Look at gardening it is a good form of therapy and one which a lot of mental health organisations promote. Working with soil is very therapeutic and relaxing and something which could be used in tandem with medication. If you look for books and journals around gardening and mental health you might find more information
Investigating the efficacy of an individualized metacognitive therapy program (MCT+) for psychosis: Study protocol of a multi-center randomized controlled trial.
European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, May 18 , 2016, No Pagination Specified.
Clinicians and patients differ concerning the goals of treatment. Eighty individuals with schizophrenia were assessed online about which symptoms they consider the most important for treatment, as well as their experience with different interventions. Treatment of affective and neuropsychological problems was judged as more important than treatment of positive symptoms (p < 0.005). While most individuals had experience with Occupational and Sports Therapy, only a minority had received Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Family Therapy, and Psychoeducation with family members before. Patients appraised Talk, Psychoanalytic, and Art Therapy as well as Metacognitive Training as the most helpful treatments. Clinicians should carefully take into consideration patients’ preferences, as neglect of consumers’ views may compromise outcome and adherence to treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)
Forming a trusting alliance with your patient needs to come first and listening to his/her perspective and what needs changing from their point of view is an excellent way to start. Many patients who are described as paranoid are very frightened - addressing that fright needs to be done before anything else. Some patients will want a close family member involved in treatment decisions, and some will not. That needs to be respected. Discuss treatment options with the patient and see what way they are leaning. Some may want a second opinion. Each person is different.
There is a fair amount of evidence suggesting that cognitive-behavioral therapy, while certainly not a cure for schizophrenia nor a substitute for antipsychotic medications, can help manage its symptoms and improve psychosocial functioning. These treatments vary, but can include cognitive restructuring, social skill training, and social cognition training.
Combs, D. R., Adams, S. D., Penn, D. L., Roberts, D., Tiegreen, J., & Stem, P. (2007). Social Cognition and Interaction Training (SCIT) for inpatients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: preliminary findings. Schizophrenia Research, 91(1-3), 112-116. doi: 10.1016/j.schres.2006.12.010
Combs, D. R., Elerson, K., Penn, D. L., Tiegreen, J. A., Nelson, A., Ledet, S. N., & Basso, M. R. (2009). Stability and generalization of Social Cognition and Interaction Training (SCIT) for schizophrenia: six-month follow-up results. Schizophrenia Research, 112(1-3), 196-197. doi: 10.1016/j.schres.2009.04.010
Elis, O., Caponigro, J. M., & Kring, A. M. (2013). Psychosocial treatments for negative symptoms in schizophrenia: current practices and future directions. Clinical Psychology Review, 33(8), 914-928.
Granholm, E., Holden, J., Link, P. C., & McQuaid, J. R. (2014). Randomized clinical trial of cognitive behavioral social skills training for schizophrenia: Improvement in functioning and experiential negative symptoms. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 82(6), 1173-1185. doi: 10.1037/a0037098
Jauhar, S., McKenna, P. J., Radua, J., Fung, E., Salvador, R., & Laws, K. R. (2014). Cognitive-behavioural therapy for the symptoms of schizophrenia: systematic review and meta-analysis with examination of potential bias. British Journal of Psychiatry, 204(1), 20-29. doi: 10.1192/bjp.bp.112.116285
Kurtz, M. M., & Mueser, K. T. (2008). A meta-analysis of controlled research on social skills training for schizophrenia. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 76(3), 491-504. doi: 10.1037/0022-006X.76.3.491
Lewis, S., Tarrier, N., Haddock, G., Bentall, R., Kinderman, P., Kingdon, D., . . . Dunn, G. (2002). Randomised controlled trial of cognitive-behavioural therapy in early schizophrenia: acute-phase outcomes. British Journal of Psychiatry. Supplement, 43, s91-97.
Morrison, A. P., Turkington, D., Pyle, M., Spencer, H., Brabban, A., Dunn, G., . . . Hutton, P. (2014). Cognitive therapy for people with schizophrenia spectrum disorders not taking antipsychotic drugs: a single-blind randomised controlled trial. Lancet, 383(9926), 1395-1403. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(13)62246-1
Penn, D., Roberts, D. L., Munt, E. D., Silverstein, E., Jones, N., & Sheitman, B. (2005). A pilot study of social cognition and interaction training (SCIT) for schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research, 80(2-3), 357-359. doi: 10.1016/j.schres.2005.07.011
Roberts, D. L., & Penn, D. L. (2009). Social cognition and interaction training (SCIT) for outpatients with schizophrenia: a preliminary study. Psychiatry Research, 166(2-3), 141-147. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2008.02.007
Roberts, D. L., Combs, D. R., Willoughby, M., Mintz, J., Gibson, C., Rupp, B., & Penn, D. L. (2014). A randomized, controlled trial of Social Cognition and Interaction Training (SCIT) for outpatients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 53(3), 281-298. doi: 10.1111/bjc.12044
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Some evidence also suggests that cognitive remediation can be helpful, particularly for some of the negative symptoms and cognitive impairments seen in patients with schizophrenia. Some of these programs involve exercises designed to improve cognitive function, whereas others teach compensatory strategies to help the person function better despite the presence of cognitive impairments.
Bell, M., Bryson, G., & Wexler, B. E. (2003). Cognitive remediation of working memory deficits: durability of training effects in severely impaired and less severely impaired schizophrenia. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 108(2), 101-109.
Kurtz, M. M., Seltzer, J. C., Shagan, D. S., & Wexler, B. E. (2005). Neurocognitive remediation for patients with schizophrenia: How specific is the intervention and its effects? Schizophrenia Bulletin, 31, 330.
Kurtz, M. M., & Nichols, M. C. (2007). Cognitive rehabilitation for schizophrenia: A review of recent advances. Current Psychiatry Reviews, 3, 213-221.
McGurk, S. R., Twamley, E. W., Sitzer, D. I., McHugo, G. J., & Mueser, K. T. (2007). A meta-analysis of cognitive remediation in schizophrenia. American Journal of Psychiatry, 164(12), 1791-1802.
Twamley, E. W., Jeste, D. V., & Bellack, A. S. (2003). A review of cognitive training in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 29(2), 359-382.
Wexler, B. E., Anderson, M., Fulbright, R. K., & Gore, J. C. (2000). Preliminary evidence of improved verbal working memory performance and normalization of task-related frontal lobe activation in schizophrenia following cognitive exercises. American Journal of Psychiatry, 157(10), 1694-1697.
Wykes, T., Reeder, C., Corner, J., Williams, C., & Everitt, B. (1999). The effects of neurocognitive remediation on executive processing in patients with schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 25(2), 291-307.