Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 1, 2025
12:00
Investigating the Effects of Antipsychotics and Schizotypy on the N400 Using Event-Related Potentials and Semantic Categorization
Published on: November 19, 2014
12.9K
Antipsychotics and Identity: The Adverse Effect No One is Talking About.
M Conneely1, D Roe2, I Hasson-Ohayon2
1Division of Psychiatry, University College London, Maple House, W1T 7BN, London, UK. m.conneely@ucl.ac.uk.
Community Mental Health Journal
|March 1, 2024
Summary
Antipsychotic medications can impact a person's sense of self and identity in complex ways, both positively and negatively. Exploring these effects in clinical practice is crucial for recovery-oriented care and building trust.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Psychology
- Sociology
Background:
- Antipsychotic (AP) medications significantly affect individuals' lives.
- The impact of APs on personal identity and sense of self is often overlooked.
- Existing research highlights a complex, multifaceted relationship between AP use and identity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the nuanced effects of antipsychotic medications on patient identity.
- To emphasize the need for routine clinical discussions regarding identity and APs.
- To advocate for the integration of identity-related conversations into recovery-oriented care.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative research methodology was employed.
- Analysis of the multilayered and changeable relationship between APs and identity.
- Exploration of how prescribed antipsychotics influence self-perception.
Main Results:
- Antipsychotics can restore a pre-symptom sense of self.
- Conversely, APs can be perceived as damaging, erasing, or dulling to one's identity.
- The relationship between APs and identity is complex and varies among individuals.
Conclusions:
- Clinical practice should routinely address the impact of antipsychotics on identity.
- Discussions about identity and agency are vital for shared decision-making and recovery.
- Integrating these conversations can enhance therapeutic alliances and improve patient care.
Related Concept Videos
01:21Antipsychotic Drugs: Therapeutic Uses and Side Effects
202
Antipsychotic drugs primarily block dopamine and serotonin receptors and cholinergic, adrenergic, and histaminergic receptors, thereby reducing hallucinations and delusions in conditions like schizophrenia. However, they can trigger unwanted extrapyramidal effects such as dystonias, Parkinson-like symptoms, and tardive dyskinesia.
Despite these side effects, antipsychotics are used therapeutically for various purposes, including managing schizophrenia, preventing nausea and vomiting, curbing...
Despite these side effects, antipsychotics are used therapeutically for various purposes, including managing schizophrenia, preventing nausea and vomiting, curbing...
202
01:28Psychosis and Antipsychotic Drugs: Overview
253
The term "psychosis" refers to a spectrum of mental disorders characterized by abnormal thoughts, perceptions, and behaviors. It can manifest as mood disorders, dementia, delirium with psychotic features, substance-induced psychosis with psychotic features, brief psychotic disorder, delusional disorder, schizoaffective disorder, and schizophrenia. Among all these disorders, schizophrenia is the most common psychotic disorder, affecting 1% of the worldwide population. Psychotic...
253
00:57Deindividuation
26.4K
Deindividuation is a form of social influence on an individual’s behavior such that the individual engages in unusual or non-normal behavior while in a group setting. Why? Because in these group settings, the individual no longer sees themselves as an individual anymore, disinhibiting their behavior and personal restraint.
26.4K
01:30Negative and Cognitive Symptoms of Schizophrenia
48
Negative symptoms of schizophrenia indicate a reduction or absence of typical behaviors and emotional responses found in healthy individuals, while positive symptoms reflect an excess or distortion of normal functioning.
Negative Symptoms
Negative symptoms of schizophrenia manifest as deficits in normal emotional and behavioral functioning, profoundly impacting daily life. Individuals with schizophrenia often display a flat affect, characterized by a near-total absence of emotional expression,...
Negative Symptoms
Negative symptoms of schizophrenia manifest as deficits in normal emotional and behavioral functioning, profoundly impacting daily life. Individuals with schizophrenia often display a flat affect, characterized by a near-total absence of emotional expression,...
48
01:21Antipsychotic Drugs: Typical and Atypical Agents
198
Antipsychotic drugs are classified into first-generation (typical) drugs including phenothiazines; and second-generation (atypical) drugs. Chlorpromazine hydrochloride (Thorazine), a phenothiazine derivative, broadly impacts the central, autonomic, and endocrine systems. This drug, along with typical agents like haloperidol (Haldol), primarily works by antagonizing D2 receptors, thus reducing dopaminergic neurotransmission. However, typical antipsychotics can cause side effects such as sedation...
198
01:30Positive Symptoms of Schizophrenia: Hallucinations and Delusions
114
Schizophrenia is a complex mental health disorder that can manifest with various positive symptoms, including thought, movement, and behavior disorders. These symptoms significantly disrupt cognitive and motor functions, leading to profound effects on an individual's ability to engage with the world.
Thought Disorders
Disorganized and unusual thought processes mark thought disorders in schizophrenia. One key feature is disorganized speech, where an individual's conversation includes...
Thought Disorders
Disorganized and unusual thought processes mark thought disorders in schizophrenia. One key feature is disorganized speech, where an individual's conversation includes...
114