Schizophrenia is a devastating brain disorder – the most chronic and disabling of the severe mental illnesses. People with schizophrenia often suffer terrifying symptoms such as hearing internal voices not heard by others, or believing that other people are reading their minds, controlling their thoughts, or plotting to harm them. These symptoms may leave them fearful and withdrawn. The first signs of schizophrenia typically emerge in young people in their teens or twenties; in rare cases, it can appear in childhood. Symptoms including hallucinations, delusions, disordered thinking, unusual speech or behavior, and social withdrawal impair the ability to interact with others.

Available treatments can relieve many symptoms, but most people with schizophrenia continue to suffer some symptoms throughout their lives. However, new treatment advances, particularly within the last decade, have improved the outlook for many people with schizophrenia.

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Anxiety and Phobia Treatment Center
The Nation's Voice on Mental Illness
National Institute of Mental Health
TeenPaths.org

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