, I'm 43 going on 44, and I recovered from the SZ, so there is hope.

Best regards,

Christina

I am in a relationship with a man who's ex wife was diagnosed schizophrenic in her mid 30's.  They have a 10 year old daughter who now lives with him and I.  I have seen two different psycholgists to talk about my concerns and they both said that she has a 25% change of developing the disease.  They both said that it usually shows in mid to late teens to early twenties (her mother is not typical having developed symptoms in mid 30's).  There is no research showing symtoms earlier than mid to late teens. Their advise was to get her therapy early in order to monitor her behavior. 

Please research the subject as much as possible on your own to gain a better understanding.  There is so much information online as well as chat rooms where you can talk to others who are dealing with the same issues.  There is no research that has found any cause for the disease in any of the information that I have read or gained from doctors so it is possible that people simply introvert inside their own heads and somehow cause it within their own minds.  I have discussed this theory to both psychologists and they both said that it's possible. They explained it would be the same as if you constanty tell yourself negative things (i.e. I'm fat, I can't do that) then they become part of you. Just as when you constantly tell yourself positive things (i.e. I look great, I can do this) that also become part of you.  It does not mean that anyone brings this upon themselves.

They both said that schizophrenia is a very difficult disease because there is little chance that the patient will continue medication and treatment.  There is also the sad reality of the disease that limits the mind of the victim to a place where they cannot "reason".  I read on one website that their minds simply cannot access the proper file locations inside their memory much like a computer that crashes.  One reasuring thing that I've read in several places as well as being confirmed by the doctors is that the earlier pchizophrenia is detected and treated the better the results and success of the patient.  I truly hope your soon to be ex-husband is one of these lucky people.  It will also make a huge difference if he has a good support system that will push him along with his treatment. 

My point is, we cannot know what's going to happen or why.  Your daughter and my new daughter are both good girls who are doing just fine. All either of us can do is learn, hopefully make the best decisions we can, and enjoy the time we have with the people we care about.  And try not to project our fears (I know I'm guilty).  I try to think at least twice a day "it's going to okay, it's going to be okay".  And do you know no matter what else has happened to push that little negative thought "I can't handle this", that tiny positive thought gets me through. It's been working for a year now.  You can do it!