Scary Schizophrenia

[linauri]

OK, so I'm sitting here reading my homework for psych class, and the more I read, the more frightened I find myself becoming. Tomorrow we're going to have an ethical discussion using an article about schizophrenia as the central point, so I'm currently reading an article that was assigned for preperatory purposes. My cousin, who's only a year (two?) older than me was diagnosed with schizophrenia about two years or so ago; paranoid schizophrenia to be precise. Just his afternoon, while discussing my homework with my mother, I found out that one of her younger sisters (my schizo. cousin is on the same side of the family) is also schizophrenic. After reading about the symptoms, I can't say I'm surprised any longer. Now, getting to the frightening bits. First off, I'm not sure I want to have kids anymore. Ever. According to this article, schizophrenia is hereditary. The closer the relative with it, the more likely a person to develop it themselves. Secondly, I'm frightened for my cousin's new baby. The poor thing is barely 7 months old, and while schizophrenics are not considered dangerous without secondary stimlus (ie. drugs, prior violent behavior), paranoid schizophrenics are a higher risk than any other type. The most frequently targeted in such cases are family members and friends. The minute I read that sentence, I had the sudden urge to call up my cousin and tell her to pack off her little girl to her mother's house right now. Maybe I'm just all jumpy from caffeine and fatigue and stress over my assignment schedule for the next couple of weeks, but dammit if schizophrenia doesn't scare the shit out of me now that I know more about it. Someone tell me that any kids I may have will be normal. Tell me that they won't end up as screwed up as the rest of my parents' families. God I'm scared now.