Psychosis refers to the experience of hallucinations and/or delusions. Psychotic experiences range from short-lived symptoms that are not fully believed through to persistent severe symptoms that characterise psychotic illnesses as schizophrenia. It is well established that enduring psychotic illnesses such as schizophrenia have worse physical health than the general population, and are at an increased risk of developing long-term physical health conditions such as diabetes and heart disease. This may be due to unhealthy lifestyle behaviours, such as a lack of physical activity and smoking. Such risk factors begin early in first-episode psychosis and even before the first episode. However, the causal relationship between poor physical health and psychosis is not fully understood. We think poor physical health and psychosis may occur independently of each other, but are both related to earlier more common mental health difficulties, such as depression and anxiety.
Not everyone who experiences mental health difficulties will go on to develop psychosis or physical health problems. For those who do, recovery is possible. Medication and supportive relationships are known to help with recovery, however less is known about the role of romantic relationships specifically.
This research project aims to explore how these factors interact over time within the ALSPAC dataset.