by Dr. Deborah Bauers

Created on: February 27, 2009   Last Updated: January 04, 2012

Psychosis and neurosis are two psychological terms that are often used incorrectly in contemporary society. You may a young person exclaim, "My mother is so neurotic! She just doesn't know when to stop harping."  Neither is it uncommon for an individual's angry outburst to be described as "going all psychotic." But psychosis and neurosis are real mental health conditions that are painful for the those who struggle with them and easily misunderstood by friends and family.

Exaggerated statements that randomly use diagnostic terms incorrectly add to the already challenging complexity of understanding the distinctions between their various symptoms. In reality, there is a vast difference between being neurotic and psychotic. In fact, many normally functioning individuals have some form of mild neurosis. Psychosis is much more serious and those who are diagnosed as psychotic have a severe psychiatric disorder and may pose a danger to themselves or others.

"Psychosis" is a term that comes from the field of psychiatry. It is a state of mind in which an individual experiences a break with reality. It is not a mental illness by itself, but it a descriptor that is often applied to more severe forms of mental illness. A schizophrenic may experience psychotic episodes in which he hears and see things that are not real. "Psychosis" can also be used to describe the mental state of an individual who experiences a severe drug reaction that causes auditory and visual hallucinations. The elderly sometimes experience psychosis as a part of mental illnesses like Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease.

Psychosis can be a temporary state of mind or a permanent feature of mental illness. Although society sometimes uses the word "psychotic" loosely, in the same way it might use the phrase "losing it," it is not a term that should be applied to an individual just because he is extremely angry or unwilling to listen to reason. Psychosis is a serious form of psychological distress during which an individual is incapable of acting on his own behalf. Psychotic individuals are hospitalized and treated with antipsychotics to help control irrational thoughts and hallucinations that generally are a part of their mental status. In a court of law, pschosis can result in a ruling of incompetency and either temporary or permanent insanity.

"Neurosis" is a term that is being scrutinized closely

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>