The primary aim of the competition is to help reintegrate people with schizophrenia into society. The competition is open to everyone. The organisers want to show how important a role language plays—when it stigmatises, marginalises and hurts people who are ill; and when it helps, reintegrates and heals.
Entries must be submitted by 19 August. The winners will receive creative scholarships of PLN 2,500, PLN 1,500 and PLN 1,000, funded by Lilly Polska Sp. z o.o.
Schizophrenia
The word “schizophrenia” literally means “split mind”, but not in the sense of having more than one personality. A person affected by schizophrenia may have difficulty distinguishing fantasy from reality, maintaining a clear train of thought and controlling their emotions. It is more a split between thinking and feeling. Patients have difficulty connecting these two processes.
There are approximately 400,000 people with schizophrenia in Poland. However, one in four Poles is unaware that schizophrenia is a mental illness. Although Poles do not know what schizophrenia is, they fear it and people who live with it. Contact with people who are ill is most often accompanied by feelings of compassion, embarrassment, helplessness and fear. Schizophrenia is an illness that can be successfully treated.