Destigmatizing also has very positive outcomes for a lot of us living with psychosis (for me, a mood disorder with psychotic features; my dad was schizophrenic). When I started talking to my wife about my psychosis, it was really terrifying. But a lot of the terror of psychosis is in isolation; fear thrives in the dark. Intentional shared reality building helps me feel less fear when I hallucinate.
A friend also experienced psychosis (ultimately a brain tumour)—we shared the experience of growing up with a father who really loved us, but really struggled with his schizophrenia and ultimately also did harm. We talked about our own experiences with reality and about the nature of human sensation and perception.
I also have epilepsy, and hallucinations and delusions can be a part of how my auras and seizures manifest. A lot of people know about the seizure threshold; that is, every person has a threshold, beyond which they will have a seizure. Epilepsy is a chronically low seizure threshold, or one that is quickly met by a specific trigger.
You can think of psychosis the same way—everyone has their own threshold, beyond which they will experience some form of psychosis. The easiest way for the average modern person to experience this in real time is to be sleep deprived. Seen the hat man? Hallucination. This is perfectly normal! Brains seek patterns in uncertainty, and sleep deprivation makes the brain prone to mixing up or misinterpreting sensory signals.
Psychosis can be scary, primarily for the person experiencing it. If you think you're scared when someone is hallucinating or behaving erratically, imagine how they must feel to be experiencing that, how their actions make sense in context. You can ask yourself: What would I need to believe/feel like, in order for this action to make sense? You can often find a good starting place for connecting with the person experiencing psychosis.
You might see stimuli that could easily be misinterpreted (shadows, as a really basic example), notice behaviours that indicate physical discomfort (agitation is a common one), or observe where the person is looking or listen to what they're saying. While disorganized speech can be challenging to interpret, it is not meaningless. Don't try to "fact-check" (this can backfire terribly!) but instead ask about and acknowledge how they feel about what they're saying they believe to be true.
If someone believes they are being stalked or pursued in some way, telling them they aren't generally isn't going to help. Instead, acknowledge their very real fear and the feelings of paranoia they're experiencing. Help them do things to feel safe and secure, so there's a calm space for deescalating (or nonescalating). Provide support and if possible, ask the person what they need or what kind of support helps them at a time when they aren't in crisis. This can help especially if you have loved ones who experience recurring or chronic psychosis.
And as mentioned by prev, destigmatizing and getting information out about how we can support people who are experiencing psychosis lets us all connect about the human experience of sensing and interpreting our surroundings. Perception is imperfect! But it's fascinating how we all experience life differently.
jacobvanloon
gummygunk
blakekathryn
prguitarman
tangentwithtanner
