﻿ Symptoms of Psychosis – Early Intervention Team

Symptoms of Psychosis

Psychosis can lead to changes in mood and thinking, and also lead to abnormal ideas.

So what are the symptoms?

What are the Symptoms?

In order to try and understand the experience of Psychosis it is useful to group together some of the more characteristic symptoms:

Confused thinking

Everyday thoughts become confused or don’t join up properly. Sentences are unclear or don’t make sense. A person may have difficulty concentrating, following a conversation or remembering things. Thoughts seem to speed up or slow down.

False beliefs

It is common for a person experiencing a Psychosis episode to hold false beliefs, known as delusions. The person is so convinced of their delusion that the most logical argument cannot make them change their mind. For example, someone may be convinced from the way cars are parked outside their house that they are being watched by the police or they may be convinced that they are under the control of a powerful person or force.


In Psychosis, the person sees, hears, feels, smells or tastes something that is not actually there. For example, they may hear voices which no one else can hear, or see things which aren’t there. Things may taste or smell as if they are bad or even poisoned.