Schizotypal personality disorder is worse that schizoid (SPD).
Personality disorders are generally less severe than the mental illnesses they are related to. Like, obsessive-compulsive personality disorder is related to OCD, but doesn't have the impaired functioning that OCD has. It's the same with schizotypal personality disorder. It's related to schizophrenia, but it's not serious enough to be considered even mild schizophrenia.
SPD, while it has some of traits that schizotypals have, is considered so mild and such a flawed diagnosis that it's probably going to be scrapped altogether. Schizoids like to be alone, are apathetic, are not comfortable with intimacy, and are sometimes in their own little world. However, they don't hallucinate, the schizophrenic symptoms they may show are very minor, etc. I think it's just considered a disorder because not many people have schizoid personalities, and it's considered very strange in our society.
In layman's terms, schizotypal personality disorder is baby schizophrenia, and SPD is Asperger's mini-me.
On a random note, have you ever said a word so much that it sounds really weird whenever you say it? Now the word "schizo" sounds extremely odd to me, lol.
19 Nov 2011, 10:16 pm
