Psychosis is a term used for someone experiencing a loss of contact with reality. Psychosis is characterized by changes in thought, beliefs, perceptions or behaviour. A person with psychosis can hear voices or see things that no one else can (hallucinations) and may have firm fixed beliefs that are completely untrue (such as feeling everyone is out to harm them, or even thinking that Martians are invading). A person with psychosis may:
Some drugs can cause people to develop psychosis. The ones that induce it most often are LSD (acid), amphetamines (speed) and cocaine (coke or crack). Certain rave drugs, such as ketamine and MDMA (ecstasy), can also bring on hallucinations and delusions. When a person develops psychosis after using drugs, it is possible that the psychosis is only due to drugs. If this is the case, the psychosis would clear up completely within a few weeks after the drug use stops.
However, when psychosis occurs, it can be difficult to know the cause. It is important to pay attention to possible symptoms of psychosis and seek medical help early. The sooner the symptoms are treated, the better chance a person has that they will clear up completely.
People with a family history of serious mental illness are at increased risk of developing such an illness themselves and may be especially sensitive to drug and alcohol use. These people should avoid substance use.
People who get extremely paranoid when using any drug, marijuana for example, should be careful and consider not using the substance.
Sometimes, drugs can worsen or bring out a psychotic illness in a person that may not have come out if the drugs were not used.
More information is available from Canadian Mental Health Association at www.cmha.ca
With permission, taken in part from "What is Psychosis? You Should Know...", A publication of the Early Psychosis Intervention Project of the Canadian Mental Health Association, National Office, 2000