What Are Psychotic Disorders?
Psychosis is a symptom of several disorders including schizophrenia, depression disorder, and bipolar disorder. A Psychotic Disorder is defined as disturbances in our senses and cognition leading to auditory and visual hallucinations, as well as delusions and paranoia. Psychosis can be chronic, acute, or transient.
What Are The Symptoms Of Psychotic Disorders?
Psychotic disorders encompass a range of conditions where individuals experience symptoms like hallucinations, delusions, disorganized thinking, and difficulty discerning reality from imagination
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Hallucinations: Perceiving things that aren't there, such as hearing voices, seeing things, feeling sensations that aren't real, or smelling odors that others don't detect.
Delusions: Holding false beliefs that persist despite evidence to the contrary. These beliefs can be bizarre or implausible, such as believing one has superpowers or that others are plotting against them.
Disorganized thinking: Difficulty organizing thoughts or making logical connections between ideas, leading to disjointed speech or behavior.
Disorganized or abnormal motor behavior: Displaying unpredictable or inappropriate movements, gestures, or postures.
Negative symptoms: These refer to a decrease or absence of normal functions or behaviors, such as reduced emotional expression, social withdrawal, lack of motivation, or diminished speech.
Cognitive impairments: Difficulties with attention, memory, and executive functions can be present in psychotic disorders.
How Are Psychotic Disorders Diagnosed?
Psychotic Disorders are diagnosed by licensed mental health professionals. At Mind Glow Solutions, our psychiatric providers believe that these disorders cannot be fully understood through diagnostic criteria alone. Rather, they must be approached from a biopsychosocial and cultural perspective. To accurately diagnose psychotic disorders, our providers conduct a comprehensive psychiatric evaluation that includes collecting your psychiatric and medical history, social and personal history, as well as gaining a true understanding of your lived experience.
How Are Psychotic Disorders Treated?
Psychotherapy
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT): CBT for psychosis focuses on identifying and challenging distressing beliefs (delusions) and reducing the emotional impact of hallucinations. It helps individuals develop coping strategies, reality-testing techniques, and problem-solving skills to manage symptoms effectively. CBT can also address co-occurring issues like depression, anxiety, and social isolation.
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): ACT helps individuals accept their internal experiences, such as hallucinations and delusions, without judgment or attempts to control them. It emphasizes mindfulness, values clarification, and committed action toward personal goals despite symptoms. ACT can promote psychological flexibility and resilience in the face of psychotic experiences.
Social Skills Training: This type of therapy focuses on improving social functioning, communication skills, and interpersonal relationships. It helps individuals with psychotic disorders develop and practice social skills in various contexts, such as initiating conversations, assertiveness, and problem-solving in social situations.
Peer Support Groups: Provide a platform for individuals with similar experiences to share their stories, offer support, and exchange coping strategies. Peer support can reduce feelings of isolation and provide a sense of community.
Medication
Antipsychotic Medications: These are the cornerstone of treatment for psychotic disorders. They help manage symptoms like hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thinking. There are two main types: typical (first-generation) antipsychotics and atypical (second-generation) antipsychotics. Each type has different mechanisms of action and potential side effects. Atypical antipsychotics are often preferred due to their lower risk of side effects such as movement disorders.
Examples of first-generation antipsychotics include: Haldol, Prolixin, and Thorazine.
Examples of second-generation antipsychotics include: Risperdal, quetiapine, olanzapine, and lurasidone.
Long-acting Injectable Antipsychotics: Some antipsychotics are available in long-acting injectable formulations, which can improve medication adherence and provide more stable blood levels of the drug over time. Examples include risperidone long-acting injection (RLAI), paliperidone palmitate, and aripiprazole long-acting injection (LAI).
Complementary | Integrative | Holistic | Non-Pharmacological Interventions
Lifestyle Modifications: Engaging in regular physical activity, maintaining a balanced diet, getting adequate sleep, and avoiding excessive use of substances like stimulants, hallucinogens, cannabis, and alcohol can support overall well-being and may complement treatment.
Stress Management Techniques: Learning relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery, yoga, meditation, therapeutic massages, and acupuncture can help individuals manage stress and improve overall mental health.
Self-Care Strategies: Establishing a consistent daily routine, developing time management skills, setting boundaries such as learning when to say NO, practicing self-compassion, being kind to oneself, journaling, fostering, relationships with supportive family and friends, spending time in nature, and engaging in hobbies will help support overall mental and behavioral health.
