scattered thoughts that jump from place to place. Their thinking may be so garbled that their speech becomes impossible or nearly impossible for others to understand. They may not be able to think clearly enough to cook a meal or even get dressed on their own.
People with catatonic schizophrenia may be stiff and rigid or may not be able to move at all. Or, oddly, they may be extremely active to the point of frenzy. Their movements may be unusual or extremely repetitive. They may repeatedly say words just spoken by someone else, or their speech may be mangled and impossible to understand.
A related condition called schizoaffective disorder combines some of the symptoms of schizophrenia with episodes of either major depression or bipolar disorder.
Since many symptoms of schizophrenia can also be found in other illnesses such as bipolar disorder, drug addiction, or Alzheimer’s disease, mental health specialists need to do a careful medical and psychological work-up to make sure the diagnosis is correct.
Who’s at risk for developing schizophrenia?
Schizophrenia strikes people from all backgrounds. The first symptoms such as hallucinations and delusions usually show up in a person’s late teens to early 30s. Men and women are equally likely to develop schizophrenia, although the symptoms usually start a couple of years earlier in men. Schizophrenia seems to affect