Schizophrenia? I know it is a mental illness but...?

can someone please explain to me, in layman's terms, what it is that is going on/not going on, in the brain of a schizophrenic? By that I mean, is it a chemical imbalance, a deformity within the brain? What is it exactly?

Do ppl with schizophrenia tend to be angry a lot too?

There are different kinds of schizophrenia. Schizophrenia means in Greek, "divided mind. " It should not be mistaken for multiple personality disorder, but laymen often do. It is a personality disorder, but it is more like a cracked personality than more than one personality. Schizophrenia is far more common than multiple personality disorder. About 1% of Americans have schizophrenia. Most likely you will meet at least one person with schizophrenia in your lifetime. It is the opposite of Parkinson's. There is too much dopamine rather than too little. There may also be structural differences in the brain. Schizophrenia usually begins during early adulthood. A large number of those in mental hospitals have schizophrenia. Some schizophrenics have positive symptoms (hallucinations, delusions, etc.), others have negative symptoms (loss of cognitive skills, loss of memory, problems concentrating, social skills problems, catatonia, etc.), a few have both. There are many similarities between symptoms of Autism and negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Autism was once considered childhood schizoid disorder. Schizophrenia is still hard to treat even with several drugs which are available now. After substance abuse research, schizophrenia is one of the biggest fields of research in psychology and psychiatry.

In laymans's terms, too much dopiamin...

People with schizophrenia have a chemical imbalance in their brain. Symptoms include:
Hallucinations, Delusions, Thought Disorder, Disorders of Movement (clumsy/uncoordinated), Flat affect (immobile facial expression, monotonous voice, lack of emotion), Lack of pleasure in everyday life, Diminished ability to initiate and sustain planned activity, Speaking infrequently, even when forced to interact. People with schizophrenia often neglect basic hygiene and need help with everyday activities. Some schizophrenic people have episodes of violence, but not all. Most schizophrenics will become suicidal if not treated. Also, another symptom is loss of touch with reality (not sure what reality is, which would be considered a Delusion).

If you search "what is Schizophrenia"

http://answers.yahoo.com/search/search_r...

I am not sure how the scizophrenic brain works. But there are several types of scizophrenia. The main thing that characterizes this mental illness from others is visual and aural hallucinations, paranoid delusions, and a marked exit from reality.

More info:
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publicati...
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publicati...