What is the disease called where you hear voices in your head?

yeah that’s it!

Schizophrenia.

yeah that. but what is it and what causes it and all that?

Schizophrenia my dear :) My friends tease me and say I’m schizophrenic all the time :P

It occurs for a number of reason - genetics, environment, dru.g use etc, but the mechanisms behind the altered brain function is poorly understood. Its thought its to do with increased levels of dopamine. By the way, its not just hearing voices. Aural hallucination is part of it - called a positive symptom. There are also negative symptoms such as lack of emotion. And when I say postitive and negative I dont mean good or bad - obviously they are both bad. I mean that its either a loss or gain of something (gain of hallucination, loss of emotion).

I wanted to know because my cousin is in the hospital and the docters are suspecting that because she has all these symptoms u listed and she’s having trouble telling reality from fantasy. I’m really worried aout her because I would NEVEr have suspected she has Schizophrenia. she’s 14 and never showed any signs of it until she came home on thurs acting really really weird

I want to point out that those are called auditory hallucinations, but a person does not have to be schizophrenic to have hallucinations. There are several mental disorders that can include psychosis, and they could be a result of physical disorders or abnormalities etc (viral infections, tumors, traumatic injuries…).

Well if she may not have had schizophrenia previously, it’s not something you are usually just born with, it is often triggered later on in life.

Many things can cause this. Depression, mania, head trauma, and even fevers can cause auditory hallucinations. Most people think of schizophrenia when they think of “hearing voices”, but there are also many different kinds of schizophrenia, varying in severity. Some people who hear voices feel the compulsive need to do what they say, or they believe they are hearing the voice of God, or aliens, or angels, or something else otherworldly. Others are able to recognize the voices for what they are- just auditory hallucinations- and they learn to ignore them or live with them. Sometimes auditory hallucinations are temporary. They can become serious if they do not go away or get more persistent, in which case treatment if often needed.

Also, schizophrenia does not make you “crazy”. Sometimes people with it do things that don’t make sense to most people, but there are effective treatments out there that can help them live perfectly normal, even more interesting, lives. :) Also, some people suffering from schizophrenia are able to “ignore” or “live with” their symptoms (see the movie “A Beautiful Mind”). Others have only mild cases that don’t interfere much with their lives.

And yes, schizophrenia, along with other mental/mood disorders like anxiety and depression, can be “triggered” by traumatic events, puberty, some medications, or heavy drug use. It’s possible for them to come on suddenly with no apparent trigger, though.

Also, don’t forget the possibility of bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression. Sometimes this disorder is mild and barely noticeable, but other times, it can result in full-on delusions, hallucinations, etc. Manic people are often unable to distinguish reality from fantasy, and what’s more, it can be very hard for them to understand that they are behaving strange or irrationally. However, this too can be successfully treated and overcome, though it can be very hard.

It Is Called SKITZOPHRENIC. SKIT-ZO-FREN-ICK! :P

If you’re going to make a point, at least get the word right, or you just end up looking foolish…

by what? :)

The theory is that people are born with the genes and then I guess they’re activated for a lack of a better term during periods of high stress. It’s more complicated than that, but that is the basic idea.

oh…. I wish we knew more about the human brain!