Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
Everyday Health
Next Steps After a Schizophrenia Diagnosis: Support, Resources, and Your Care Team
By By Abby McCoy, RN. Medically Reviewed by Allison Young, MD,
7 hours ago
Once you're diagnosed, your doctor will discuss treatment options with you. Olga Pankova/Getty Images
Schizophrenia is a serious mental health condition with a wide range of symptoms that affect the way you think, feel, and act. Depending on the severity, schizophrenia can be disabling. But the right treatments can ease symptoms and make it possible to live well with the condition.
What Does Schizophrenia Mean for Me?
The severity and symptoms of schizophrenia vary from person to person. Symptoms like hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that aren't there), delusions (steadfast beliefs in things that are clearly untrue), jumbled thinking and speech, disorganized behavior, and cognitive problems can make it difficult to function in everyday life. Despite the seriousness of this condition, treatment can make it possible for you or a loved one with schizophrenia to manage the symptoms and have meaningful relationships, go to work or school, and take care of yourself. Getting an accurate diagnosis means you or your loved one can start treatment right away.
What Can I Do for My Schizophrenia?
Once you or your loved one has been diagnosed, you may be referred to various specialists for treatment. Schizophrenia often requires a team of professionals who manage different aspects of treatment, with the goal being early intervention after first-episode psychosis (meaning the first time schizophrenia symptoms appear). This is often referred to as coordinated specialty care.
Your treatment team may recommend options like medication, psychotherapy (talk therapy), other psychosocial interventions, and lifestyle changes. Schizophrenia medication is available in the form of pills or capsules taken every day, or as long-acting injections given every few weeks. The most common types of schizophrenia medication are: Drug What It Does
First-Generation Antipsychotics
These medicines are thought to work by affecting dopamine, a brain chemical that may be involved in schizophrenia.
Second-Generation Antipsychotics
These are newer medicines that work similarly to first-generation antipsychotics, but have fewer side effects related to muscle movements, such as tardive dyskinesia.
Talk therapy and psychosocial interventions also play a key role in schizophrenia treatment . This may include: Treatment What It Does
Individual Therapy
You'll meet with a therapist to work on your thinking and behavior, as well as develop coping skills for your symptoms.
Family Therapy
You may choose to see a therapist along with certain members of your family. Your therapist can educate your family members on your condition and help them develop coping skills.
Social Skills Training
This treatment helps people with schizophrenia improve their communication and social skills.
Vocational Rehabilitation and Supported Employment
This intervention helps people with schizophrenia prepare for, find, and maintain jobs.
Your or your loved one's treatment team may also recommend various lifestyle changes and self-care activities to try alongside your treatment, which can keep symptoms at bay.
Lifestyle Changes You Can Make Right Away
Here are some lifestyle changes you can make right away.
Identify and avoid your triggers. Factors like alcohol, drugs, stress, and lack of sleep can trigger a worsening of symptoms.
Get enough sleep each night. As mentioned, a lack of sleep can make schizophrenia symptoms worse. But the condition itself can make it hard to get good sleep every night. If you're frequently having trouble falling or staying asleep, talk to your doctor.
Avoid alcohol and recreational drugs. People with schizophrenia have an increased risk for substance abuse issues, which can worsen symptoms.
Exercise regularly. Any physical activity that you enjoy - from a calming walk or yoga routine to an intense run or weight-lifting session - can help you cope with your symptoms.
Eat a balanced diet . Although diet can't cure schizophrenia, some research suggests that a nutritious diet rich in anti-inflammatory foods like fruits, vegetables, and legumes may help manage certain aspects of schizophrenia, such as weight gain from medications, or any coexisting medical conditions.
Learn effective ways to manage life's stresses. Science-backed relaxation techniques like mindfulness, deep breathing, yoga, and meditation can help curb stress in your life.
Make time for activities you enjoy. Your hobbies can offer emotional expression and healing, lessen isolation, increase your self-esteem, and improve your quality of life.
Lean on your support system. The people in your life - like family or friends - can often provide support. It could also help to join a support group, which can allow you to connect with others facing similar challenges.
What to Ask Your Doctor About Schizophrenia
A schizophrenia diagnosis can be a lot to take in, and you might have questions about symptoms, treatment, and prognosis. Some questions you may want to ask the treatment team for yourself or your loved one include:
What are the best treatment options for me?
What side effects can I expect from my treatment?
What should I do if I feel like my treatment isn't working?
How often should I expect symptom flare-ups or relapses?
Can you offer me any resources, like pamphlets or printed information?
Are there any organizations you'd recommend for schizophrenia support?
When Do You Need Medical Attention?
Even if you or your loved one is receiving treatment, you may need to reach out for additional medical help at times. Get medical help immediately by contacting 911 or your treatment team if you or your loved one experiences any of the following:
Worsening or more frequent hallucinations or delusions
An inability to complete hygiene tasks like bathing
Thoughts of hurting yourself or someone else
Finding Support
Community and family support can make a huge difference when you're living with schizophrenia. These organizations offer support groups, schizophrenia resources, and information on the latest research findings.
Through research , education, and advocacy, the Schizophrenia & Psychosis Action Alliance (S&PAA) aims to support people with schizophrenia through peer support groups and a free resource line .
The SANE blog publishes stories about people living successfully with schizophrenia. Read about their journeys and how they cope with their symptoms.
Your Schizophrenia Care Team
A psychiatrist - a medical doctor who diagnoses and treats mental health conditions - may be the first person you talk to about schizophrenia. Other professionals you may want to include in your or your loved one's schizophrenia care team include:
Primary Care Provider Your primary care provider, who you likely see for the majority of your health needs, can help you manage certain health risks associated with schizophrenia. These include an increased risk of heart disease , diabetes , and obesity , due partly to weight gain that can happen as a result of medications like antipsychotics.
Psychologist Like psychiatrists, psychologists can offer psychotherapy for mental health conditions like schizophrenia. But most psychologists cannot prescribe medication.
Social Worker A social worker can help you live independently by providing assistance with securing housing and government benefits, and directing you to helpful resources.
Pharmacist A pharmacist can be a helpful resource if you have questions about your medications and their side effects.
Case Manager Case managers coordinate your care between all healthcare providers. They often serve as your main contact for care-related questions.
The Takeaway
Finding out that you or a loved one has schizophrenia can be a lot to process. Know that there are effective treatments available to help your or your loved one manage symptoms and live well with the condition. You'll work with a care team to create a plan that may include medication, therapy, psychosocial interventions, and lifestyle changes.
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy . We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Masroor A et al. Unraveling the Association Between Schizophrenia and Substance Use Disorder-Predictors, Mechanisms and Treatment Modifications: A Systematic Review. Cureus . July 29, 2021.
Abbas MS et al. Exercise as an Adjuvant Treatment of Schizophrenia: A Review. Cureus . July 18, 2023.
Liu Y et al. Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Intervention on Psychotic Symptoms for Patients With Schizophrenia: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Journal of Advanced Nursing . June 2021.
Ngamaba KH et al. Participation in Leisure Activities and Quality of Life of People With Psychosis in England: A Multi-Site Cross-Sectional Study. Annals of General Psychiatry . March 13, 2023.
Hany M et al. Schizophrenia. StatPearls . February 23, 2024.
Allison Young, MD, is a board-certified psychiatrist providing services via telehealth throughout New York and Florida.
In addition to her private practice, Dr. Young serves as an affiliate professor of psychiatry at Florida Atlantic University Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine. She previously taught and mentored medical trainees at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. She speaks at national conferences and has published scientific articles on a variety of mental health topics, most notably on the use of evidence-based lifestyle interventions in mental health care.
Young graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University with a bachelor of science degree in neurobiology and theology. She obtained her doctor of medicine degree with honors in neuroscience and physiology from the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. She continued her training at NYU during her psychiatry residency, when she was among a small group selected to be part of the residency researcher program and studied novel ways to assess and treat mental distress, with a focus on anxiety, trauma, and grief.
During her psychiatry training, Young sought additional training in women's mental health and cognitive behavioral therapy. She has also studied and completed further training in evidence-based lifestyle interventions in mental health care, including stress management, exercise, and nutrition. She is an active member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine , through which she helps create resources as well as educate physicians and patients on the intersection of lifestyle medicine and mental health.
Abby McCoy is an experienced registered nurse who has worked with adults and pediatric patients encompassing trauma, orthopedics, home care, transplant, and case management. She is a married mother of four and loves the circus - that is her home! She has family all over the world, and loves to travel as much as possible.
McCoy has written for publications like Remedy Health Media, Sleepopolis, and Expectful. She is passionate about health education and loves using her experience and knowledge in her writing.
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.
Local News
