Today, we’ll be taking a closer look at some of the symptoms of schizophrenia. In particular, the cognitive losses that can be associated with serious mental illnesses like schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Anosognosia is a medical term meaning 'to not know a disease.' This occurs for people with brain injuries as well as mental illness, and means someone is literally unaware of their own mental health condition or they can't see it accurately. This lack of insight is not a rejection of a diagnosis or denial because they don’t want to face the facts, but an honest inability to consciously to see and understand that their behaviours and experiences are indicators of something wrong.

While it's a common symptom, it's also one of the more difficult aspects to understand for those who have never experienced it. What causes anosognosia? How do people put their hands up and ask for help if they can't see it? What are the cognitive losses associated with schizophrenia and what can people do about them? These are some of the questions we'll be tackling on this episode with Dr. Mahesh Menon, a clinical psychologist with Vancouver Coastal Health, and based at the BC Psychosis Program and the Mood Disorders Program at UBC Hospital.

Additional Resources

• Mahesh Menon Bio (https://psychiatry.ubc.ca/person/mahesh-menon/)
• Anosognosia (https://www.nami.org/About-Mental-Illness/Common-with-Mental-Illness/Anosognosia)
• Eliminating Barriers to the Treatment of Mental Illness (https://www.treatmentadvocacycenter.org/key-issues/anosognosia)
• Lack of Insight Into One's Mental Illness or Anosognosia (https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/recovery-road/202108/lack-insight-ones-mental-illness-or-anosognosia)
• Cognitive Remediation Programs in BC (https://www.bcss.org/bringing-cognitive-remediation-to-british-columbia/)
• “I’m Not Sick, I Don’t Need Help” – book by Dr. Xavier Amador (https://www.amazon.ca/Not-Sick-Dont-Need-Help-dp-0985206705/dp/0985206705)
• “I’m Not Sick, I Don’t Need Help” – TedTalk by Dr. Xavier Amador (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXxytf6kfPM)
• Cognitive Losses in Schizophrenia (https://livingwithschizophreniauk.org/cognitive-symptoms-schizophrenia/)