Psychosis
Psychosis is a form of mental illness which can seriously affect the way young people think and feel. Someone experiencing psychosis loses touch with what is usually accepted as reality. They may feel paranoid, hallucinate, hear voices or have delusions, or you might feel very high or very, very low.
Psychosis is considered a serious mental health condition which often starts in young adulthood. Although it can be very frightening, but can also be successfully controlled through medication. The two most common forms of psychosis are schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder.
Drug use, including cannabis and cocaine, has been linked to the onset of psychosis. Usually if a person develops psychosis they will need to enter the mental health system, and take drugs to control the condition.
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is the most common form of psychosis. Symptoms include delusions, unclear or disordered thoughts and hallucinations. They may hear voices or see or smell things which are not there.
They may not be thinking clearly, be muddled or confused, so may not make much sense. They may also have delusions, which are beliefs which are not true: they may say they are known by famous people or think that people on the TV are talking about them.
The symptoms of schizophrenia are sometimes mistaken as moodiness or teenage rebellion. In young people, hearing voices is not necessarily a sign of schizophrenia, but instead may be due to anxiety, stress or depression.
Bipolar affective disorder
This is another serious form of psychosis. It is very rare in young children and usually starts during young adulthood. It’s main symptom is extreme changes of mood.
When someone is high, they can become very overactive and loud, and lose their inhibitions. They can also suffer from delusions, for example, that they are famous, or have special powers. But mania can also alternate with periods of depression.
Help from YoungMinds
YoungMinds has publications that can help with concerns about psychosis:
Visit our publications section
YoungMinds Parents Information Service can offer further advice on psychosis and serious mental health conditions:
Find out more about the Parents Information Service
Call us on 0800 018 2138
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