Psychosis can be frightening, confusing, isolating, or hard to explain. It can involve experiences such as hearing or seeing things that others do not, feeling very suspicious or unsafe, holding beliefs that others do not share, or finding that thoughts and speech become difficult to organise. These experiences are not a personal failure. They are a reason to seek careful, respectful support.
This page offers general mental health information about psychosis and schizophrenia. It is not a diagnosis, crisis service, or substitute for personal medical advice. If experiences are new, intense, persistent, or affecting daily life, it is important to speak with a GP, psychiatrist, psychotherapist, psychologist, community mental health team, or another qualified mental health professional.
When to seek urgent help
Seek urgent professional help if someone feels at risk of harming themselves or another person, is unable to care for basic needs, is very frightened or confused, is not sleeping for long periods, is rapidly deteriorating, or has recently given birth and is showing signs of possible postpartum psychosis. If there is immediate danger, call local emergency services. In Ireland, call 112 or 999.
What psychosis can involve
Psychosis is a broad term rather than one single diagnosis. It can happen in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, severe depression, postpartum illness, substance-related states, medical or neurological conditions, trauma-related states, and severe stress. A careful assessment matters because treatment should fit the person, the context, the level of risk, and what may be causing or maintaining the experiences.
- Hallucinations, such as hearing voices or seeing, feeling, smelling, or tasting things others do not.
- Delusions or strongly held beliefs that others find hard to understand.
- Confused, racing, blocked, or disorganised thinking and speech.
- Withdrawal, loss of motivation, emotional flattening, anxiety, depression, trauma reactions, or sleep disruption.
- Distress in relationships, work, study, daily routines, identity, or a sense of trust in the world.
Treatment: medication, psychotherapy and support
Many guidelines recommend antipsychotic medication together with psychological and social interventions for first-episode or acute psychosis. Medication can often be needed for some time, and for some people for longer, especially when symptoms are severe, recurrent, dangerous, very distressing, or returning after previous episodes. Medication decisions should be made with a qualified prescriber, reviewed regularly, and balanced with side effects, physical health, preferences, and goals.
Psychotherapy can also be very effective, often in combination with medication and practical support. In some situations, and with careful assessment, shared decision-making, and regular monitoring, psychotherapy may be the main or stand-alone long-term treatment. This is most safely considered when the person is stable enough for outpatient work, risk is low, there is a clear care plan, and there is a willingness to review medication if symptoms, distress, sleep, or functioning worsen.
How psychotherapy can help
Therapy for psychosis is not about arguing a person out of their experience. It can help someone reduce distress, make sense of voices or unusual beliefs, notice triggers, strengthen sleep and daily structure, work with trauma or shame, improve communication, rebuild trust, plan for relapse prevention, and reconnect with values, relationships, study, work, or creativity.
Approaches discussed in guidelines include cognitive behavioural therapy for psychosis and family intervention. Other therapeutic work may focus on communication, meaning, mentalisation, relationships, emotion regulation, self-understanding, recovery, and the person’s own language for what has happened. The approach should be collaborative, respectful, and paced.
Psychosis therapy in Dublin and online
Dr Jonathan Haverkampf offers psychotherapy and counselling in Dublin and online. If psychosis-related experiences, unusual beliefs, voices, medication questions, recovery after an episode, or relationship strain are part of what you are facing, you can read about psychotherapy and counselling, find help for mental health, or make an appointment.
Related information on this site
- A Beautiful Mind and Mental Health: Identity, Psychosis and Support
- Effective Group CBT for Social Anxiety in First-Episode Psychosis: Results of Randomized Controlled Trial
- New Study Reveals: Childhood Brain Morphometry Predicts Future Risk of Psychosis, Depression, and Anxiety
- Genuine Recovery from Psychosis and Schizophrenia
- Communication-Focused Therapy® (CFT) for Psychosis
- Schizophrenia and its symptoms
- Aripiprazole and Psychotherapy in the Treatment of Psychotic Bipolar Disorder
- Psychosis and Schizophrenia (1) Christian Jonathan Haverkampf – common mental health conditions
- Haverkampf CJ Treatment-Resistant Schizophrenia and Psychosis J Psychiatry Psychotherapy Communication 2016 Dec 31 5(4) 112-123
- Treatment of Psychosis and Schizophrenia
- Computer Programs to model Psychosis
- Mentalization and Communication in the Psychotherapy of Psychosis (1) Christian Jonathan Haverkampf
- Post partum Psychosis: You are not broken
- Psychopharmacological Frontiers (1)
Related topics
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Trauma and PTSD
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Mental Health Topics
- Moderated Discussion Board
Outside expert sources
- HSE: psychosis symptoms
- HSE: psychosis treatment
- NICE guideline CG178: psychosis and schizophrenia in adults
- NHS: treatment for psychosis
- NIMH: schizophrenia
- WHO: schizophrenia fact sheet
- WHO mhGAP: duration of antipsychotic treatment after a first psychotic episode
Page last reviewed: May 2026.
