I think my wife is experiencing psychosis

[AvailableDisplayname]

Hi all

I am on my phone so apologies if this doesn't read well. I am typing this while trying not to raise the suspicion of my wife who is becoming extremely paranoid.

She has never had mental health issues before but over the past month she has been getting increasingly delusional and paranoid. At this stage she is unable to relax and spends all day wrapped up in various causes of concern, none of which have any proof.

This began with falsely accusing me of infidelity, but has gotten worse. To be specific, at this stage:

- she thinks her phone has been hacked and is being monitored

- she thinks hidden cameras are filming her

- she thinks I've been communicating "private information" about our lives with others, and that it's gone viral on the internet

This is getting worse. I took her to the GP who asked for a blood test to rule out any dietary causes (she hasn't been eating much). I am convinced this is something much more sinister and that she needs to be medicated immediately.

We got the blood test and need to follow up with the GP, but he's not available again until next week. Am i just stressing out wanting to move fast on this or is my intuition valid? Can we afford to wait until Monday to have the doctor look at her blood test?

I have no idea what to do and the longer this goes on i am scared of her getting worse.

[AvailableDisplayname]

So I am very happy with the treatment she's had. Life generally is not as clear cut right now. She is no longer going through the extreme ups and downs of psychosis anymore - not having random delusions and paranoid thoughts, not seeing hidden messages in everything. When I think about now in comparison to a few months ago it really is night and day. The problem now is the lingering belief that I filmed and broadcast her daily life on the internet. This became a really entrenched belief around 5 months ago, and although she's come leaps and bounds since then, it's still something she's grappling with.

We and her parents agreed that it would be good for her to spend some time living with them. They live overseas, so this was not an easy decision to make. She went in November and has been resting at their place ever since. They're aware of what she's been through as I got them involved fairly early on in the ordeal. I've been calling her where possible and her recovery has been much faster there. She's noticeably better.

This is where it's difficult at the moment. Because of improvement, she's keen to remain there long term. That will mean continuing treatment there but also settling into a job, social routine etc. I know all of this will benefit her, but it is simply impossible to tell when I'll be able to see her next. It is also hard to gauge whether she wants to see/talk to me much at all - she has become a lot quieter and much less communicative. Does she still think I'm trying to harm her? Does she still think I'm evil? I simply don't know. Without being there to help and unable to know for sure what her thoughts are is very difficult.

She will be consulting a specialist with her parents this month, so hopefully further treatment and establishment of a more 'normal' life will be a good next step.

[Learn to Fly]

Hi AvailableDisplayname,

Thank you for sharing and updating. Your post sounds like it's a mixture of news. Positive as your wife's health has improved a lot, and worrying as she lives in another country and is planning to stay there for some time. It's no surprise you are worried and you have quite a few unanswered questions that nag you. How would you feel about asking her those questions and hopefully getting some clarity?

[AvailableDisplayname]

Hey Learn to Fly

I can't say it's a total shock - we've discussed moving there before - it's just the timing that is surprising.

Right now I don't think she's ready for that kind of conversation. If I engage her in conversation about regular things, daily life, things that are happening or going to happen, she is her old self. It's when I bring up her condition and what happened last year that she clams up a bit. She wants to move on from it and doesn't seem ready to plumb the depths.

My gut tells me she doesn't think she's still being filmed, but thinks at one point she was and that I was the one doing it to her. Only time will tell.

[Learn to Fly]

Hi AvailableDisplayname,

Thank you for your response. Usually that “guts feeling” is what gives us the best direction. Besides, sometimes there are no other cues available and just as you said it yourself there is not much to be done but wait and see what happens. Especially in this case when it’s your wife’s decisions/actions/choices that matter.
I hope that her getting better will bring you some consolation. I think you are already trying to be for her whenever she needs it , though, I am sure the distance doesn’t help.