Multiple Realities

Even now I feel this is a very controversial kind of disorder, because it is almost invisible. In some cases this disorder holds the symptoms of others and because as with most mood disorders that affect mood there isn't a whole lot of information to be able to distinguish one from another. So I went digging a little deeper to see what kind of tests could distinguish it. What I find interesting is that there isn't a whole of differentiation, however if a patient shows or a psychiatrist notices a patient maybe hearing their thoughts aloud, thoughts being inserted or being taken away, or even hearing voices are a big indication. In short it is the paranoia and delusions that make this unique.My question is how often is this misdiagnosed and what are the repercussions of that? Because in reading Biological Psychology, I noticed there are differential diagnosis, there can be mood disorders with psychotic features, substance abuse, brain damage, huntingtons disease, and nutritional abnormalities. What i'm thinking is everything else is checked first because they seem more distinguishable and more common than schizophrenia. I always feel that when it comes to these disorders it is important to recognize not only what is going on in the body but how it affects the family, and how they cope because to us, its a chemical imbalance or a gene that may or may not exist, but this is real and important to the people who have to suffer through it.