Depressive Psychosis: Symptoms & Causes

What Is Depressive Psychosis?

When someone with unipolar depression, known as major depression, has accompanying psychosis, it’s called depression with psychosis or psychotic depression. Some research suggests that up to 50% of people with nonpsychotic depression might experience depression with psychosis at some point (note that this is the high-end range, and many of this group are in the geriatric population). A more typical range is that around 15 – 18% of people with depression will eventually express psychotic features.  

Can you go into psychosis from depression?

While it’s more common to see psychotic features with other mental health conditions such as bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, or a combination of the two like schizoaffective disorder, major depression can cause psychosis as well. However, it isn’t fully understood why some people with depression experience psychosis and others don’t.

Symptoms of Depressive Psychosis

Depression with psychosis often begins with typical depressive symptoms, including:

• Difficulty sleeping
• Suicidal thoughts or attempts
• Social withdrawal
• Low motivation
• Lack of energy

When experiencing psychosis, the depression symptoms generally require immediate medical attention and in extreme cases, sometimes even hospitalization.

The symptoms of depression psychosis can include:

• Seeing things that aren’t there (hallucinations)
• False beliefs that are often based on fear or paranoia (delusions) rather than reality
• Jumping from one topic to another (disordered thinking)
• Speaking incoherently
• Difficulty concentrating or thinking clearly
• Having inappropriate emotional responses

An episode of psychosis requires immediate medical attention, as you may be at risk of self-harm or of causing harm to others.

Diagnosing Depressive Psychosis

Depression psychosis is not a standalone diagnosis in the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5-TR). Still, it is listed as a subtype under major depressive disorder.

With depression psychosis, you’d have to meet the criteria for major depressive disorder first. You must experience five or more of the following symptoms in the same 2-week timeframe. In addition, 1 of the symptoms must include the first or second symptom.

• Depressed mood most of the day
• Little to no pleasure in most activities
• Significant weight loss or weight gain
• Appetite changes
• Irritability
• A slowing down of thoughts and a decrease in movement
• Fatigue or loss of energy
• Feelings of worthlessness
• Inability to think or concentrate
• Recurrent thoughts of death or suicide

In addition to meeting the criteria for major depressive disorder, you must also have symptoms of psychosis, such as hallucinations, delusions, or paranoia. If you’ve experienced a psychotic episode, it’s essential for your doctor to rule out other mental health conditions such as bipolar disorder or schizophrenia before getting a depression diagnosis.

What Causes Depressive Psychosis?

Much like the causes of depression, there’s no one single known cause for depression and psychosis, but there are links to potential causes and risk factors.

• Brain chemical imbalance: It’s widely believed that a chemical imbalance in the brain might play a role in depressive psychosis (although we haven’t yet found the exact cause).
• Genetics: Like the brain chemical imbalance, we also haven’t yet identified a specific gene linked to depression and psychosis. However, it is known that when there’s a family history of psychotic depression, someone has a higher risk of developing the condition themselves.
• Childhood trauma: Some people who grow up in traumatic environments are at higher risk of developing depression later in life.
• Gender: Women are more likely to experience depressive psychosis.
• Stress: Some research points to stress levels (and more pointedly, cortisol levels) as potential contributors to depressive psychosis.
• Age: Finally, depression and psychosis affect the senior population at higher rates than middle-aged or young adults.

Treatment for Depressive Psychosis

When it comes to how to treat depression with psychosis, any episode of psychosis should be treated as a medical emergency. During a psychotic crisis, many people can greatly benefit from an in-patient stay in a mental health facility where they can be safe and doctors can stabilize the symptoms. Currently, there’s no FDA-approved form of medication used to treat depressive psychosis.

Medication

That said, depression medication is one way to treat psychotic depression. If someone with depression psychosis is already on an antidepressant, a doctor may add an antipsychotic medication to relieve any psychotic symptoms.

In cases of psychotic depression, combining an antidepressant with an antipsychotic can be much more effective than one or the other when used alone.

Some common combinations of antidepressants with antipsychotics are:

• Effexor (Venlafaxine) with Seroquel (quetiapine)
• Zoloft (Sertraline) with Zyprexa (olanzapine)
• Prozac (Fluoxetine) with Zyprexa (olanzapine)

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

Electroconvulsive therapy, or ECT, is another psychotic depression treatment option. ECT uses electrical currents to produce a mild seizure in the brain. This seizure changes the levels of the chemicals in the brain that cause psychosis. Because of the intense nature of this treatment, ECT can only be administered by a psychiatrist or doctor in a hospital setting.

While there’s not as much research regarding the effectiveness of ECT therapy for depression, some studies show promise of high efficacy. For example, in one particular study, ECT showed a remission rate of 95%.

In addition, for the older population who may not tolerate the medication well, ECT might be the best form of treatment.

Can Depressive Psychosis Be Cured?

You’re not alone if you have depression and feel like you might have psychotic episodes, including hallucinations or delusions. The first step is getting a formal diagnosis from a licensed mental health care provider.

Once you have a diagnosis of depression and psychosis, you can work with a psychiatrist or therapist to determine the best course of treatment. Treatment can include a combination of medication, ECT, or both. In addition, psychotherapy will likely be an essential component of treatment.

When effective and proper treatment is implemented, the long-term prognosis for someone with psychotic depression is good. While many people do well with medication management alone, others may need a more intensive approach that includes electroconvulsive therapy. Both treatments can effectively manage some of the most severe symptoms of depression with psychosis.

Although treatments are often successful, some medications can also have side effects, including:

• Drowsiness
• Dizziness
• Trouble sleeping
• Weight gain or weight loss
• Short-term memory loss

For some people, though, the possible side effects can be minor compared to the potential for self-harm or harming others during psychotic, severe episodes.

Get Professional Help with Talkspace

If you or your loved one shows signs of depression and psychosis, don’t hesitate to contact a healthcare provider as soon as possible. Recovery is an achievable goal with the proper treatment.

If you’re looking for mental and behavioral health help but aren’t sure where to start, consider Talkspace. Our online therapy platform makes therapy simple, affordable, and convenient. You can get the help you need in managing depressive psychosis so you can learn to manage your condition. You don’t have to go on struggling — help is out there, and Talkspace can ensure you get it.