A new study demonstrates that far more people are able to fully recover from psychosis than typically thought—and that many can do so without antipsychotic drugs.
The researchers followed 28 people for 10 years after their first episode of psychosis, documenting the road to recovery along the way.
They used a strict definition of recovery, which involved remission of psychosis symptoms for at least two years, as well as a return to functioning as indicated by employment, socializing, and other metrics. Even with this strict definition, by the 10-year mark, 14 people (50%) met the criteria for full recovery. Twenty people (71%) met the looser definition of “remission” at the 10-year mark. And half of those who recovered (7 people) had stopped taking antipsychotics.
Much of this recovery began early, too, with 55% meeting a “clinical recovery” benchmark by year 4.
“Consistent with prior research, our findings indicate that a significant number of individuals … experience symptom remission within the initial year of illness. For some, this remission leads to sustained clinical recovery, even without the use of continued antipsychotic medication,” the researchers write.
The study was conducted by Anne-Kari Torgalsbøen, Christine Mohn, Frank Larøi, and Nikolai Czajkowski at the University of Oslo, Norway. It was published in Frontiers in Psychiatry.
This finding is consistent with previous research showing that antipsychotic drugs worsen, rather than improve, outcomes in first-episode psychosis. Other studies have found similar poor outcomes for those “at risk” of psychosis who take the drugs. Ultimately, those who use the drugs long-term have worse outcomes, even after accounting for baseline severity and other factors. Indeed, those who reduce or discontinue the drugs are more than twice as likely to recover than those who continue using antipsychotics. Those who take the most drugs for the longest period have the worst outcomes, including higher mortality rates.
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A most curious way to define remission from psychosis: 2 years. Psychosis, the word itself can only be described in subjective terms. It boggles the mind how one can distinguish between a psychotic state and every other state a person can be in. And what about the negative symptamology. When they have their greedy hooks in you, anything goes.
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It’s the same quarter / third recovery statistics that it always has been & that psychiatry acknowledges.
Instead of the Deeply Ideological & Polarised Anti / Critical / Pro / Alternative Psychiatry / Pharma War, i think that everyone should come together in creating a better society for all people – whether they recover from psychosis or don’t.
i’m Agnostic around all this area now – i know all the current argument – i spent 8 years in severe / florid psychosis – a year in high secure units – i am on an anti psychotic medication & it helps, i have very low functioning. i wanted an integration of Open Dialogue / Family Therapy, Jungian / Depth Psychology & Healing Homes with front end services. i think that a lot of people are blocking genuine progress in all these areas from all sides of the debate / War / Argument.
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