Maine massacre: A THIRD of mass shooters suffer from schizophrenia and 3 MILLION Americans live in reality-distorting conditions

A mass shooter in Maine who killed dozens of people and remains at large is believed to be a schizophrenic who heard voices urging him to carry out his massacre.

Robert Card, an Army reservist and firearms instructor, was admitted to a psychiatric facility in June for an unspecified illness that experts, like his cousin, said showed typical signs of schizophrenia.

An estimated 2.8 million American adults suffer from reality distortion disorder, or 1.1 percent of the population—but an estimated four in 10 go untreated.

And while the rate in the general population is about 1 in 100, more than a third of American mass shooters have suffered from the disease, according to the gun violence research and prevention organization The Violence Project.

The psychologist dr. Elinor Greenberg said that while Card was eligible for a psychotic disorder, his age was older than the typical outbreak.

She told DailyMail.com: “We know he was hospitalized at the age of 40 and that schizophrenia would occur in men between the ages of 16 and 20.”

“What happened between then and now? I’m trying to explain how this man went from 20 to 40 without being hospitalized before last summer… Something seriously disrupted his ability to function. So that’s the big question: What’s going on and why the violence?’

Schizophrenia is a so-called polygenic disorder, which means that there is an interaction between several genes.

Studies of identical twins have shown that genetics is not the only factor in the diagnosis of schizophrenia. If this were the case, both identical twins would have schizophrenia.

Dr Greenberg said: “So in theory they are in the same womb and have the same genes. If it was only genetic, the probability would be 100 percent [that the other twin gets it too]. But people haven’t found it, the average probability is about 46 percent.”

Until recently, scientists didn’t know exactly which genes these were, but now a broader picture is coming into focus: Scientists have recently identified a handful of genes related to the balance of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin in the brain.

Family members of diagnosed schizophrenia may carry the genetic factors that predispose them, but they will never develop the disease themselves.

Traumatic events can trigger the onset of schizophrenia, which typically occurs in men in their late teens to early 20s and in women in their late 20s to early 30s. During puberty, the brain changes significantly and these changes can cause the disease.

Scientists also believe that in addition to external factors such as trauma in combination with genetic factors, a chemical imbalance in the brain is also the cause.

They are particularly interested in serotonin, which helps regulate mood, dopamine, which stimulates desire and motivation, and glutamate, which is important for memory, cognition and mood regulation.

Also, 30 percent of schizophrenia cases in men between the ages of 21 and 30 have been shown to be related to heavy and problematic use of marijuana, which is legal in Maine for medical and recreational purposes.

It is not always easy to diagnose schizophrenia. Not enough is known about the underlying causes of the disease. Much of what is known about it comes from subjective self-reports and there is no objective diagnostic test.

Some changes that lead to schizophrenia can look like normal life events or symptoms of depression, such as: Such as the loss of certain friends, sudden poor performance in school and poor hygiene, which makes it all the more difficult to cope with. early stage to be noticed.

When assessing a person for schizophrenia, a healthcare provider must first rule out other verifiable diagnoses, such as brain tumors or another psychiatric diagnosis such as bipolar disorder.

Card, a US Army Reserve soldier, launched the first attack at a bowling alley (pictured) at around 6:56 p.m., then struck again just 12 minutes later at a bar and restaurant four miles away.

The search for Card continues today with an alert at the Canadian border

Card’s cousin, Michael Mercier, told a CBS news station that Card was “schizophrenic” and “had a lot going on in his head.”

At the same time, Card’s sister-in-law Kate O’Neill claims that her relative “isn’t someone who has had mental health problems or anything like that all her life,” adding that it was “an acute episode.”

According to the gun violence research and prevention organization The Violence Project, just over a third of mass shooters suffer from the condition.

Dr Greenberg said that although the suspect may have met the criteria for a psychotic disorder, his age was older than the typical onset: “We know that he was admitted to the hospital at the age of 40 and the onset of schizophrenia in men would between 16 and 20 years.” .

The vast majority of people with schizophrenia are nonviolent, but an estimated 10 percent will engage in violence at some point in their lives.

At the same time, people with schizophrenia are three to four times more likely to become violent than the rest of the population.

Wednesday’s shootings at a bar, a bowling alley and a Walmart distribution center joined a grim streak of 192 mass shootings that have left four or more people dead in the United States since the 1960s.

According to The Violence Project, about a quarter of the criminals who carried out these mass shootings had a history of thought disorders, a hallmark symptom of schizophrenia.

A thought disorder causes a person to lose the ability to think logically and coherently and is unable to maintain a clear pattern of thought when communicating with others. Someone with a thought disorder jumps quickly and without clear reasons from one subject to another and gets lost.

Schizophrenia often presents with symptoms similar to other illnesses, including mania as part of bipolar disorder and major depression, making diagnosis difficult for some doctors.

Mental health issues are often cited as a primary cause of gun violence. While it is true that an estimated three percent of the mentally ill have committed acts of violence, it is estimated that people with schizophrenia are four to six times more likely to commit violence than the general population without the disorder.

Psychologists have studied possible causes of schizophrenia since it was first described in the late 19th century.

Dr. Greenberg, author of the definitive book Borderline, Narcissistic, and Schizoid Adaptations: The Pursuit of Love, Admisration, and Safety, told DailyMail.com that medication helps many people with schizophrenia manage their symptoms and live independently.

Marijuana may account for 30 percent of schizophrenia cases in young men

Researchers supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse estimate that 30 percent of schizophrenia cases in men between the ages of 21 and 30 are linked to cannabis addiction and that 15 percent of diagnoses in men and four percent in women are due to the drug .

But at the same time, many people, especially the poor and homeless schizophrenic population, who would benefit from treatment, are unable to receive it.

She said: “We need more resources. But the most important thing is that we need these types of facilitators where there is a social worker who makes sure they come to their appointments and makes sure they are home at night.

“And if they have a psychotic episode, there’s a psychiatrist they can be sent to so everything goes more smoothly and it goes on for months without people noticing until it’s so bad that the person is hospitalized, has to be included. ” ‘

The best options available to treat schizophrenia are a specific class of psychotropic drugs called antipsychotics.

They are largely effective, but have side effects that can be so bothersome – such as involuntary twitching – that people stop taking them altogether.

Dr. Greenberg said, “People don’t like taking it for two reasons. First, they don’t like the side effects. And secondly, when they get better, they think, I don’t need it anymore.”

It is believed to be a product of combined genetic and environmental influences. However, researchers have not identified a specific gene as the cause, any more than they can identify the causes of diseases such as cystic fibrosis and sickle cell anemia.