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How Does Schizophrenia Affect the Mind? The Science Behind Found's Midseason Finale Case
Found's midseason finale features a mother suffering from delusions of paranoia brought on by trauma and grief.
**SPOILER WARNING! The following contains major spoilers for Season 2 of Found!**
"Missing While Haunted," the midseason finale of Found's second season, finds Mosely & Associates on the trail of a missing mother, Olivia, who lives a transient existence with her young daughter, Stevie, in order to avoid a sinister individual named "Kane."
At first, the clues suggest Olivia is some kind of confidential informant for the government, whose assignment went sideways. But as Gabi (Shanola Hampton) and her team dig deeper into the case, they come to realize that the mystery is not what it appears. Olivia is not the mother's true name, and what's more: Kane doesn't really exist. The missing woman (real name: Alice) suffers from schizophrenia, particularly delusions of paranoia, which only got worse after she witnessed her father, a U.S. diplomat — hence the government connection — die from a heart attack.
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"Afterwards, she became obsessed with his journals, making up a delusion that his co-worker Kane had killed him," explains Alice's mother, Naomi.
"Kane was a way for her to make sense of her father's death, putting a face to the thing that haunted her," adds Gabi, suddenly realizing she did the same thing with Sir (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) after her own father's passing.
Despite being seriously injured by a car in her delusional state, Alice is discovered alive at the foot of her father's grave, and we learn that she was encouraged to stop taking her antipsychotic medication by a holistic-minded superior at work. She vows to get better and sends Stevie to live with Naomi until her mental health improves.
How does schizophrenia affect the mind?
A serious mental disorder, schizophrenia — as defined by the National Institute of Mental Health — affects how a person thinks, behaves, and perceives the world around them. The most well-known signs of the illness are delusions and hallucinations that distort the truth of reality (the neurotransmitters dopamine and glutamate are widely accepted to play a major role on that front).
While scientists have yet to discover a specific cause, the predominant theory is that schizophrenia may be the combination of genetic and environmental factors. Fortunately, schizophrenia is treatable through the application of therapy, antipsychotic drugs, hospital observation, and/or electroconvulsive therapy.
How can you watch Found Season 2?
New episodes of Found premiere on NBC every Thursday at 10 p.m. ET before making their way to Peacock the following day. This broadcast routine will go on hiatus until the new year, but don't worry — there are still 14 episodes left in Found Season 2.
RELATED: Found: Mark-Paul Gosselaar's Sir Was Based on This Real-Life Serial Killer
The complete first season — comprised of 13 episodes — is now available to stream on the NBCUniversal streaming platform.
Peacock offers two monthly subscription plans: Premium ($7.99 a month with ads) and Premium Plus ($13.99 a month with no ads and download access for certain titles). If you're a student, you can enjoy the Premium plan for just $1.99 for an entire year!
