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Abstract Schizoaffective disorder is an illness during which the person has symptoms of both schizophrenia and a major mood disorder (affective disorder) at the same time (Harvard Mental Health Letter). Some people with schizoaffective disorder are functionally impaired for their entire lives; some have brief hospitalizations during their lives, but most do generally “well in day-to-day living” (Schizoaffective disorder). Schizoaffective disorder is thought to be caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain, and development of the disease is thought to come from genetic and environmental factors (Facts about schizoaffective disorder). Schizoaffective Disorder People with Schizoaffective disorder a “roller-coaster ride of symptoms” (Knowledge Base: Schizoaffective disorder). Schizoaffective disorder is defined as an: Illness during which the patient has symptoms of both schizophrenia and a major mood disorder at the same time. Major depression, mania, or a mixture or alternation of depressive and manic symptoms must last for at least two weeks along with two of the following, for at least a month: delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, disorganized behavior, and negative schizophrenic symptoms. (Har