Plain-language, educational articles on schizophrenia, psychosis, antipsychotic medications, and lived experience — by ColdAI.
The 'split mind' translation of schizophrenia has fuelled a century of confusion with dissociative identity disorder. Here is what actually separates the two conditions.
Side effectsAkathisia is one of the most distressing antipsychotic side effects — and one of the most under-recognised. Knowing what it feels like is the first step in getting it treated.
Drug interactionsGrapefruit juice is the textbook example of a food-drug interaction. Several antipsychotics are affected — some seriously enough that the FDA label tells patients to avoid grapefruit entirely.
MedicationThioridazine was once one of the most prescribed antipsychotics in the world. Cardiac and ophthalmic safety concerns pushed it off the front lines starting in 2000, and it is now rarely used.
Side effectsDry mouth from antipsychotics is annoying but also a real risk for tooth decay. Here is what causes it and a practical menu of things that help.
StoryA composite story of finishing a college degree after a schizophrenia diagnosis — what worked, what did not, and what graduation actually felt like.
CaregiverChildren always notice when something is wrong. Honest, age-appropriate conversation about a relative's schizophrenia protects them more than silence ever can.
LifestyleSocial isolation is one of the strongest negative predictors of long-term schizophrenia outcomes. The interventions that help are simpler — and more important — than they sound.
Side EffectSeveral antipsychotics raise the hormone prolactin, which can disrupt periods, cause unwanted milk production, and affect sex drive. Most cases are manageable once recognised.
MedicationAkathisia — the inner restlessness caused by some antipsychotics — is one of the most distressing side effects in psychiatry. Propranolol is one of the few medications with reasonable evidence to treat it.
HallucinationsPerceptual distortions alter how real things look, sound, or feel. They are not hallucinations, and the difference matters for diagnosis and treatment.
SeasonsThanksgiving compresses family, food, alcohol, late nights, and political talk into one day. Here is how to plan ahead so the holiday does not destabilise your recovery.
MedicationAsenapine is unusual in two ways: it is dissolved under the tongue rather than swallowed, and it is also available as a transdermal patch. The route is the whole story.
Physical healthDental decay and tooth loss are quietly one of the most common physical-health problems in schizophrenia. The reasons are well understood — and so are the fixes.
StoryFor two years a kind, busy general psychiatrist told me I had anxiety and depression. The voices and the strange beliefs got louder. The day a different clinician asked one different question, everything moved.
MedicationHaloperidol is the textbook first-generation antipsychotic — effective, cheap, and unambiguously associated with movement-related side effects. Here's how to think about it in 2026.
Crisis & safetyAbout 5% of people with schizophrenia die by suicide, and many more attempt. The risk is not random; it follows patterns that can be assessed and reduced.
StorySix weeks of leave. A new medication. A new dose. And a conference room full of people on a Monday morning who knew I had been gone but did not know exactly why.
Medication managementAntipsychotics are sometimes prescribed to children and teenagers — for early-onset schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism-related irritability, and Tourette's. The decision deserves careful weighing.
Levels of carePHP gives you the structure of a psychiatric hospital during the day and the relief of going home at night. For many people with schizophrenia, it is the bridge between inpatient and the outside world.
WorkplaceDisclosing schizophrenia during a job interview is almost never required. Here is how to think through whether to share, when, and what protections you have under the ADA.
Women's healthPregnancy on an antipsychotic is rarely a simple yes-or-no decision. Here is what the research actually shows — and how perinatal psychiatrists think about the trade-offs.
DelusionsReligious delusions occupy a difficult space — they often look like fervent faith from the outside and feel like revelation from the inside. The clinical task is to distinguish them from healthy spiritual life and treat them with care.
Caregiver scenariosEstrangement and schizophrenia often travel together. Here is how to think about contact, safety, and the kind of help you can offer when a relationship has already broken.
Lab monitoringSeveral antipsychotics raise prolactin, sometimes silently. Knowing when to test, what counts as high, and what the options are takes the mystery out of one of the most common lab findings on these medications.
LifestyleCaffeine is the most common psychoactive drug in the world, and it interacts in real ways with several antipsychotics — particularly clozapine. A practical guide.
Practical lifeA weekly pillbox is one of the cheapest, highest-impact tools for staying on antipsychotic medication. Here is how to choose one and load it without losing an evening.
Therapy modalitiesAVATAR therapy is one of the strangest and most studied new treatments for distressing voices. The patient sits in front of a screen, the therapist gives the voice a face, and the conversation that follows can be the first one the patient has ever felt they could win.
DifferentialSchizophrenia and psychopathy get blurred together in headlines and movies, but they are different conditions in different chapters of the diagnostic manual. Here is what each one actually is.
Special populationsRoughly one in seven people in US jails has a serious mental illness — and people with schizophrenia are far more likely to end up incarcerated than the general population. Here is what to know about rights, care, and reentry.