Psychosis

Psychosis can occur in either bipolar mania or in depression. Learn about psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations, delusions and paranoia, along with the mental illnesses where psychosis is most common.

Psychosis is a loss of contact with reality, typically including delusions (false ideas about what is taking place or who one is) and hallucinations (seeing or hearing things which aren't there). More...

Delusions are false beliefs that are firmly held. They are one aspect of the psychotic features of bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.

Delusions of Reference refers to the strongly held belief that random events, objects, behaviors of others, etc., have a particular and unusual significance to oneself.

Hallucinations are most often associated with mental illness schizophrenia. However, they may also occur for those with bipolar disorder when either depression or mania has psychotic features.

People with bipolar I disorder may experience hallucinations as a part of their psychotic symptoms. About Bipolar Disorder readers describe their hallucinations.

People with bipolar I disorder may experience delusions as a part of their psychotic symptoms. About Bipolar Disorder readers describe their delusions.

Eve talks to me about her psychotic breakdown. Part 1 of the interview covers events up to and including the onset of symptoms.

In part 2 of my interview with Eve, we discuss what it was like to come out of her episode of brief reactive psychosis, what her treatment was, and the many, many lifestyle changes she's needed to make.

Found here is a brief but comprehensive definition of paranoia - which may be present in bipolar disorder or schizophrenia as well as several other mental illnesses.

Here is a brief but comprehensive definition of Catatonia and catatonic features - which may be present in schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder and other conditions.

Negativism is a trait of catatonic stupor.

Family and linkage studies have provided some evidence for overlapping genetic susceptibility between bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. If shared genes are responsible for the psychotic manifestations of both disorders, these genes may result in clustering of psychotic symptoms in some bipolar disorder pedigrees.

Biometrical model fitting was applied to clinical data from twins to investigate whether operationally defined schizophrenic, schizoaffective, and manic syndromes share genetic risk factors.