Marco_Piunti / Getty Images
What is a psychotic break?
A psychotic break triggers when a person loses touch with reality due to a decline in their mental well-being.
It can signal an underlying medical condition or a reaction to a stressful or traumatic event.
Marco_Piunti / Getty Images
Its also referred to aspsychosis or a psychotic episode.
Medication
Severalantipsychotic medicationshave been developed for the treatment of psychosis.
Antipsychotics aim to regulate dopamine in your brain.
Dopamine plays a prominent role in triggering psychosis.Serotonin can also be involved.
Glutamate and the NMDA receptor are also thought to play an important role.
Antipsychotics could either be first-generation (sometimes called typical) or second-generation (sometimes called atypical).
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is often recommended in combination with medication for the treatment of psychosis.
They are likely to do or say things that are out of character and could be hurtful to you.
However, your support through and after the episode is crucial.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).Fact sheet: first-episode psychosis.
National Library of Medicine.Psychosis.
2015;41(3):687-697.
National Alliance on Mental Illness.
Early psychosis and psychosis.
Byrne P.Managing the acute psychotic episode.BMJ.
2007;334(7595):686-692.
Chokhawala K, Stevens L.Antipsychotic medications.
StatPearls Publishing; 2022.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).Understanding psychosis.