How common is psychosis?
3% of population – at some point in their lives.
I.e. psychosis is common. Schizophrenia affects about 1% of the general population, bipolar disorder affects about 1-2% of the general population and major depression affects about 5-10% of the general population.
Some of these people will have both e.g. BPD and depression. But if you put them all together, it is more than 2%.
In this article we will expand on how common is psychosis. Let’s start with some basics first.
What is psychosis?
Put simply, psychosis is a condition of the mind broadly defined as a loss of contact with reality. It causes people to perceive or interpret things differently from those around them. This might involve hallucinations or delusions.
The two main symptoms of psychosis are:
- Hallucinations – where a person hears, sees and, in some cases, feels, smells or tastes things that aren’t there; a common hallucination is hearing voices
- Delusions = false beliefs – i.e. where a person believes things that, when examined rationally, are untrue – for example, thinking your next door neighbour is planning to kill you.
The combination of hallucinations and delusional thinking can often severely disrupt perception, thinking, emotion, and behaviour.
Experiencing the symptoms of psychosis is often referred to as having a psychotic episode.
So. How common is psychosis? And who gets it?
The prevalence of on-going psychosis across all ages and populations in the UK is above 2%. I.e. almost everyone will know someone with it.
Psychosis is most likely to occur in young adults and is quite common. In fact around 3% of people will experience a psychotic episode in a lifetime. Most make a full recovery from the experience. But in 30%, it will persist.
But psychosis can happen to anyone – any age. Fortunately psychosis is extremely uncommon in children. Men and women are equally affected. 20% of homeless people have psychosis, showing how more severe episodes can affect your life.
An episode of psychosis is treatable, and it is possible to recover. Onset at a younger age correlates with poorer outcome, although early treatment leads to better results.
25% of people who develop psychosis will never have another episode, another 50% may have more than one episode but will be able to live normal lives. Though some people who develop psychosis may need ongoing support and treatment throughout their lives.
What causes psychosis?
Psychosis is not a single disease itself. It is a syndrome – this means a group of common symptoms – that are either part of, or triggered by, other conditions.
It’s sometimes possible to identify the cause of psychosis as a specific mental health condition, such as:
- Schizophrenia – a condition that causes a range of psychological symptoms, including hallucinations and delusions
- Bipolar disorder – a mental health condition that affects mood; a person with bipolar disorder can have episodes of depression (lows) and mania (highs)
- Severe depression – some people with depression also have symptoms of psychosis when they’re ver.y depressed
- Psychosis can also be triggered by traumatic experiences, stress; or physical conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease, a brain tumour; or due to drug misuse or alcohol misuse.
How often a psychotic episode occurs and how long it lasts can depend on the underlying cause.
For example, schizophrenia can be long term, but most people can make a good recovery and about a quarter only have a single psychotic episode. Episodes related to bipolar disorder usually resolve, but may recur.
Summary
We have described how common is psychosis. It affects more than 3% of the population – i.e. surprisingly common. We hope this has been helpful.
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