Schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that causes a disturbance in the brain. Schizophrenia

causes a persons thoughts, perceptions, mood, and behavior to be distorted. Signs that

someone may have schizophrenia usually begin to appear in adolescence or young adults.

Schizophrenia is believed to be caused by numerous factors all acting together. Some factors that

have been linked to causing schizophrenia are brain trauma that was caused around birth, stress,

and social isolation. There is not a single factor which causes the disease, but the more factors

involved, is thought to cause a higher risk of schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia can be difficult to detect in a person because all of the symptoms of

schizophrenia, can be linked to other mental disorders. There is no single test that can be done to

say if a patient has the disease, but if a doctor sees that a patient has symptoms of schizophrenia

for six or more months, they will diagnose them with the disorder.

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While scientists do not know

for sure what causes schizophrenia, they can tell the brains of people with schizophrenia are

different from people without the illness. Recent research shows that the disease is associated

with problems with brain chemistry and brain structure

(www.frontierhealth.org/lifematters/displaydoc.asp?58).

Delusions are one of the symptoms associated with schizophrenia. When someone

experiences delusions they either believe they have superior powers or become paranoid that

someone is constantly spying on them or that their thoughts and actions are revealed to the world.

Even when evidence can be shown against this, they can not change their delusions

(www.schizophrenia.com).

Another common sign of the illness is hallucinations. Hallucinations occur when the

person hears, sees, tastes, smells, or feels things that are not there. The most common form of

hallucinations in schizophrenia patients is hearing voices. The voices are sometimes...