eli5: Difference between schizophrenia and psychosis?
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Mainly, psychosis is a symptom and schizophrenia is a diagnosis.
There are a variety of schizophrenic and schizoid diagnosis that present in various ways. Many schizophrenics experience psychosis as part of their overall symptom set, but not all. Additionally, many other diagnoses can include psychosis as a symptom, including bipolar disorder, autism spectrum disorder, etc. Psychosis can also be its own diagnosis in the form of an acute psychotic episode related to things like stress, sleep deprivation, certain medications or drugs, medical conditions, etc.
Psychosis is clinically considered a positive symptom, meaning that it adds a specific experience to the person’s life (as opposed to negative symptoms which REMOVE a specific experience from their life). It includes hallucinations, delusions, disorganized/disordered thinking processes, etc. Each of these aspects can have a variety of presentations that are unique to the individual but are often classified under headings like auditory or visual hallucinations, paranoid or religious delusions, etc.
Symptoms may come and go throughout a person’s life and are often transient or pattern based, whereas diagnoses are typically only considered either “active”, “managed”, or “in remission”. An active diagnosis is any that is currently causing symptoms or would cause symptoms if left untreated. Managed means that the symptoms are controlled or non-existent due to treatment protocols and accomodation. In remission means that even without ongoing treatment protocols, symptoms are no longer occurring.
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