Understanding Psychosis

An accessible and informative guide to understanding psychosis, written specifically for clients.

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Guide (PDF)

A psychoeducational guide. Typically containing elements of skills development.

Overview

Our ‘Understanding…’ series is a collection of psychoeducation guides for common mental health conditions. Friendly and explanatory, they are comprehensive sources of information for your clients. Concepts are explained in an easily digestible way, with plenty of case examples and accessible diagrams. Understanding Psychosis is designed to help clients with psychosis understand more about their condition.

Why Use This Resource?

This guide aims to help clients learn more about psychosis. It explains what psychosis is, what the common symptoms are, and effective ways to address it, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

Identify symptoms of psychosis and the factors that contribute to it.
Understand what keeps psychosis going.
Explore effective treatments for psychosis.
Gain insights into how people experience psychosis and how they overcome it.

Key Benefits

Comprehensive

Explores what psychosis is and what maintains it.

Relatable

Contains detailed examples and relatable case studies.

Supportive

Written in a friendly and accessible manner.

Hopeful

Outlines effective treatment options.

Who is this for?

Psychosis

Clients seeking to understand experiences such as hallucinations, delusions, or disorganized thinking, and to develop insight and strategies for managing symptoms.

Integrating it into your practice

Assess

Identify clients who may be experiencing psychosis.

Provide the guide to clients who could benefit from it.

Educate

Use the content to inform clients about psychosis and help normalize their experiences.

Reflect

Discuss the client’s personal experience with psychosis.

Intervene

Plan treatment with the client or direct them to other sources of help and support.

Theoretical Background & Therapist Guidance

It is not uncommon for individuals to report perceptual experiences or beliefs that differ markedly from those of others. Research suggests that up to 10% of people have, at some point, heard voices or seen things that were not present (McGrath et al., 2015; Bevan et al., 2011). While many of these experiences are transient and non-distressing, when such phenomena are persistent, cause significant distress, and interfere with daily functioning, they may be indicative of psychosis.

The Understanding Psychosis guide has been developed to support clients who are experiencing symptoms of psychosis by providing clear, accessible psychoeducation. In addition to describing common symptoms and outlining evidence-based treatment approaches, the guide also explores psychological processes thought to maintain psychotic experiences.

What's inside

Introduction to psychosis.
Guidance for introducing and using the resource with clients.
Key references for learning more about psychosis.

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FAQs

Psychosis is a mental health condition in which a person experiences an altered reality perception, often involving hallucinations, delusions, or disorganized thinking.

Important maintenance factors often include interpreting triggers in unusual and threatening ways, attentional biases, avoidance, and the use of safety behaviors.

CBT is an effective therapy that focuses on addressing maladaptive thoughts and behaviors that maintain psychosis.

How This Resource Improves Clinical Outcomes

By using this resource in their clinical practice, therapists can:

Identify individuals who may be experiencing psychosis.
Help clients better understand their difficulties and what maintains them.
Explore treatment options.
Encourage hope and optimism about change.

References And Further Reading

McGrath, J. J., et al. (2015). Psychotic experiences in the general population: a cross-national analysis based on 31,261 respondents from 18 countries. JAMA psychiatry, 72(7), 697-705.

Beavan, V., et al. (2011). The prevalence of voice-hearers in the general population: a literature review. Journal of Mental Health, 20(3), 281-292.

National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health (UK). (2014). Psychosis and Schizophrenia in Adults: Treatment and Management. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (UK).

British Psychological Society. (2017). Understanding psychosis and schizophrenia. British Psychological Society Division of Clinical Psychology.

Pitt, L., et al. (2007). Researching recovery from psychosis: a user-led project. Psychiatric Bulletin, 31(2), 55-60.

Varese, F., et al. (2012). Childhood adversities increase the risk of psychosis: a meta-analysis of patient-control, prospective-and cross-sectional cohort studies. Schizophrenia bulletin, 38(4), 661-671.

Myin-Germeys, I., et al. (2003). Do life events have their effect on psychosis by influencing the emotional reactivity to daily life stress? Psychological Medicine, 33(2), 327-333.

Di Forti, M., et al. (2019). The contribution of cannabis use to variation in the incidence of psychotic disorder across Europe. The Lancet Psychiatry, 6(5), 427-436.

Fett, A. K. J., et al. (2019). Psychosis and urbanicity: a review of the recent literature from epidemiology to neurourbanism. Current opinion in psychiatry, 32(3), 232.

Morrison, A. P. (2001). The interpretation of intrusions in psychosis: an integrative cognitive approach to hallucinations and delusions. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 29(3), 257-276.

Morrison, A. P. (2017). A manualized treatment protocol to guide delivery of evidence-based cognitive therapy for people with distressing psychosis. Psychosis, 9(3), 271-281.

A Guide To Emotions

Understanding Psychosis

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Guide (PDF)

Overview

Why Use This Resource?