A natural human reaction to learning about a statistic of one percent about anything is always disregarding or apathetical. One percent of our population does not seem like a scary amount on the surface, but that percentage is converted into about 51 million people worldwide. This number of course, is much more prominent and intimidating. In the United States alone, about 3.5 million people are currently living with schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that disrupt’s one’s notions, conduct, and emotional stability. Common symptoms of this disorder include hallucinations, difficulty interacting with others, low attention span, and poor decision making abilities. It is almost impossible to diagnose someone with schizophrenia based …show more content…
There are several common causes though that doctors and scientists have discovered over hundreds of years as research and studies have slowly progressed. There is no single gene that can be held responsible as the cause of schizophrenia. However, a person’s genes have been identified as a large culprit and cause of this disorder. Schizophrenia primarily runs in the family. Anyone with this disorder most likely had a close or even distant relative with disorder previously. The chances of someone developing schizophrenia without any record of family history is 1 in 100. This obviously indicates that this is not the only leading component in the research of how people develope schizophrenia. Fetal brain development has also been suggested as a factor. It is hard to detect or identify this abnormal brain development at such a young age. That is why people are most commonly diagnosed between their late teens to early thirties. Although everyone with schizophrenia is obviously born with abnormal brain development, sometimes even with this birth defect, the disorder will never fully develope or appear. In rare cases, all it takes is a “trigger” for the neurotransmitters in one’s brain to set it off. Some examples of these triggers include becoming unemployed, homeless, or out of money. It can also be triggered by a traumatic past of abuse, isolation, or loss of a loved one. Schizophrenia is a vicious and …show more content…
They also can be very expensive. Some schizophrenics are eventually institutionalized by their families or the government. This alone is very expensive and undoubtedly traumatic for the victim. Most of the antipsychotic medications that schizophrenics are perscribed contain the side effect of increased appetite. Obviously this can cause the patients to become severely overweight and lead them to develope diabetes, hyperlipidaemia, and hypertension. (“Living a Healthy Life with Schizophrenia: Paving the Road to Recovery”). Maintaining a good physical regime and work ethic is good and encouraged for everyone. Sadly, schizophrenics are already mentally discouraged to excercise or work, and with the strong side effects from their medication they often develope multiple physical diseases. The average cost for a schizophrenic’s antipsychotics and general care is about $25,940 per year (“Antipsychotic Drug Use Patterns and the Cost of Treating Schizophrenia”). Paying this yearly fee is not practical for the average person and or family. Common side effects that people can suffer from when taking antipsychotics are blurred vision, dizziness, drowsiness, increased heartrate, skin rashes, and stiffness all around the body (“Schizophrenia”). As previously stated, another common side effect is weight gain. People with schizophrenia are also offered a variety of psychosocial treatments such as self-help groups and rehab