Positive Symptoms

Positive Symptoms

Extra symptoms not normally present (worse during acute psychosis)

Persecutory

Belief that one is going to be harmed by others

• Plotted against, cheated, or defrauded, followed and spied on, poisoned, or drugged

Persecutory

“The FBI has bugged my room and intends to kill me"

Paranoid

Extreme suspiciousness of others and their actions

Paranoid

I won’t eat this food; I know it has been poisoned

Grandiose

Exaggerated feeling of importance, power, knowledge, or identity

Grandiose

“I am Jesus Christ”

Delusions of reference

Events in the environment are assumed to be referring to themselves

Delusions of reference

“Someone is trying to get a message to me through the articles in this magazine”

Delusions of control or influence

Believe that certain objects or persons have CONTROL OVER BEHAVIOR

Delusions of control or influence

“The dentist put a filling in my tooth; I now receive transmissions through the filling that control what I think and do”

Somatic delusion

False idea about the functioning of their body

Nihilistic

False idea that the self, part of self, others or world is NONEXISTENT (dead)

Erotomanic delusions

Someone of high status is in love with them

Jealous

Person’s sexual partner is unfaithful

Loose associations

Ideas shift from one unrelated subject to another

Loose associations

“We wanted to take the bus, but the airport took all the traffic.”

Neologisms

Newly invented words that are meaningless to others

Clang association

words governed by sound, taking form of rhyming

Clang associations

“Its very cold. I am cold and bold. The gold has been sold”

Word salad

group of words put together randomly

Word Salad

“Most forward action grows life double plays circle uniform”

Circumstantiality

Delay in reaching point because of unnecessary and tedious details

Tangentiality

Veering away from the topic

Perservation

persistently repeating the same word or idea

Echolalia

Repeating words/Phrases

Echopraxia

Imitating movements by others