Understanding Schizophrenia: Causes and Symptoms

2. Hallucinations

Another positive symptom of schizophrenia is hallucinations. Research shows that about 70% of people diagnosed with schizophrenia experience hallucinations, which may be auditory, visual, or olfactory. Other people do not see, hear, or experience these sensations.

However, for the individual, the hallucinations are very real and can be frightening. Auditory hallucinations are the most common and may be described as threatening voices or whispering. Visual hallucinations are objects, patterns, lights, or people that aren't there.

Olfactory hallucinations are those involving tastes or smells, both good and bad. Taste hallucinations, for example, may cause a person to stop eating because the food smells or tastes like it has been poisoned. This is also an example of a hallucination supporting a delusion. The key difference between the two is that hallucinations are unreal sensations while delusions are unreal beliefs.