What is it?
Psychosis is a mental health condition that affects how a person thinks, feels, and behaves, often leading to symptoms like hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thinking. This can cause significant confusion and distress, making it hard to distinguish between reality and imagination.
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Description
Psychosis is a condition that affects how you perceive reality, making you see, hear, or believe things that aren’t actually there. This can be very confusing and sometimes scary. Imagine feeling convinced that something is true, even when everyone else around you tells you it isn’t. For example, you might believe that the TV is sending you special messages or that people can read your thoughts. Along with these unusual beliefs, you might also experience hallucinations, like hearing voices that no one else can hear. These symptoms can make it hard to concentrate, follow conversations, or complete everyday tasks. This can be really confusing and isolating, especially if you don’t know what’s happening or why.
Living with psychosis often means dealing with a lot of emotions, such as fear, anxiety, or even depression. It can be frightening to feel disconnected from reality and to not trust your own mind. However, it’s important to remember that psychosis is treatable, and many people manage to live fulfilling lives with the right help. Treatment, support from family and friends, and understanding what you’re going through can make a big difference. If you ever feel like you’re losing touch with reality, it’s crucial to reach out to someone you trust and seek professional help.
Symptoms
Psychosis can make you feel and see things differently from everyone else, which can be really confusing and scary. Here are some common symptoms:
- Hallucinations
This means experiencing things that aren’t really there. You might hear voices that nobody else hears, see things that aren’t there, or even feel, smell, or taste things that don’t exist. Hearing voices is the most common type of hallucination.
- Delusions
These are strong beliefs that don’t match up with reality. You might be convinced of things like having superpowers, thinking others are plotting against you, or believing you’re being controlled by some outside force. These beliefs can seem very real to you but are not shared by others
- Disorganised thinking and speech
Your thoughts might get all mixed up, making it hard to talk in a way that others can understand. You might jump from one topic to another that doesn’t make sense, or use words that don’t exist
- Paranoia
This is when you feel extremely suspicious or scared without a good reason. You might think that people are watching you or trying to harm you, making it hard to trust others.
- Lack of insight
Often, people with psychosis don’t realise that what they’re experiencing isn’t real. This can make it tough to understand what’s going on and to ask for help
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Psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia, are rare, having a prevalence of less than 3% in young people
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What causes psychosis
Causes
Psychosis can happen for a lot of different reasons, and it’s not anyone’s fault. One common cause is genetics, which means if someone in your family has had psychosis or other mental health issues, you might be more likely to experience it too, kind of like how certain traits run in families. Brain chemistry also plays a big role; sometimes the chemicals in your brain that help you think and feel can get out of balance, leading to symptoms of psychosis. Stress and trauma are other major factors; going through really tough or traumatic events, like losing someone close or being bullied, can sometimes trigger psychosis as your brain tries to cope with the intense stress
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Feeling isolated and alone is very stressful. Connecting with others with similar experiences either informally or in organised self-help groups can be a big help. You can learn from others about what helps them and try things out to see what helps you.
Getting help
If you suspect you may be experiencing psychosis, it’s important to seek professional help right away. Schizophrenia is usually treated with a mix of medication and therapy. Each person’s treatment will look different, depending on your symptoms and other factors. Your doctor will be able to support you in finding the best treatment plan for you..
- Medication
Medication is really important in treating psychosis and helping people feel better. Doctors often use antipsychotic drugs to manage symptoms like hearing voices or believing things that aren’t true. There are different types of these medicines and it can take a bit of time to find the one that works best. It’s important to talk to your doctor about any side effects. With the right medicine and support, many people with schizophrenia can lead happy and fulfilling lives.
- Therapy
Talking therapy for psychosis is there to help you deal with your symptoms without ignoring what you’re going through. The main type of talking therapy used to treat psychosis is called cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).
It’s about understanding how your thoughts, feelings, and actions affect your life and making them better. For instance, CBT can help you manage symptoms like hearing voices, reduce stress, and handle any side effects from medication.
There are other types of therapy that might help too - like art or creative therapies, and family support.
- Looking after yourself
Seeking help for psychosis is vital, but there are also self-care strategies that can be beneficial.
Different things work for different people, so you’ll need to find what works for you. Some things that work for people are:
- Speak to someone you trust—whether it’s a friend, family member, teacher, or another supportive person you feel comfortable confiding in. Experiencing psychosis can often feel very lonely, so you might want to seek support from others going through a similar experience. Voice Collective run weekly support groups for 16-25 year olds who hear voices, see visions, have other ‘unusual’ sensory experiences or beliefs.
- Look after your physical health. This might include eating well, staying active, getting enough sleep, avoiding alcohol and drugs and taking care to reduce your stress levels.
- Pay attention to your warning signs, such as changes in your thoughts and feelings, like hearing voices, feeling paranoid, or having trouble focusing, and talk to someone you trust if these things start happening.
Create a crisis plan involving listing emergency contacts, such as family members or mental health professionals, and outlining steps to take if you start experiencing severe symptoms. Make sure to include coping strategies that help you feel safe and a reminder to reach out for support immediately when you notice warning signs. Mind.org have a useful page to help you plan for a crisis.
Some resources that may help
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