Psychosis cases rise in England as mental health epidemic spreads | Psychological health

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Cases of psychosis have risen over the past two years in England as an increasing number of people suffer from hallucinations and delusional thinking amid the stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic.

NHS data showed there was a 75% increase in the number of people referred to mental health services for their first suspected psychotic episode between April 2019 and April 2021.

The rise continued throughout the summer, with 12,655 cases recorded in July 2021, up 53% from 8,252 in July 2019.

Much of the increase has been observed over the past year, after the first national shutdown, according to data analyzed by the charity Rethink Mental Illness. More than 13,000 referrals were made in May 2021, up 70% from May before that when there were 7,813 referrals.

The charity is urging the government to increase investment in early intervention for psychosis to prevent further deterioration in people’s mental health that could take years to recover from.

She says the statistics provide some of the first concrete evidence pointing to the significant levels of distress the population has experienced during the pandemic.

A study earlier this month found that anxiety and depression worldwide increased significantly in 2020, with an estimated 76 million more cases of anxiety and 53 million more cases of major depressive disorder than would have been expected had Covid not hit. . The researchers said that women and young adults were disproportionately affected.

Psychosis can include seeing or hearing things that others don’t (hallucinations) and developing beliefs that are not based on reality (delusions), which can be very distressing. It can be a symptom of a mental illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depression, but psychosis can also be a one-time event, potentially resulting from a traumatic experience, extreme stress, or drug and alcohol abuse.

Despite the ongoing pressure on mental health services, Rethink Mental Health highlights the importance of rapid access to treatment to prevent further episodes of psychosis and reduce people’s risk of severe mental illness.

Gentle Guidelines For people with a suspected first episode of psychosis, they should receive an evaluation within two weeks. However, the charity fears that if the increase in referrals continues, more people will have to wait longer to get the vital treatment.

“Psychosis can have a devastating impact on people’s lives,” said Brian Dow, executive vice president of Rethink Mental Health. “Rapid access to treatment is vital to prevent further deterioration in people’s mental health from which it can take years to recover.”

“These high numbers of first episodes of suspected psychosis are cause for concern. We are now past the first deep shocks of this crisis, and it is of deep concern that the number of referrals remains very high. As the first presentations of psychosis typically occur in young adults, this sharp rise It raises additional concerns about the pressures the younger generation has faced during the pandemic.

“The pandemic has had a game-changing effect on our mental health and requires a revolutionary response. Additional funding for mental health and social care must go to frontline services to help meet the new demand, or else thousands of people could incur a catastrophic cost.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “It is critical that everyone gets the right support when they need it, and we are delivering the fastest expansion of mental health services in the history of the NHS, backed by an additional £2.3 billion annually by 2023/24, benefiting It has hundreds of thousands of people.

On top of that, we have invested an additional £500 million this year to help people whose mental health has been particularly affected by the pandemic. All NHS mental health providers have set up 24/7 emergency helplines, which have responded to nearly three million calls during the pandemic.”

‘My head advised me to deal with hearing voices’

Tom Dunning, 30, has a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder, social anxiety disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

“I was about 22 or 23 when I first started having symptoms of psychosis. It was pretty much overnight after I finished school that my head told me to deal with hearing voices. Hearing them was a daily occurrence and it made me feel scared of myself. Largely because I didn’t think anything was wrong, so I couldn’t tell anyone how I felt.

“I had bullying as a child and now I feel like my mental health was bullying me with voices asking me to do things. Everyone around me started noticing differences and knew something was wrong but I was afraid to admit it. Finally I saw my GP and this was It was the first time I thought I needed support, but it was also the first time I realized it was something I could access.”

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