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Tyson Johnson
Dr. Emily Putnam
Psychology 1010
November 23, 2015

Schizophrenia is a mysterious illness that continues to leave us in the dark. Regrettably,

what we do know can be hard to cope with as the illness is difficult to treat causing much
heartache around the world. Those who suffer from Schizophrenia need constant care and
treatment making life very hard for them and their loved ones. So, how can we fight a disease
that is always one step ahead of us and hits so close to home?
Schizophrenia is, as stated by Nancy A. Piotrowski and Leslie V. Tischauser, A disorder
characterized by disordered thinking and odd perceptions that cause dysfunction in major
activities sometimes including withdrawal from the world, delusions, and hallucinations.
Roughly translated to mean split mind, referring to how the person perceives the world rather
than having multiple personalities, Schizophrenia patients experience the world one way in their
mind and a completely different way in what goes on around them.1
So, what is happening inside the brain that causes Schizophrenia? The problem lies with the
neurotransmitters. Schizophrenia operates by disrupting the way in which brain cells
communicate with each other. This means that the neurotransmitters are abnormal or

1 Piotrowski, Nancy A., Ph.D., Tischauser Leslie V., Ph.D., Schizophrenia. Magills Medical
Guide (Online Edition), January 2015. 20 November 2015.

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consistently malfunction causing an excess amount of dopamine to be released in the brain.2

Scientists also believe that serotonin is another suspect due to its direct influence on behavioral
aspects in the brain.
Studies have found many causes that lead to Schizophrenia including genetics through a
hereditary line, isolation, and even neglect from parents during younger years. Due to these
causes it is very important to look for the symptoms in the early teen years. Both men and
women can be affected by the illness, and research has found it most common to occur between
the ages of 16 and 30, starting with delusions and hallucinations.3
Investigators advocate that the brain develops more slowly than other organs and does not stop
developing until late adolescence. This is why it is important to care and nurture children while
they are still in the developmental process to assure that illnesses such as these do not emerge
later in life.
If Schizophrenia begins to emerge in later adolescence what symptoms should we be
watching out for in our youth? Psychology Today explains that the first signs include: A change
in friends, sleep problems, and irritability. As these tend to be common throughout most
adolescents it is also important to look out for isolation and withdrawal from others, and an
increase in unusual thoughts and suspicions.4

2 Piotrowski, Nancy A., Ph.D., Tischauser Leslie V., Ph.D., Schizophrenia. Magills Medical
Guide (Online Edition), January 2015. 20 November 2015.

3 Psychology Today. Schizophrenia. Psychology Today, February 2015. Web. 20 November

2015

4 Psychology Today. Schizophrenia. Psychology Today, February 2015. Web. 20 November

2015

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The more developed symptoms that come later in life are categorized into two groups, positive
and negative symptoms. Positive symptoms are more readily observed and include
hallucinations, delusions, and thought disorder. These, often referred to as psychotic
symptoms, seem to cause the most distress to the actual patient because of the difficulty of not
being able to control ones own thoughts. This is especially difficult for veterans that also
experience Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Negative symptoms, which are less readily observed, tend to be the causes that make it
hard for family and loved ones to cope with the illness because of the reduction of emotional
responsiveness, motivation, socialization, speech, and movement.5 The more common
symptoms include: the inability to show emotion, total apathy, and lack of facial expressions.6
While it is still difficult to cope with these horrible symptoms, there is still hope.
While Schizophrenia is not curable at the moment, and often chronic there are still many
treatments that help to regulate and counter the variety of positive and negative symptoms.
Psychotherapy and medications are the primary ways that doctors and caregivers use today to
help Schizophrenic patients under their care.
Schizophrenia can be very destructive and make life very challenging but as Larry
Culliford says, It would be a serious mistake to give in to despair in consequence. Even though
it is a difficult illness to work with, Schizophrenia treatment research continues vigorously today
and development of new treatments and medications are just around the corner.
5 Dawn I. Velligan, Larry D. Alphs. Negative Symptoms in Schizophrenia: An Update on
Identification and Treatment. Psychiatric Times,2014. 20 November 2015.

6 Piotrowski, Nancy A., Ph.D., Tischauser Leslie V., Ph.D., Schizophrenia. Magills Medical
Guide (Online Edition), January 2015. 20 November 2015.

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Bibliography
Culliford, Larry. What is Schizophrenia?. Psychology Today, April 2013. Web. 20 November
2015.
Dawn I. Velligan, Larry D. Alphs. Negative Symptoms in Schizophrenia: An Update on
Identification and Treatment. Psychiatric Times,2014. 20 November 2015.
Piotrowski, Nancy A., Ph.D., Tischauser Leslie V., Ph.D., Schizophrenia. Magills Medical Guide
(Online Edition), January 2015. 20 November 2015.
Psychology Today. Schizophrenia. Psychology Today, February 2015. Web. 20 November 2015.