What is Psychosis?

Psychosis is a condition that affects the mind. It is not an illness by itself, but it is a symptom which can denote an underlying disease, the most frequent being schizophrenia.

Psychosis is some loss of contact with reality

During a psychotic episode, the psychotic person will experience disturbed thoughts and perceptions associated to loss of contact with reality; the ill person is unable to differentiate between what is real and what is not.

In USA, 100 000 young people will experience psychosis each year

Other symptoms associated with psychosis are:

• Positive symptoms (abnormal thoughts/perceptions):

1. Delusions (false beliefs: for example, the ill thinks that he has a superpower, that someone is  controlling his thoughts…)
2. Hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that others do not see or hear)
3. Feelings of paranoia (someone is going to attack him/her)
4. Disorganized thinking
5. Incoherent or nonsense speech
6. Inappropriate behavior

• Negative symptoms (difficulty functioning normally)

1. Lack of motivation
2. Decrease talking, thinking
3. Lack of emotions
4. Inability to concentrate
5. Social withdrawal

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Sleep problems
• Drugs abuse

3 in 100 young people will experience a psychotic episode in their lives