How to Help Someone Suffering from Psychosis
A person suffering from psychosis can experience hallucinations, delusions, disorientation, and may talk in ways that don’t make sense. This can be deeply distressing—not only for the person experiencing these symptoms but also for those witnessing an episode. The person may be at risk of hurting themselves or others.
Psychotic breaks can have many causes—episodes can be brought about by trauma, injury, poisoning, postpartum, or mental disorders. Some are short-term, and some are due to long-term conditions.
What’s important for you to know is there is professional emergency help available. Catholic Charities has a Mobile Crisis Team, Designated Crisis Responder Team, and Diversion Outreach Team—all trained professionals with mental health experience who can connect with individuals right at the scene. Our teams are knowledgeable of what support is available to the client right in the moment—and can connect them to the resources they need. If our team sees that a client needs emergency medical attention to diagnose the cause of the psychosis—whether medical, related to substance abuse, and/or a mental health condition—they are equipped with compassionate de-escalation skills. Very often, our teams help clients choose to voluntarily receive the help they need for their health and safety.
Our crisis programs provide an array of services to help walk our clients through their struggles, whether they need medical attention, short-term case management, or long-term support. Our crisis programs meet individuals where they are—all with the goal to lead our clients to a life of recovery.
Call the CRISIS LINE to get help now - 800.273.8255
Our crisis teams can coordinate with law enforcement and the 911 call center to help triage clients, and crisis teams often collaborate directly on the scene to help make compassionate connections in support of individuals. Our teams care deeply about the clients we serve and are driven by a shared purpose—each person joined this field because they deeply want to help people.
Suffering from psychosis is serious. A person may need emergency care. Call our Crisis Line and let our professional team help intervene, assess, and guide clients to the vital support they need.
Catholic Charities Crisis Services include the following:
- 24/7 crisis phone lines
- Mobile Crisis Unit with trained mental health professionals and case managers who provide immediate crisis intervention, basic supportive therapy, peer counseling, and case management. Walk-in support is also available.
- Designated Crisis Unit provides crisis intervention services and/or conducts intensive mental health evaluations to determine the need for more intensive mental health treatment.
- Diversion Outreach provides face-to-face mental health diversion screenings, interventions, and assessments. This teams also holds specific law enforcement and first responder duties.
In the crisis of a psychotic episode, it can be difficult to have hope—sometimes for the person suffering, as well as for the family and bystanders. If you are feeling hopeless about the situation, we will hold hope for you. Call today. We know the path toward hope, healing, and life.
CALL NOW - 800.273.8255
