A patient admitted with a diagnosis of Schizophrenia. The report states patient is experiencing positive symptoms. As the nurse what do you understand about positive symptoms?

Choice A reason: In a psychiatric context, positive symptoms do not refer to the patient's emotional outlook or optimism. Using the term positive in this manner is a colloquial misunderstanding of clinical terminology, which specifically categorizes the manifestations of psychosis based on the presence or absence of normal functions. Choice B reason: Anosognosia, or the lack of insight into one's illness, is common in schizophrenia but is not the definition of a positive symptom. Being positive that a diagnosis is wrong is a behavioral manifestation of poor insight or denial rather than an additive psychotic symptom like a hallucination. Choice C reason: These are actually classified as negative symptoms. Negative symptoms involve a deficit or loss of normal functions, such as avolition (lack of motivation), alogia (reduced speech), and anhedonia (loss of interest). They represent a decrease in the patient's baseline functioning rather than an added experience. Choice D reason: Positive symptoms refer to an excess or distortion of normal functioning. This includes "added" experiences that healthy individuals do not have, such as auditory or visual hallucinations, fixed false beliefs known as delusions, disorganized speech, and extreme paranoia resulting from a break with objective reality.