Neuroses Versus Psychoses: What Is The Difference?

Mental illnesses can differ in severity and to what extent they can impact us physically and psychologically. While in some mental disorders, the person might be able to perform day-to-day functions without cognitive abilities being impaired, there are some disorders that can make a person lose complete touch with reality.

Traditionally, psychological disorders were bifurcated into two groups, neuroses and psychosis. While the latter still persists and is very much relevant, the former is not much in use and finds meaning within other conditions like anxiety disorders. However, differentiating the two is crucial to understand psychological illnesses in completeness.

In simple words, neurosis has no single definition but it could be understood as a psychological disorder that interferes with the quality of life but the person impacted has their cognitive abilities functioning well. On the other hand, psychosis illness is more serious in nature where a person can lose touch with reality.

Neuroses versus psychoses

Unlike psychosis, the meaning and terminology of neuroses have changed over time. Today many psychologists and psychiatrists hesitate to use the term and might identify it as anxiety or as a psychological disorder that lies outside the psychosis realm. The term neurosis is often confused with neuroticism which is a personality trait. Neuroses might have dissolved as a relevant terminology but the illness identified by it is now placed under anxiety and depression disorders. The term neuroses have been used in different ways and characterize abnormal psychological processes. It is a complex mental condition that can affect the quality of a person’s life. The person affected by it can experience emotional instability, and repressed emotions and according to psychologists, it might usually surface when there is a clash between the conscious and unconscious realms of the mind. However, a person having these disorders might continue thinking rationally and their perception of reality remains unaltered.

Psychoses on the other hand are serious psychological illnesses that can lead to a loss of touch with reality. The condition can affect how a person perceives reality. It can alter the way a person processes the information and make it difficult for them to differentiate between what is real and what is not. Usually, a person affected by psychosis is not conscious of what might be happening to them. It might feel real to the person affected by the condition. Many times, psychosis involves hallucinations and delusions that can lead a person to self-hurt or hurt other people around them.

What happens in the brain?

Conditions like anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression are mostly affective disorders where a person might have obsessive thoughts, internalized phobias and difficulty in regulating emotions. However, in psychotic conditions like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and delusional disorder, there exist actual changes in the brain chemistry. Excess dopamine (neurotransmitter) activity and decreased activity of receptors for glutamate could be an indicator.