The symptoms of schizophrenia are wide-ranging and can vary from person to person, but they can be categorized into three types: positive, negative, and cognitive. These symptoms typically begin to appear between ages 16 and 30.
Positive symptoms of schizophrenia are actions or occurrences that are “added” to a person’s behavior when they begin to experience schizophrenia. These are typically the most noticeable symptoms of schizophrenia. Positive symptoms include:
- Hallucinations (false perceptions, like hearing voices or seeing figures that are not there in reality)
- Delusions (false beliefs, such as believing that you have special powers or that your neighbor is trying to harm you)
- Unorganized and senseless speech
- Erratic body movements
Negative symptoms of schizophrenia are a lack of a person’s abilities or things that are taken away from their typical behavior. Negative symptoms include:
- Social withdrawal
- Speaking less
- Feeling lethargic
- Feeling uninterested in things that used to make them happy
- Reduced facial expressions
- Reduced signs of emotion
Cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia can be the most subtle of the symptoms of schizophrenia, or they can be more severe and even the hardest to overcome. Cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia include:
- Trouble paying attention or concentrating
- Racing and jumbled thoughts or slow thoughts
- Inability to follow instructions
- Poor memory and recall