Delirium is a serious mental health condition that causes confusion and reduces awareness of your surrounding environments. Therefore, making it harder for you to identify your surroundings. The condition can develop between a few hours or days.
Delirium interferes with your mind making it difficult to think clearly causing confusion or temporary memory loss. It can happen any time anywhere and is so sudden. It is a condition that consists of side effects and can be treated.
Delirium can become part of different health problems that are potentially life-threatening. The condition could involve a high amount of drug intake or overtaking medicines.
Delirium is similar to the symptoms of dementia it involves forgetfulness, loss of memory and confusion. This is to avoid any misinformation and to provide any answers or treatments that may be available.
Diagnosing the condition
In order to diagnose delirium healthcare experts, pay attention to the different attitudes, attributes, and memory abilities. Health workers may ask the person a few questions or complete a few simple tasks. This could be solving math problems or partaking in activities that could potentially benefit the person.
Many doctors and nurses diagnose patients by assessing their current mental health condition and their medical history. This gives the doctor an insight into the history of mental problems the patient has been through, making it easier to identify and consider all possible solutions to cure the condition.
To aid with mental health assessments various equipment and resources are used. The mental health assessment includes assessing awareness, attention, and critical thinking. This can be done through interaction, conversations, and assessments. Some caretakers may have a report on the person they are assessing so that they know whether their health is getting worse or is making improvements.
Treatments for Delirium
The first step to getting delirium treatment is to address any issues or triggering events that worsen the condition and what treatments may be suitable in order to help with the condition such as stopping medication or curing an infection.
The aim of treatment is to help create the best possible environment for the healing and relaxation of the mind in order to reduce the negative effects of delirium.
Delirium is common in both adults especially those that have dementia and need serious medical attention.
Medications used for delirium
If you’re a family member or caretaker taking care of those who have been diagnosed with delirium, then it is recommended to speak to your doctor on how medicines can affect delirium and what to do if it worsens the condition.
Monitoring the elderly regularly and changing their medication is an effective way to help get rid of the condition. Ensuring proper sleep patterns, drinking plenty of water and remaining calm at all times is one of the ways delirium can slowly begin to fade.
Discussing with doctors, how you can control your habits and addictions such as drugs or anything that may trigger delirium can benefit you in a way that will help you cope and manage the condition.
If the condition has a chance of it getting worse, then it is advised to see your GP immediately. This is because they are having delusions and misunderstandings of their surroundings and their current location.
Antipsychotic drugs can help deal with the psychological effects of delirium such as illusions, delusions, and severe depression. It helps stabilise and manage the effects of delirium making it easier for the person to remain calm. However, the effects could only be temporary therefore taking proper care and using the available resources on the internet or institution that can help keep you in good health.
Causes of Delirium
Delirium is a disturbing mental health condition that involves a lot of mental and physical problems. It is difficult to find the exact cause, but doctors have stated that some causes of delirium include:
- Excessive use of drugs
- Substance abuse
- Dehydration
- Lack of sleep
- Difficulty breathing
The symptoms can have a negative impact on your mental health. It can cause issues whilst coping with the condition. Patients would often stutter or tremble when communicating with others as it can form signs of a different type of mental health issue.
It is quite surprising that many mental health factors can contribute to delirium. This is because the condition interacts with the brain giving people different types of diseases. It can cause many factors with different symptoms and illnesses.
Some of the mental health symptoms associated with delirium are mild meaning that it is less damaging however some health problems can cause significant damage, causing hospitalisation and care. Exposure to toxic gasses such as carbon monoxide or cyanide are strong fumes that can make it extremely difficult for people to breathe.
Prevention
Even though delirium can have a negative impact on a person’s mental health there are coping mechanisms and medicine that can help relieve the symptoms and stop the condition from worsening.
Nurses and doctors may test out different environmental factors so they can find out the main cause of delirium. This could be changing the lighting, sensitive sounds, confusion, or invasion of privacy. In doing so the results would portray the inconsistencies and the chance of surviving from it.
Maintaining a schedule and sticking to a routine can help reduce the effects of delirium. Optimising and keeping regular hydration, nutritional and exercise content can also help limit the effects of delirium.
Self-care and movement can help you adjust to different environments as well as communicate and socialise with people. Looking after yourself makes you feel good about yourself as you are able to control and maintain delirium.
It is very important to speak clearly and make sense with your words as you do not want to confuse the patient and make it difficult for them to get rid of delirium. Using keywords and phrases can help patients understand you clearly.
Taking a lot of medication and drugs can ruin your mental health. This can trigger various mental health symptoms making it difficult to manage and cope with.
