Psychosis refers to a mental health condition in which a person’s thoughts and perceptions may make it hard for them to distinguish between what is real and what is not. This could include hearing or seeing something that isn’t really there. Some common symptoms of psychosis include:

• Hallucinations
• Delusions
• Confused thinking or muddled speech
• Social withdrawal, lack of motivation, and/or lack of speech

Risk for Psychosis refers to someone who may be in the early stages of developing a psychotic disorder. People may experience many of the symptoms of psychosis but in a lesser form and maintaining more insight. The majority of people who are identified as at risk for psychosis DO NOT go on to develop psychosis in the future. One way to help facilitate a positive outcome is to get help early.

How do you recognize if someone is at “risk?”

There are some warning signs for risk but none of them are perfect and all of them require context to understand what they may be conveying:

• Feeling something is not quite right that you can’t explain
• Hearing odd noises or voices mumbling or seeing things that others may not see
• Feeling as if your thoughts are strange or might not be your own
• Confusion about what is real or what is imaginary
• Trouble speaking clearly and getting your point across
• Feeling like you have special gifts or talents that no one else has
• Feeling that people are watching you or out to get you
• Declining interest in people, activities, and self-care
• Doing worse in school or at work

It is important to remember that even if you or a loved one is having these experiences, it does not mean that they have or will later have psychosis or schizophrenia (a disorder that is associated with psychosis). Many of these warning signs are related to other things, such as depression, anxiety, trauma, physical illness or injuries, or frequent drug and alcohol use. These experiences are more common than many people would think, and for some, they go away on their own. However, if you or a loved one is experiencing any of these early warning signs, it is useful to talk to a trusted mental-health professional.

First Episode psychosis refers to someone who has similar experiences to those described above but these have caused major disruptions to their life and/or they have felt that these experiences were real.

Currently services are at no cost to eligible Orange County residents. These services are funded by the OC Health Care Agency through the Mental Health Services Act.

Our screening services are shorter and determine if a client is eligible for a full assessment. The full assessment allows us to determine what kind of treatment and services are best for the client based on the experiences they share with us.

During the assessment the client will meet with a trained clinician from our team who will ask them questions about their mood, thoughts, and behavior. This is not treatment, but it will provide us with the information needed to see if treatment might be helpful and, if so, what kind of treatment. An assessment with our team is the first step to getting treatment.

You can obtain services by completing this survey to see if you are eligible. If you have questions, please contact our team at services@thrivetogetheroc.org.

All OC residents ages 12-25 are eligible for our initial screening. If you report experiences consistent with risk for psychosis upon screening you will be eligible for a more in-depth mental health assessment.

Providers of mental health services working with individuals who may be showing signs of risk for psychosis are also eligible for our peer-to-peer consultation services.