What is an acute psychotic disorder?

Acute psychotic disorder is a psychotic break that comes at once and takes only a short period. The time frame can be as short as the day and up to about a month. Unlike a chronic psychotic disorder, which is usually caused by almost constant chemicals in the brain, an acute psychotic disorder often has a trigger that causes a temporary break from reality.

In many cases, acute psychotic disorders already have a basic mental disorder, often anxiety or panic disorder. Scientists believe that one of the main factors contributing to a sudden psychotic break is the inability to solve stress. Those who have anxiety or panic disorder are already experiencing a greater level of stress caused by small daily situations, and are therefore more prone to amaze for greater stressful events such as family death or loss of employment.

Symptoms of acute psychotic disorders are similar to symptoms in long -term psychotic disorder. HallucinationThey are one of the most common symptoms and may occur as visual hallucinations such as seeing something or someone who is not there, or auditory hallucinations such as hearing of voices inside the head. Hallucinations often accompany delusions, including paranoia. Patients may also show atypical behavior or involuntary body movements such as jerk or recurrent movements. In order to diagnose a patient with an acute psychotic disorder, at least one of these symptoms must be present for less than a month.

There are many potential causes of acute psychotic disorder. Some psychiatrists believe that it could be a signal that the patient is on the verge of development of schizophrenia, lifelong psychotic disorders. The postpartum psychosis, a rare condition that occurs in a small number of women after delivery, can also cause a short psychotic break. Even in persons with an existing mental disorder is stress tEnergy always contributes to a psychotic break.

Treatment of acute psychotic disorder usually involves short -term use of antipsychotic drugs similar to those used to treat schizophrenia and long -term psychotic disorders. Although drugs are usually sufficient to end the episode, patients are often left by stunning emotions concerning their breaks, especially if they damaged themselves or others while suffering from disorder. They can also take care of the possibility that the episode repeats in the future. Psychotherapy or group therapy can help patients cope with what happened and learn skills to take place in the future.