Schizophrenia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 4

Schizophrenia - Essay Example Several people who suffer from schizophrenia are not always violent and they do not cause harm to others. The disease is not associated with childhood experiences or inadequate parental guidance and the signs and symptoms  differ  from one person  to another (Swerdlow, 2010). The primary cause of schizophrenia is not very precise, and multiple factors have been associated to predispose and cause the disease. Several scientists have associated schizophrenia with genetics as the main cause since it runs in the familial tree and that an individual inherits the disease. Similarly, schizophrenia has been identified to develop when an individual’s body undergoes several hormonal and physical changes, for example during puberty in adolescents. The disease may as well be triggered by some environmental factors such as infections by virus or when an individual is in a highly stressful situation. Chemical imbalance in the brain is another major cause of schizophrenia, whereby serotonin and dopamine fail to be in optimal levels. These chemicals (neurotransmitters) have a major function of allowing the nerve cells in the brain to send a signal to other parts. An imbalance of these neurotransmitters affects an individual’s brain reaction to stimuli. Thi s provides an explanation why an individual with schizophrenia occasionally gets overwhelmed by some sensory stimuli such as loud music or dazzling lights, which normal individuals easily handle (Roder & Medalia, 2010). There are no specific signs and symptoms of schizophrenia and they differ from one person to another. The symptoms  can  slowly develop  over an extended period, sometimes several months to years and occasionally they may abruptly appear. In some cases, the disease may be on and off or persist continuously. Some of the symptoms include: hallucinations; where an individual feel or see things that are not real, an individual feels that he/she is always being watched, strange speaking of words,