Alcohol addiction is a persistent problem in the UK. In the latest release by the Office of National Statistics, 10,048 people died from alcohol-specific causes.
Whilst death is not a certainty with heavy drinking, it can change your life in many ways. You’ll suffer from bad health, find your mental health suffering and likely cause damage to your relationships and everyday life.
The effect that alcohol has on your body and mind can be profound and scary. Psychosis will be something you have heard of – a disconnect from reality – and alcohol can have an impact on it.
You should know about the link between alcohol and psychosis, what the symptoms are, the risks to you and the available treatment.
Understanding Psychosis
Psychosis is when you suffer a disconnection from reality, meaning that what you are experiencing and perceiving is very different from everyone else. It is a broad term and a primary symptom in psychotic conditions such as brief psychotic disorder, schizophrenia, substance-induced psychotic disorder and schizoaffective disorder.
The symptoms that present when someone is suffering from psychosis are:
Hallucinations – this means when you see, hear or feel things that are not there.
Delusions – believing in things that aren’t true. Common delusions include believing other people are out to get you or that your thoughts are being controlled.
Disordered thinking – the other symptoms build up to make your thoughts and emotions confused. Ideas in your head race by quickly, and you make leaps, disordering your speech and attention as well.
These symptoms can have a great impact on your life. You may find it hard to trust people, become isolated, do poorly in school, lose your job and suffer from worsening mental health issues.
How Alcohol Affects the Brain
Your body absorbs alcohol quickly, and it reaches your brain after five minutes. It significantly affects your neurotransmitters, increasing dopamine and GABA levels – making you feel more euphoric but also acting as a sedative. It also slows down the release of glutamate, a hormone responsible for energy levels and brain activity.
All this combined means you become more sluggish, less capable of making good decisions, slur your speech and lead to confusion.
Alcohol can also have a major impact on your short and long-term mental health. Going through hangovers often can make you depressed and anxious as you never feel right. Chronic drinking will also change your brain chemistry, and if you once drank to escape feelings of depression and anxiety, eventually, alcohol will only make these feelings worse. This puts you in a vicious cycle that can lead to serious addiction.
Alcohol Withdrawal
Withdrawal is what your body goes through when you suddenly stop drinking. As well as the physical symptoms, this can have an impact on your brain. You may suffer from depression and anxiety or experience hallucinations and severe disorientation.
Alcohol-Induced Psychosis
Alcohol-induced psychosis is a condition that results from chronic heavy drinking. Along with suffering from hallucinations, delusions and paranoia, other symptoms include:
- Irritability
- Unable to think clearing
- More violent and aggressive
- Struggling to hold a conversation
Alcohol-induced psychosis is different from different forms of psychosis because it is directly related to alcohol use and not related to other mental health conditions. Schizophrenia is not caused by alcohol, but if you have it, you are more likely to develop a problem with drinking.
Having a problem with alcohol and psychosis together is uncommon, but it does happen. A Finnish study found that around 4% of people with a serious drinking problem experience alcohol-induced psychosis.
Alcohol-Induced Psychosis – Causes and Risk Factors
There are many ways having an alcohol dependency can lead to psychosis.
- Acute Alcohol Intoxication – this happens when you are drinking heavily. The psychosis is immediate and temporary, leading to hallucinations, confusion and impaired judgement. The effects fade once the alcohol has been metabolised.
- Chronic Alcoholic Hallucinosis – this is a more persistent form of psychosis, appearing if you have a chronic drinking problem. You will experience psychosis symptoms even when you are not drinking – suffering from auditory hallucinations and paranoia.
- Alcohol Withdrawal Psychosis – psychosis can be triggered by withdrawal. This happens as your brain isn’t able to deal with the sudden change, and it can be fatal.
Risk Factors
Alcohol-induced psychosis is not an inevitability, but some factors increase the risk of it occurring.
- Genetics – if you are genetically predisposed to developing psychosis (someone in your family has it), then you are more likely to suffer from it, too.
- Mental health history – if you have a history of mental health problems, drinking heavily will only make them worse, and these issues can develop into psychosis.
- Using other substances – combining alcohol with other substances can worsen the effects and increase the risk of psychosis occurring as substances like cocaine, ketamine, and LSD can trigger episodes.
Alcohol-Induced Psychosis: Diagnosis and Treatment
Only a medical professional should diagnose alcohol-induced psychosis. They can do this by performing several tests that include liver function tests, imaging scans and drug screening tests. Along with physical examinations, they can use these to see if anything else will explain your symptoms.
Most importantly, alcohol-induced psychosis can be diagnosed by knowing your alcohol use history. If hallucinations and delusions appear whilst intoxicated or during withdrawal, then this is an indication of the psychosis being induced by alcohol.
Once properly diagnosed, it can be treated effectively. Detoxification to end your alcohol dependency is critical. To treat your psychosis, anti-psychotic medication may be needed, and you can also receive medication to help during withdrawal.
Getting addiction treatment is vital. Beyond detox, you can take part in therapies such as group therapy and CBT as part of an individualised treatment plan that helps with both your addiction and the psychosis.
Professional help is a must, and when you get access to these resources, you’ll be able to better manage your alcohol-induced psychosis and receive support and care for as long as you need it.
Prevention and Support
Alcohol-induced psychosis is a serious condition that can alter your life forever. It is avoidable, and there are some steps you can take to increase the risk of prevention.
Early intervention – look out for the signs and act quickly before your situation worsens.
Moderate your drinking – the best thing you can do is get a handle on your drinking. Maybe you are not ready to stop completely, but start to set limits on how much and how often you drink.
Get healthy – eating a balanced diet and exercising regularly will help you feel better and reduce the risk of developing a problem with alcohol and psychosis.
If you think you can’t make the changes alone, there is plenty of support out there. Cassiobury Court is a drug and alcohol rehab that offers addiction treatment that is capable of dealing with your alcohol-induced psychosis.
Supporting meetings are also a great resource. It allows you the chance to connect with people who know what you are going through and can help you manage your drinking and psychosis.
There are plenty of online resources and helplines, too, including:
- Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) – https://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk/
- Change Grow Live – https://www.changegrowlive.org/
- Hub of Hope – https://hubofhope.co.uk/
Struggling with Alcohol Misuse? Reach Out Today
So, can alcohol cause psychosis?
Well, it can greatly increase the risk of it happening – it may trigger a temporary episode or leave you with having to manage a lifetime condition. What’s important is that you get the help you need through professional rehabilitation and support.
If you are looking for support with your mental health and other problems, Mind and the NHS are good resources.
Cassiobury Court is a private drug and rehab centre that can help with both your alcoholism and psychosis. For more information, contact us now at 0800 001 4070 or text HELP to 83222.
