Schizoaffective disorder diagnosis

If you are experiencing mental health problems, you should make an appointment to see your GP. They will need to refer you to a psychiatrist to receive a full mental health assessment. Only a psychiatrist can diagnose you with schizoaffective disorder.

They use the following guides to help diagnose you:

  • International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) produced by the World Health Organisation (WHO)
  • Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-5) produced by the American Psychiatric Association

These guides explain different mental health conditions and their symptoms, and how long symptoms should be present before a diagnosis should be made.

To receive a diagnosis, you may have had a combination of psychotic and bipolar symptoms. However, your symptoms should be clearly there for at least 2 weeks.

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