Schizophrenia is considered a rare mental disorder, and it affects about 1% of the population. However, some experts believe that there may be more cases of schizophrenia than research has shown, but that many people with the illness are undiagnosed or untreated.

What is Schizophrenia?

Schizophrenia is considered a largely genetic mental illness in which individuals experience symptoms that include delusions and hallucinations. This illness can impact anyone, regardless of gender or race, although specific subtypes of schizophrenia occur more often in people with a particular genetic makeup. In most cases, schizophrenia begins during young adulthood, but there are different types of schizophrenia that affect children, adolescents, and older adults. In addition, not all cases of schizophrenia appear identical; symptoms can vary widely from person to person, depending on the type of this disorder.

Common Types of Schizophrenia

The most common classifications of schizophrenia are paranoid, disorganized, and catatonic. These types of schizophrenia are diagnosed based on the person’s symptoms. Still, they exist on a continuum, meaning that most people with schizophrenia exhibit symptoms of more than one type of schizophrenia at a time.

In addition to helping you distinguish between different types of schizophrenia, this article will also help you understand what causes schizophrenia and how you can get help for someone with this condition.

Is schizophrenia a mental disease?

The question is not simple. Even the Mayo Clinic defines schizophrenia as a “complex illness” and says “the cause is unknown.” It’s easy to think chemical imbalances cause it in the brain or genetic predisposition. But then, how do we explain people who have schizophrenia who are adopted and don’t share any genes with their biological parents? Or twins where one develops schizophrenia while the other does not?

Schizophrenia is a mental disease, but not in the way you might think. Modern medical dictionaries and encyclopedias define schizophrenia as a “disorder marked by a breakdown of thought processes and poor emotional responses.” Schizophrenia is an affective disorder that leads to abnormal thinking, hallucinations, and delusions.

Schizophrenia can cause serious social problems, but it’s not a sign of moral corruption or demonic possession—schizophrenia results from a complex interaction between genetic and environmental factors.

What type of schizophrenia is rare?

Catatonic schizophrenia is a rare type of schizophrenia. It consists of people having a complete lack of movement or emotion. They appear like robots who don’t speak or act unless told to do so. This disorder causes people to have little to no reaction to anything that happens to them. People with catatonic schizophrenia often spend their time holding poses for long periods. It is easily possible to move them into different positions without resistance from the person suffering from this disorder.

Catatonic Schizophrenia

In catatonic schizophrenia, a person becomes unresponsive or motionless for extended periods (hence the name). In addition, there is often a general lack of emotion or an inability to speak.

The person may also become excited and move unusually, making it difficult to tell if they’re experiencing positive or negative symptoms. While there are many different types of schizophrenia, catatonic schizophrenia is one of the rarest forms.

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