Psychosis-induced Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

The course of psychiatric illness may be complicated by an individual’s reaction to it. Psychosis, because of its unique ability to disrupt mental processing, may result in psychological trauma of considerable magnitude. We report the case of an adolescent male with schizophrenia who developed posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to his experience of psychosis. Even though there was a significant overlap of symptoms, PTSD was discernible in the presence of schizophrenia. Recognition of this secondary syndrome led to a more adequate understanding of the patient’s illness.