Odd behaviors (for example, an older child may regress significantly and begin acting like a younger child) Social withdrawal (severe problems in making and keeping friends)ĭisorganized or catatonic behavior (suddenly becoming agitated and confused, or sitting and staring, as if immobilized) Hallucinations (seeing, hearing, or feeling things that are not real such as hearing voices telling them to do something)ĭelusions (ideas that seem real but are not based in reality)įlat affect (lack of emotional expression when speaking)ĭifficulty in performing schoolwork and/or a decline in previous levels of academic achievement Suspiciousness and/or paranoia (fearfulness that someone, or something, is going to harm them)
However, each child may experience symptoms differently.Įarly warning signs of schizophrenia in children may include:ĭistorted perception of reality (difficulty telling dreams from reality)Ĭonfused thinking (such as, confusing television with reality) The following are the most common symptoms of schizophrenia. "Psychotic" refers to ideas, perceptions, or feelings that are grossly distorted from reality. One of the most disturbing and puzzling characteristics of schizophrenia is the sudden onset of its psychotic symptoms. He or she may begin to talk about bizarre ideas or fears and begin to cling more to parents. The child may gradually become more shy and withdrawn. In children with schizophrenia, behavior changes may occur slowly, over time, or have a sudden onset. Slightly more males develop schizophrenia in childhood however, by adolescence, schizophrenia affects males and females equally. There appears to be a different threshold of expression, which means that one gender is more likely to show the problem, over the other gender. Often, one gender (either males or females) is affected more frequently than the other in multifactorial traits. The factors are usually both genetic and environmental, where a combination of genes from both parents, in addition to unknown environmental factors, produce the trait or condition. Multifactorial inheritance means that "many factors" are involved. Schizophrenia is considered to be multifactorially inherited. However, it is likely that many factors ? genetic, behavioral, and environmental ? play a role in the development of this condition. It is believed that a chemical imbalance in the brain is an inherited factor that is necessary for schizophrenia to develop. There is no known single cause responsible for schizophrenia.
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