Schizophrenia, the most serious, complicated, and disabling of all mental illnesses, is a brain disorder which severely interferes with an individual's ability to think clearly, make decisions, and separate reality from what's happening in their mind. It affects one in every 100 people world-wide, males and females equally, has the highest suicide rate of all psychiatric disorders, and predominantly manifests in adolescence through the 30s. While there is still much controversy over the subject, many experts believe schizophrenia is a combination of a number of mental illnesses. Two studies by the National Institutes of Mental Health show that mood disorders (bipolar disorder/depression) are comorbid (present) in 80% of schizophrenics, prompting the belief that they are a fundamental part of the disease, not just a symptom of it. While schizophrenia cannot be cured, its symptoms are highly treatable with medication.

Schizophrenia, perhaps the most misunderstood mental illness, is not a...