Induced psychosis occupies a special place among mental illnesses. This pathology is noted in people living with the mentally ill. A patient suffering from various forms of delirium can pass on his false ideas to loved ones. This is especially true for relatives. Others begin to believe in those ridiculous ideas that the patient expresses. In this case, doctors talk about induced delusional disorder in a healthy person.
Why are people being so suggestible? And how to get rid of such a psychosis? We will consider these issues in the article.
Medical history
The first induced delusional disorder was described in 1877 by the French psychiatrists Falre and Lasegue. They observed the same delusions in two patients, consisting in close family ties. In this case, one patient suffered from a severe form of schizophrenia, while the other was previously completely healthy.
This disease is called "double insanity." You can also come across the term "association-induced psychosis."
Pathogenesis
At first glance, it seems strange that a mentally ill person can instill delusional thoughts in his immediate environment. Why are healthy people susceptible to strange ideas? To understand this issue, it is necessary to consider the mechanism of development of pathology.
Specialists have long been investigating the causes of induced psychosis. Currently, psychiatrists distinguish two participants in the pathological process:
- Inductor delirium. In this capacity is a mentally ill person. Such a patient suffers from a true delusional disorder (e.g. schizophrenia).
- The recipient. This is a mentally healthy person, constantly communicating with a delusional patient and adopting his strange thoughts and ideas. Usually this is a close relative living together with a psychiatric patient and having a close emotional relationship with him.
It should be noted that not one person, but a whole group of persons can act as a recipient. In the history of medicine, cases of mass psychoses are described. Often, one sick person passed on his crazy ideas to a huge number of overly suggestible people.
Often, the inductor and the recipient communicate closely with each other, but at the same time lose their connection with the outside world. They cease to communicate with other relatives, friends and neighbors. This social isolation increases the risk of induced psychosis in a healthy family member.
Features of the personality of the inductor
As already mentioned, a mentally ill person acts as an inducer of delirium. Most often, such patients suffer from schizophrenia or senile dementia. Moreover, they enjoy great authority among relatives and have dominant and powerful character traits. This gives patients the opportunity to convey their distorted ideas to healthy people.
The following forms of delusional disorders in mentally ill can be distinguished:
- Megalomania. The patient is convinced of the great importance and exclusivity of his personality. He also believes that he has special unique talents.
- Hypochondria. The patient believes that he is sick with severe and incurable pathologies.
- The delirium of jealousy. The patient unreasonably suspects the partner of infidelity, and is constantly looking for confirmation of treason. Such patients can be aggressive and dangerous to others.
- Persecution mania. The patient with great distrust relates to others. He sees a threat to himself even in the neutral statements of other people.
The recipient always has the same type of delusional disorder as the inducer. For example, if a mentally ill person suffers from hypochondria, then over time his healthy relative begins to look for symptoms of nonexistent diseases.
Risk group
It should be noted that far from every person who is in close contact with delusional patients, induced psychosis develops. This pathology affects only some people who have certain traits of character. The following categories of people are at risk:
- with increased emotional excitability;
- overly susceptible and gullible;
- fanatically religious;
- superstitious;
- persons with a low development of intelligence.
Such people blindly believe any word of a sick person, which is an indisputable authority for them. They are very easy to mislead. Over time, they develop a mental disorder.
Symptomatology
The main symptom of induced psychosis is delusional disorder. First, such a violation manifests itself in the inductor, and then it is easily transmitted to the suggestible recipient.
More recently, a healthy person becomes anxious and suspicious. He repeats crazy ideas after the sick and sincerely believes in them.
In this case, doctors diagnose paranoid personality disorder. This violation does not apply to severe mental illness, but it is a borderline state between the norm and pathology.
An experienced psychiatrist can easily distinguish between an induced disorder in the recipient and true delirium in a sick person. It is characterized by the following features:
- The recipient sets out delusional ideas quite logically.
- A person has no confusion. He is able to prove and argue his thoughts.
- Auditory and visual hallucinations are extremely rare.
- The patient’s intelligence is not impaired.
- The patient clearly answers the doctor’s questions, oriented in time and space.
Diagnostics
Mental disorder cannot be confirmed by laboratory and instrumental methods. Therefore, the main role in the diagnosis is played by interviewing the patient and collecting an anamnesis. Induced mental disorder is confirmed in the following cases:
- If the inductor and the recipient have the same delirium.
- If a constant and close contact of the inductor and the recipient is detected.
- If the recipient was previously healthy, and he never had a mental disorder.
If both the inducer and the recipient are diagnosed with a serious mental illness (for example, schizophrenia), then the diagnosis is considered unconfirmed. True delusional disorder cannot be induced by another person. In such cases, doctors talk about simultaneous psychosis in two sick people.
Psychotherapy
In psychiatry, induced psychosis does not apply to pathologies requiring mandatory drug therapy. Indeed, strictly speaking, a person suffering from this form of the disease is not mentally ill. Sometimes it is enough for a while to separate the delirium inducer and the recipient, as all pathological manifestations instantly disappear.
Paranoid personality disorder is treated mainly with psychotherapeutic methods. An important condition is the isolation of the recipient from the delirium inducer. However, many patients experience this separation extremely hard. At this moment, they need serious psychological support.
Patients with induced delirium should regularly attend behavioral therapy sessions. This will help them learn how to properly communicate with the mentally ill and not perceive other people's delusional thoughts.
Drug treatment
Drug treatment of induced psychosis is rarely practiced. Drug therapy is used only with severe anxiety of the patient and persistent delusional disorders. The following drugs are prescribed:
- small antipsychotics - Sonapaks, Neuleptil, Teraligen;
- antidepressants - Fluoxetine, Velaxin, Amitriptyline, Zoloft;
- tranquilizers - "Phenazepam", "Seduxen", "Relanium".
These drugs have anti-anxiety effects. There are times when delusions disappear after the sedative effects of drugs on the psyche.
Prevention
How to prevent the occurrence of induced psychosis? Relatives of delusional patients are advised to periodically visit a psychotherapist. Living together with a psychiatric patient is a difficult test for a person. Amid such stress, even healthy people can develop various abnormalities. Therefore, it is important to remember that relatives of the mentally ill often need psychological help and support.
You should be critical of the statements and judgments of a sick person. One cannot blindly believe every word of a psychiatric patient. It is important to remember that in some cases, delusions can look very believable.
A person living with a patient needs to take care of his psyche. Of course, mentally ill people need serious care and attention from relatives. However, it is very important to distance oneself from the crazy ideas of a sick person. This will help to avoid induced mental disorders.