Heavy Meth Use Linked to Schizophrenia

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skillet

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THURSDAY, Nov. 10 (HealthDay News) -- Heavy methamphetamine use may increase the risk of developing schizophrenia, according to a new study.

It also confirmed previous research showing a possible link between marijuana dependence and schizophrenia.

People who were hospitalized for meth dependence and who had never been diagnosed with schizophrenia or psychotic symptoms at the start of the study had a roughly 1.5- to three-fold higher risk of later being diagnosed with schizophrenia than patients who used cocaine, alcohol or opioid drugs, study leader Dr. Russ Callaghan said in a CAMH news release.

The researchers also found that the increased risk of schizophrenia in methamphetamine users was similar to that of heavy users of marijuana.

"Perhaps repeated use of methamphetamine and cannabis in some susceptible individuals can trigger latent schizophrenia by sensitizing the brain to dopamine, a brain chemical thought to be associated with psychosis," Dr. Stephen Kish, senior scientist and head of CAMH's Human Brain Laboratory, said in the news release.
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Okay, but I didn't realize this was considered new information. I'm pretty sure quite a range of psychotropic substances can uncover latent tendencies for mental issues.
 
I would say it's typical to have derealization occur after stimulant use. Meth seems to be such a potent stimulant that phenomena that normally last a few days to a week, for most people, can last years.
 
^ From what I've seen in the ER, amphetamine psychosis seems to hit people who've been tweaking for 24+ hours without sleep. It's the lack of sleep (and essentially intrusion of dreams into waking life) combined with catecholamine hyperstimulation that causes the psychotic break, at least that's the theory I was taught.

The psychosis itself doesn't look much different from a schizophrenic having an acute episode. But only the former is usually hyperstimulated, and that's a dead giveaway.
 
I get that, when you start doing meth too often you "recede into your shell" so to speak, and basically alienate yourself from other people

but theres still that urge to be social and talk on meth, and so you start talking to your self... and thats when the crazy comes
 
MyDoorsAreOpen said:
^ From what I've seen in the ER, amphetamine psychosis seems to hit people who've been tweaking for 24+ hours without sleep. It's the lack of sleep (and essentially intrusion of dreams into waking life) combined with catecholamine hyperstimulation that causes the psychotic break, at least that's the theory I was taught.

The psychosis itself doesn't look much different from a schizophrenic having an acute episode. But only the former is usually hyperstimulated, and that's a dead giveaway.
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How long does it take for someone to recover from amphetamine-induced psychotic breaks? Do they just need some sleep, or is the damage more permanent?
 
Correlation is not causation.
It could be that people with latent or early-stage schizophrenia turn to meth and weed to help them more often.
I don't believe that this study showed anything more.
(Those with more knowledge on the topic than me feel free to correct me if I am wrong.)
 
JSPete said:
How long does it take for someone to recover from amphetamine-induced psychotic breaks? Do they just need some sleep, or is the damage more permanent?
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Depends entirely on comorbid factors, i.e. the person's underlying physical and mental health. Even for people in peak health, a psychotic episode is psychologically traumatic event that can be very hard to integrate.
 
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