1. Schizophrenia is a brain disorder that distorts the way a person thinks, acts, expresses emotions, relates to others and perceives reality.
    
2. One percent of the population (2.2 million Americans) will develop schizophrenia.
    
3. There are five subtypes of schizophrenia:
   • Paranoid schizophrenia causes a person to become obsessed with false beliefs.
   • Disorganized schizophrenia causes confusion, incoherence and jumbled speech.
   • Catatonic schizophrenia causes a person to be immobile and unresponsive. The opposite can also occur where the person engages in restless activity.
   • Undifferentiated schizophrenia is when the person’s symptoms do not represent one of the other subtypes.
   • Residual schizophrenia has a list of symtoms that includes blank looks, inexpressive faces and monotone speech.
      
4. Positive symptoms of schizophrenia include delusions, hallucinations and catatonia, which is when a person stays in a single position for a long period of time.
    
5. Cognitive symptoms include trouble focusing or paying attention, and difficulty remembering.
    
6. Negative symptoms is defined as the absence of normal behaviors. This includes reduced speech and energy, lack of motivation, lack of emotion, and withdrawal from family and friends.
    
7.  Although the cause is unknown, this mental illness can be developed through factors such as genetics, brain chemistry, brain abnormality and environmental factors.
    
8.  Schizophrenia typically appears when a person is in his or her teens to early 20s.
    
9. About 10 percent of people with schizophrenia commit suicide and are more likely to have a drug or alcohol abuse problem.
    
10. Most people prefer to be left alone and are not violent. 
     
11. Treatments such as taking medication, participating in therapy and being hospitalized can reduce symptoms.

Raise awareness about this issue at your school. GO [1]

- Teresa Roca is a NYC writer who is obsessed with celebrities, sports and movies. Her favorite cause is bullying and violence.

Sources: National Alliance on Mental Illness [2], Help Starts Here [3], Web MD [4], MSN [5]