Can drug use cause schizophrenia or related conditions, such as schizoaffective disorder?
Schizophrenia is a mental health disorder that is partly genetic and partly caused by environmental factors. It is possible that drug use can exacerbate mental illness. Mental illness is one of the social consequences of drug use and drug abuse.
A person may suffer from schizophrenia, yet they are still functional. After engaging in substance use, their condition worsens to a point where it interferes with everyday life, leading to a formal diagnosis by a psychiatrist.
Can drug abuse cause schizophrenia, or conversely, does schizophrenia lead to drug addiction? These are difficult questions to answer.
It is clear that many people with mental health issues use drugs recreationally with the intention of self-medicating their symptoms. A person with a mental disorder who self-medicates with addictive drugs can develop a substance use disorder.
On the other hand, a psychotic episode caused by a bad drug experience with cannabis, LSD, psilocybin, cocaine, or methamphetamine may lead to the development of a mental health condition that was previously below the threshold of detection.
The media has promoted cannabis use as safe and therapeutically useful in recent years. However, the fact is that cannabis can cause serious mental health problems, particularly for people who are already at risk.
We must be very careful with how we allow social acceptance of street drugs to progress. Marijuana is a drug that is known to be harmful to developing brains, causing permanent short-term memory loss and a reduction in motivation.
In addition to altering brain development in people under the age of 25, cannabis has the potential to trigger psychotic episodes and to exacerbate latent mental illness. Cannabis use can lead to life-long mental illness struggles for some individuals.
How is drug-induced schizophrenia treated?
When a person presents to a mental health facility with a substance-induced psychotic disorder or substance-induced psychosis, they are typically categorized as having a dual diagnosis. A dual diagnosis includes both a diagnosis of a substance use disorder and a co-occurring disorder.
Upon initial evaluation in the emergency room or emergency psych department, the patient may be given an antipsychotic medication, such as Haldol, to relieve acute psychotic symptoms. How can the facility be certain that the patient has true schizophrenia symptoms or if it is a drug-induced psychosis that will fully resolve?
Often, the only way to distinguish between a psychotic experience caused by drugs, such as cocaine, amphetamine, or methamphetamine, and chronic conditions, such as schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder, is to give the patient time. Stimulant psychosis caused by meth or cocaine addiction will resolve when the patient is drug free and is able to rest.
If a person experiencing delusions and hallucinations appears to be a danger to themselves or others, they may be Baker Acted, which means they will be subject to involuntary commitment to a psych ward. If the problem was caused by persistant and excessive drug use, then part of the dual diagnosis treatment will include addiction treatment.
Depending on the full assessment of the psychiatrist, the patient may be continued on an antipsychotic drug, or they may receive other medical treatment and therapy. It is important to distinguish between drug-induced psychosis, schizophrenia, and schizoaffective disorder.
How is schizoaffective disorder different from schizophrenia?
Schizoaffective disorder has similar symptoms to schizophrenia. The patient may have a break from reality, where they suffer from unusual delusions.
For example, the patient may be paranoid, believing that people are out to get them. They may also have hallucinations, such as auditory hallucinations, hearing voices in their head.
Schizoaffective disorder differs from schizophrenia in that the patient will also exhibit symptoms of a mood disorder, such as bipolar disorder. In addition to the distressing symptoms of schizophrenia, the schizoaffective patient also may suffer from manic episodes and depressive episodes.
According to the American Psychiatric Association, schizoaffective disorder is often misdiagnosed or missed by doctors. In order to get optimal treatment, it is important that psychiatrists make the diagnosis carefully so schizoaffective patients are not misdiagnosed.
Substance abuse can obscure the proper diagnosis of mental disorders. Drug addictions, such as heroin addiction, can cause behavior that exacerbates or hides positive symptoms and negative symptoms of psychotic disorders.
Why is it so important to identify when a patient exhibits symptoms of schizoaffective disorder? Since the condition involves symptoms of a mood disorder, it presents additional risks of self-harm.
For example, when the patient is in a manic episode, the manic thoughts and behavior may interact with psychotic delusions, leading to dangerous, risky behavior. The compulsive drug-seeking behavior of addiciton further complicates the situation.
When the patient is in a depressive state, they may be at risk for suicidal thoughts. Active suicidal ideations can lead to a suicide attempt, so it is critical that psychiatrists diagnose patients carefully and treat them accordingly.
How can I learn more about mental illness and how drugs may cause schizophrenia?
Drug addiction and schizoaffective disorder or schizophrenia are often seen together. The interaction of mental illness and addiction is complex. Making a proper diagnosis can take multiple psychiatric visits and time to see how each symptom progresses.
Our top podcasts on recovery on recovery provide insight into drug addiction issues as well as information on many tools of recovery. We also discuss mental illness and how it affects and interacts with substance use disorders.
Additionally, we have many articles on our website regarding the subjects of mental health and addiction recovery. Please feel free to make use of these resources to learn more about these subjects.
We appreciate your time visiting our websites and podcasts on recovery and mental health. Please contact us with the contact page on this website to let us know what you think of our podcast episodes and blog posts.
If you would like to read or hear more discussion on the topic of schizophrenia, addiction, and drug abuse, please let us know. Additionally, if you are interested in learning more about dual diagnosis treatment in the inpatient and outpatient settings, please inform us of this as well.
