I felt it important to include a page about psychosis as it’s a word people are afraid of and understand little about. Psychosis is a huge part of my story and details of psychotic episodes will feature in my blog but in the meantime if you or someone you know is suffering or you’re just curious, please read on.
Source: http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Psychosis/Pages/Introduction.aspx
Psychosis is a mental health problem that causes people to perceive or interpret things differently from those around them. This might involve hallucinations or delusions.
The two main symptoms of psychosis are:
- hallucinations – where a person hears, sees and, in some cases, feels, smells or tastes things that aren’t there; a common hallucination is hearing voices
- delusions – where a person believes things that, when examined rationally, are obviously untrue – for example, thinking your next door neighbour is planning to kill you
The combination of hallucinations and delusional thinking can often severely disrupt perception, thinking, emotion and behaviour. Experiencing the symptoms of psychosis is often referred to as having a psychotic episode.
What causes psychosis?
Psychosis isn’t a condition in itself – it’s triggered by other conditions.
It’s sometimes possible to identify the cause of psychosis as a specific mental health condition, such as:
- schizophrenia – a condition that causes a range of psychological symptoms, including hallucinations and delusions
- bipolar disorder – a mental health condition that affects mood; a person with bipolar disorder can have episodes of depression (lows) and mania (highs)
- severe depression – some people with depression also have symptoms of psychosis when they’re very depressed
Psychosis can also be triggered by traumatic experiences, stress or physical conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease, a brain tumour, or as a result of drug misuse or alcohol misuse. How often a psychotic episode occurs and how long it lasts can depend on the underlying cause. For example, episodes related to bipolar disorder usually resolve, but may reoccur.
Diagnosing psychosis
You should see your GP immediately if you’re experiencing psychotic episodes. It’s important that psychosis is treated as soon as possible, because early treatment usually has better long-term outcomes.
Your GP will look at your symptoms and rule out short-term causes, such as drug misuse. They may ask you some questions to help determine what’s causing your psychosis and they should refer you to a mental health specialist for further assessment and treatment.
Complications
People with a history of psychosis are much more likely to have drug and/or alcohol misuse problems. This may be because such substances can provide short-term symptom relief, although they usually make symptoms worse in the long term.
People with psychosis also have a higher than average risk of suicide. It’s estimated that 1 in 5 people with psychosis will attempt to commit suicide at some point in their life, and 1 in 25 people with psychosis will kill themselves.
Treating psychosis
Treatment for psychosis involves using a combination of:
- antipsychotic medication – which can help relieve the symptoms of psychosis
- psychological therapies – the one-to-one talking therapy cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) has proved successful in helping people with schizophrenia and, in appropriate cases, family therapy has been shown to reduce the need for hospital treatment in people with psychosis
- social support – support with social needs, such as education, employment or accommodation
Most people with psychosis who get better with medication need to continue taking it for at least a year. Some people need to take medication long term to prevent symptoms reoccurring. If a person’s psychotic episodes are severe, they may need to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital.
Getting help for others
People with psychosis often have a lack of insight. They’re unaware that they’re thinking and acting strangely. Due to their lack of insight, it’s often down to the friends, relatives or carers of a person affected by psychosis to seek help for them. If you’re concerned about someone you know and think they may have psychosis, you could contact their social worker or community mental health nurse if they’ve previously been diagnosed with a mental health condition.
If you think the person’s symptoms are placing them at possible risk of harm you can:
- take them to the nearest accident and emergency (A&E) department, if they agree
- call their GP or local out-of-hours GP
- call 999 and ask for an ambulance
Bipolar Alcoholic 