Schizophrenia Research Paper

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Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is one the major physical brain disorders, others being autism, obsessive compulsive disorder, bipolar disorders, panic and anxiety disorders, pervasive developmental disorders, tourette’s disorder, and schizoaffective disorder. Schizophrenia is primarily shrouded in stigma, stereotypes, and myths. For example, a lot of people associate this brain disorder with criminals and violence. However, people who suffer from schizophrenia are not more likely to be violent compared to other people, except if maybe they are abusing drugs and alcohol or if they had a criminal history prior to becoming sick (Weickert et al. 3). This research paper provides an in-depth discussion of the neurological disorder schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia is an incapacitating, chronic disorder that is typified by an incapability to differentiate between what is not real and what is real. This neurological brain disorder affects more than 2 million people in America at present, or an estimated 1% of the American population (Gottlieb, Mueser and Glynn 492). It could affect anybody at any age although it commonly develops to individuals aged between 16 years and 30 years. Individuals who suffer from this disorder basically experience delusional thoughts and hallucinations, and cannot communicate well, think in a rational way, recall information or make decisions (Broussard et al. 354).
To members of the public, the behaviour of schizophrenia sufferers may appear disgraceful or peculiar. Unsurprisingly, schizophrenia can adversely affect school, work and daily activities. It can also destroy relationships. An estimated 1/3 of people who suffer from this disorder attempt suicide (Gottlieb, Mueser and Glynn 494). Luckily, this disorder can be treated using therapy and medication, and this makes it important to understand the symptoms and for the sufferer to receive the appropriate diagnosis. It is worth mentioning that the earlier an individual is properly diagnosed, the sooner the individual could commence an effectual treatment plan.
History of schizophrenia
Schizophrenia’s history is rather contentious given that the word schizophrenia actually did not come into being until roughly the year 1908 (Tracy 2). Nonetheless, what is certain is that forms of psychosis and mental illness have been observed throughout medical history and most of these conditions are what would probably be recognized now as schizophrenia. The name schizophrenia was conceptualized by Paul Eugen Bleuler, a Swiss psychiatrist in the year 1910. Taken literally, this name denotes a splitting of the mind. This is actually regrettable since this phrase suggests that the mental disorder is a split personality or mental personality disorder. In essence, the word schizophrenia was selected and used to mean the separation between personality, perception, memory, and thinking (Tracy 2).
Causes of schizophrenia
Just like other psychological disorders, schizophrenia is believed to be an intricate interplay of environment, biology – brain structure and chemistry –, and genetics. Genetics: this brain disorder commonly runs in families, hence it is possible that schizophrenia is actually i...