Psychosis is a mental disorder that leads to extreme impairment of the brain. It makes a person have difficulties in communicating, and it influences the performance of the individual. This condition occurs because of many factors. It occurs due to use of drugs like cannabis, methamphetamine and cocaine. The condition can arise because of a mental disorder that a person has. The condition results to hallucinations and delusions. Delusions refer to false, strange and an irrational belief held by a person. The members of society do not accept the belief. Hallucinations refer sensory perception that occurs in the absence sensory organs (Carey, 2014). Hallucinations make the patient see things that do not exist.
Identifying whether the condition has a relationship to substance use or mental disorder is not easy. It requires one to know the symptoms of the condition and history. The symptoms of the condition vary according to the state of the psychiatric. Physical examination of older patients may show signs of drug and substance use. Evidence of self-neglect and poor hygiene indicates substance abuse. Another example is bruises on the skin that may indicate use of drugs by injections.
Use of drugs and alcohol causes the symptoms of this condition. The symptoms go away immediately when the effect of drugs wears off. People who are addicted to drugs experience psychotic symptoms if they reduce or stop using the drugs (Medical News Today, 2014). If the person cannot stay without using drugs and has behavior of isolating himself/herself suggests that the condition is due to substance use. Diagnosing psychosis happens through clinical examination that allows ruling out if the disease is because of drug intoxication. This happens through asking the patient their drug history and checking their sample of urine.
If a person has, mental conditions like dementia, brain tumors, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease it gives a clear indication that the cause of psychosis is a mental disorder. Other infections like syphilis and Aids can affect the brain and this may lead to psychosis. Knowing the cause of psychosis requires one to know the history of the patient. Examples of psychotic disorders include bipolar disorder psychotic depression and schizophrenia. Bipolar psychotic disorder occurs when a person has mood swings. Psychotic depression makes the patient feel depressed. Schizophrenia lasts longer than half a year.
References
Carey, E. (2014). Psychosis: Symptoms, Causes & Risk Factors. [Online] Retrieved from: http://www.healthline.com/health/psychosis [Accessed: 19 Mar 2014].
Medical News Today. (2014). what is psychosis? What causes psychotic symptoms? [Online] Retrieved from: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/248159.php [Accessed: 19 Mar 2014].
