For people with schizophrenia, the first symptoms typically appear when they are in their mid-teens through around age 30, and treatment of the chronic, recurring disease is most effective when started during that initial or acute phase.

But many people are diagnosed and begin treatment later, or they relapse after stopping the powerful antipsychotics due to side effects and the chaos of homelessness.

Effective treatment at that point is far more challenging, as patients spiral downward and may resist help. Medical and mental comorbidities are common with schizophrenia, further complicating treatment.

Could adding group therapy focused on health education and cognition, with the group benefit of social connections, make a difference for psychiatric patients who were diagnosed years earl

See Full Page