Schizophrenia causes sudden mood swings.

Schizophrenia is connected to bipolar illness and schizoaffective disorder, both of which are characterized by mood swings that are abrupt and alternating. However, schizophrenia is a very different disorder. Another myth about schizophrenia is that people have unexpected mood swings, which is not true. Bipolar disorder is a condition in which a person's moods cannot be controlled. Mood swings can vary from depressed to happy to manic. Likewise, schizoaffective disorder has all of the symptoms of schizophrenia as well as a mood condition such as bipolar disease.

As a result, someone who displays signs of schizophrenia as well as mood swings most likely has schizoaffective disorder rather than schizophrenia. Mood stabilizers and antidepressants are commonly used to treat bipolar illness, whereas antipsychotic medication is used to treat schizophrenia. A combination of antipsychotics and antidepressants or mood stabilizers may be prescribed in the case of schizoaffective disorder.