Early signs
Psychosis rarely arrives all at once.
Most episodes build over days to weeks. The early signs are personal, they tend to repeat, and the people around you usually notice them first. Knowing them is the single most useful thing in this whole site.
The window
Days to weeks, not minutes.
Studies of relapse in psychosis have found that most people, and most families, noticed changes a week or more before the episode. That stretch is the window. A safety net turns it into a plan.
A curve of how well a person is over time. It runs flat while well, dips gently through early signs over days to weeks, drops steeply in the acute phase, then climbs slowly through recovery. The early-signs stretch is shaded as the window where a plan can be acted on.
- 1
Well
Write your signs down while you're clear. Tell the people who'll notice.
- 2
Early signs
This is the time to act: more sleep, less stress, call the team, bring treatment forward.
- 3
Acute
Help is needed now. The card tells strangers what you can't.
- 4
Recovery
Fragile for weeks. Follow-up and company matter most here.
Common early signs
What people and families tend to notice first.
None of these means psychosis on its own. A cluster of them, over a week or two, especially in someone who has had an episode before, is worth a conversation and a call.
Sleep changes
Sleeping much less, or not at all, and not seeming to need it. Or sleeping all day. Sleep is the most reliable early sign there is.
Pulling away
Cancelling, not answering, staying in the room. Dropping work, study or things that used to matter.
Suspicion
Feeling watched, followed or talked about. Checking windows, covering cameras, changing routes. Trusting people less.
Signs and meanings
Ordinary things, like number plates, songs or a stranger's glance, start to feel like messages meant for you.
Perception shifts
Sounds louder, colours brighter, a sense of someone there. Hearing your name called. Things feeling unreal or dreamlike.
Thinking changes
Trouble concentrating or following a show. Thoughts racing or going blank. Speech that others find hard to follow.
Mood swings
Irritable, anxious or flat for no clear reason. Or unusually elated, with big plans and little sleep.
Using more
More alcohol, cannabis or other drugs, often to cope with the other changes. It fills the bucket faster.
Daily life slipping
Washing, eating, bills and tidiness going by the wayside. Often the thing families notice before anything else.
About three minutes
Early signs check.
Tick what you've noticed in the last two weeks. This is not a test and not a diagnosis. It's a way to see the picture, and to decide who to talk to.
What to do next
Who to talk to, in order.
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Someone you trust
Say what you've noticed, out loud, to one person. If you're checking for someone else, tell them gently what you've seen, not what you think it means.
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A GP
A GP can rule out medical causes, start a mental health treatment plan, and refer you to the right service. Ask for a longer appointment and bring your ticked list.
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Your state's mental health line
If things are moving fast, or you can't get to a GP, call your state's 24-hour line and ask for an assessment. Numbers by state.
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Early psychosis services
If you're 12 to 25, headspace Early Psychosis and similar programs are built for exactly this. Ask your GP or state line about early psychosis services near you.
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Your own team, if you have one
If you've had an episode before, your early signs are the reason your team gave you a number. Use it. Bringing an appointment forward is what the window is for.
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If it can't wait
Danger to anyone, or someone who can't keep themselves safe: 000, or the nearest emergency department. Take the card if there is one.