Types of child psychosis and their causes

The Child psychosis It is a mental disorder in which a Alteration of thought and emotions, which makes the child lose contact with reality, being able to hear noise or see things that are not really happening (hallucinations) or believe things that are not true (delusions). In recent years, interest in the early detection of this type of disorders has increased to reduce or avoid, as far as possible, the consequences and suffering in the child's life and his family, since research indicates that An early intervention is associated with a better prognosis and a better long -term quality of life, that is, in its adult life. In this psychology-online article we show you the types of child psychosis and their causes, as well as some tips that can help you.

1. Types of child psychosis
2. Causes of child psychosis
3. Some tips for parents

Types of child psychosis

There are several disorders whether mental or not that can lead to a psychotic disorder in children and adolescents:

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia can be diagnosed at any age and is the main cause of psychotic disorders in adolescents and adults. Schizophrenia in children is characterized by the presence of positive psychotic symptoms (alterations of thought, delusions) and negative psychotic symptoms (affective flattening, anergy, thinking and speak slowly).

Children with psychosis seem to have less delusions and less catatonic symptoms, but usually present hallucinations, alterations of affective thinking and flattening.

Delirious disorder

It is a disorder that is characterized by the presence of hallucinations and delusions. People who have this disorder usually have delusions that are not strange, they could occur in real life, such as being persecuted, poisoned, among others. These delusions are usually related to a bad perception of certain experiences, that is, delirium could be an exaggeration of a real situation.

Schizoecctive disorder

It is a mental disorder that is characterized by persistent psychotic symptoms along with mood symptoms such as depression or bipolar disorder. Children or adolescents with this disorder usually experience hallucinations and delusions along with mania or depression symptoms (bipolar disorder). This disorder is the one with the greatest association with a worse prognosis in children.

Brief psychotic disorders

It is a short -term disorder that presents psychotic symptoms (hallucinations and delusions). These symptoms appear without prior notice and the episode lasts approximately 1 month.

Substance induced psychotic disorder

This disorder occurs when the adolescent takes legal or illegal substances in a way that produces psychosis. There are numerous substances that have been linked to the appearance of psychosis or a worsening of psychotic symptoms, some of these substances are:

• Alcohol: It is a common cause of psychotic episodes. It can occur as a result of chronic alcoholism, poisoning ..
• Marijuana: It has been shown that they favor the appearance of psychotic symptoms by reducing the psychosis threshold.
• Cocaine, hallucinogens are other substances that can favor the appearance of psychotic symptoms.

Other disorders that can cause psychosis are:

• Psychotic depression: A type of severe depression that occurs when depression has psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations and delusions. Between 50 and 60 % of children presenting this depression can develop bipolar disorder.
• Bipolar disorder: In some cases it can trigger psychosis since during the manic or depressive episode some psychotic symptoms may appear.

Causes of child psychosis

Many researchers believe that the cause of developing a psychotic disorder can be the combination of genetic, physical, environmental factors along with other risk factors.

The more common causes of psychotic disorders in children and adolescents are:

• Genetic factors: Some psychotic disorders occur in several members of the same family. Children and adolescents who have a family member with a psychotic disorder, such as schizophrenia, have more risk of developing psychosis. Although genetic predisposition is a risk factor does not mean that all those children who have a relative with a psychotic disorder will develop the disorder.
• Physical factors: Some neuroimaging studies that have examined the brain of people with psychotic disorders identified differences in brain structure and function. It is believed that neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin and glutamate play an important role in the development of these disorders. In addition, those children who have worse health or some chronic medical condition are more likely to develop psychosis.
• Environmental factors: Children and adolescents who have experienced negative life events, have lived in bad conditions or have not had a good support system are more risk of developing a psychotic disorder.

Risk factor's:

• Family history of mental disorders
• Alcohol consumption, marijuana, hallucinogens
• Infections in pregnancy or hypertension that affect the baby
• High levels of stress

Some tips for parents

In addition to going to a specialist there are a number of things you can do to help your child:

• It encourages participation In activities or physical exercise in a moderate way. It is better that at the beginning it will be accompanied by few people until they adapt.
• It is important to have some Low stress levels and perform relaxing activities. Spend a few minutes a day to breathe slowly and deeply with your child. In addition, perform physical activity and follow a healthy diet (fruit, vegetables ...) can also help.
• Keep a Good sleep routine. If your child has trouble sleeping or sleeps too much, talk to a specialist.
• There are times when your child may want to be alone or cannot join the conversations around them. It is normal that at some times you have trouble focusing your attention or doing certain activities, after a while your child will think clearly and act with "normality" again. It is important that at that time you try to speak with short and direct sentences that do not give rise to ambiguities, be kind and positive.

This article is merely informative, in psychology-online we have no power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Types of child psychosis and their causes, We recommend that you enter our category of neurological disorders.