Psychosis
Psychosis, a term often used interchangeably with schizophrenia, is arguably the most severe mental health problem. And yet, well-informed and skilled professional intervention can transform the position of many people with this diagnosis. The targeted training days here cover:
What is psychosis
Covering
- What are the psychoses
- Schizophrenia; the meaning of the word, its history (dementia praecox, Kraepelin, Bleuler, etc.) and how that impinges on modern thinking
- Incidence
- Symptoms, positive and negative
- Treatments: medication and psychosocial
- What it feels like to have delusions and hallucinations
- The risks that are and are not associated with it
Format
Mainly lecturing and discussion, with some experimential exercises. End of day quiz.
How to talk helpfully to people with delusions
Covering
- Why so few professionals are good at talking to people with delusions and why this is catastrophic
- The importance of avoiding (a) collusion and, equally important, (b) contradiction of delusional beliefs
- How to generate questions to ask
- How to listen in a way the does not betray disbelief
- Why it is important not to betray disbelief
- The three principles when working with delusions
- Best replies to the question “Do you believe me?” and why “I believe you believe it” is a poor reply
- The use of Socratic dialogue and the ‘floating of ideas’
Format
Mainly lecturing, discussion and exercises. End of day quiz.
Note
This day covers the title of the day; see separate day for case conceptualisation, goal-setting and treatment planning.
How to help people to cope with delusions and hallucinations
Covering
- How to identify what the person already uses that works reasonably well for them
- How to sharpen up the strategies they already use
- How to get those strategies used more often
- Introducing new strategies
- What are the most effective strategies for coping with delusions and hallucinations
- How to convey them to service users
- How to check on and improve their use
Format
Mainly lecturing, discussion, video demonstrations and exercises. End of day quiz.
Note
This day covers the title of the day; see separate day for case conceptualisation, goal-setting and treatment planning.
Intervening with disturbed adolescents
This is about intervening with ‘at risk’ adolescents, before an overt psychotic episode. Although some people advocate that you should conserve your resources to intervene after a first episode (for fear of wasting resources on people who may never have a psychotic episode), this day takes the view that by intervening earlier you may avoid that first episode and the worst you can do is to help adolescents who are in need of help anyway. It uses a clear, problem solving approach to relevant problems.
Covering
- How to choose who to help, if you can’t help everyone
- Engaging with the person
- Putting problems in solvable format, and solving them, covering relationship problems, (un)employment and school problems, and problems of agitation
- Measuring success
- Case studies
Relapse prevention
Interestingly, carers and client may both be good at predicting relapse and, with proper guidance may be able to do so with good reliability. Developing this ability and allying it to planned interventions when relapse is predicted can have obvious major benefits for people prone to psychotic episodes.
Covering
- Spotting imminent relapse: identifying the person’s relapse signature
- Intervention measures: for the person
- Intervention measures: from carers
- Intervention measures: from professionals
- Firming up the system: learning from relapses
This day covers the title of the day; see separate day for case conceptualisation, goal-setting and treatment planning.