Stimulant Psychosis
What is it?
Stimulant psychosis is a psychotic disorder that appears in some people who use stimulant drugs. The symptoms of stimulant psychosis are shared largely with the symptoms of organic psychosis, including hallucinations, delusions, thought disorder, and, in extreme cases, catatonia. Physical symptoms of prolonged stimulant abuse or acute overdose tend to accompany these psychotic symptoms in cases of stimulant psychosis (but not organic psychosis). These additional symptoms may include aggression, arrhythmia, dilated pupils, diarrhea, hypertension, hyperthermia, nausea, rapid breathing, restlessness, seizures, sleep deprivation, tremor, and vomiting. Methamphetamine is well known to cause psychosis, typically when abused chronically or in high doses. Stimulant psychosis can manifest in a number of ways:
Hallucinations:
Auditory - This is the false perception of sound and the most frequent type of hallucination. Most frequently the user "hears voices." Command hallucinations are “voices” that may issue commands for violence to others.
Visual - Seeing a person, object or animal that does not exist in the environment.
Olfactory - This is the false perception of smelling odors that are not present in the environment.
Tactile - This is a false perception of the sense of touch, often of something on or under the skin.
Gustatory - A false perception of the sense of taste.
Delusions:
Persecution - The individual feels threatened and believes that others intend to harm him in some way. For example, the user thinks that the CIA intends to kill him.
Grandeur - The individual has an exaggerated feeling of importance, power or knowledge. For example, a user thinks that he is in control of the state.
Reference - The individual thinks that unrelated events or happenings are somehow connected to him or her, usually in a negative way. For example, a user watching TV thinks the news broadcaster is trying to get a message to him.
Being controlled - The individual believes certain objects or persons have control over his/her behavior. For example, the user believes the president of the United States has control over his behavior.
Somatic delusions - The individual believes his/her body or parts of the body are changing or being distorted. The user believes his brain is rotting.
Paranoia:
The individual has extreme suspicion of others, their actions or perceived intentions. For example, a user sees a duck on the river and thinks the police have placed a camera in the duck to watch him.
Obsessions:
Compulsion or repetitive behaviors are manifestations of chronic meth use. Users may become obsessed or perform repetitive tasks such as cleaning, assembling and disassembling objects or washing hands several times in a 15 minute period. Other repetitive tasks include formication, grinding of teeth, and pulling out hair.
Haldol Medication For Psychosis:
Haldol is effective in the treatment of psychosis, however it has a number of unpleasant and dangerous side effects. Common side effects include anticholinergic manifestations (dry mouth, blurred vision, urinary retention and constipation), nausea, gastrointestinal upset, skin rash, sedation, orthostatic hypotension, photosensitivity, decreased libido, gynecomastia, weight gain, extrapyramidal symptoms (pseudoparkinsonism, akinesia, akathisia, dystonia, oculogyric crisis), tardive dyskinesia, and neuroleptic malignant syndrome. It is very important that the nurse be very familiar with the action and side effects of haldol.
Additional Information on Haldol
