Someone upthread asked if paranoia, as described here by Seth, can start at Michele's age. The answer is yes.
Here is an account by a woman in her 40's who has managed to hold herself together since her teens, but paranoia is increasing and she is starting to think about suicide. I feel awful for her. I hope she got help. I hope Michele has gotten help.
http://www.healthcentral.com/schizophrenia/c/question/813317/101002/
This is an excerpt from a Medscape article geared toward professionals. It's on page 6 if you go to the link. This snippet mentions delirium. It can happen due to intoxication or withdrawal from various pharmacological drugs, not that Michele's paranoia is necessarily due to that, but it has to be ruled out when diagnosing.
After the age of 40 years, the likelihood of new-onset paranoid symptoms being secondary to identifiable medical causes increases, and a diagnosis of psychotic disorder due to a general medical condition, substance-induced psychosis, and delirium must first be ruled out. Delirium is characterized by disturbances in consciousness, orientation, memory, thought (e.g., delusions of persecution), perception, mood, and behaviour, of acute onset and fluctuating course.[SUP][15][/SUP] The major causes of delirium include central nervous system disease, systemic disease, and either intoxication or withdrawal from pharmacological or toxic agents. The most frequently implicated medications are anticholinergic drugs, sedative-hypnotics and narcotics.[SUP][5]
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/579817
[/SUP]
Here is an account by a woman in her 40's who has managed to hold herself together since her teens, but paranoia is increasing and she is starting to think about suicide. I feel awful for her. I hope she got help. I hope Michele has gotten help.
http://www.healthcentral.com/schizophrenia/c/question/813317/101002/
This is an excerpt from a Medscape article geared toward professionals. It's on page 6 if you go to the link. This snippet mentions delirium. It can happen due to intoxication or withdrawal from various pharmacological drugs, not that Michele's paranoia is necessarily due to that, but it has to be ruled out when diagnosing.
After the age of 40 years, the likelihood of new-onset paranoid symptoms being secondary to identifiable medical causes increases, and a diagnosis of psychotic disorder due to a general medical condition, substance-induced psychosis, and delirium must first be ruled out. Delirium is characterized by disturbances in consciousness, orientation, memory, thought (e.g., delusions of persecution), perception, mood, and behaviour, of acute onset and fluctuating course.[SUP][15][/SUP] The major causes of delirium include central nervous system disease, systemic disease, and either intoxication or withdrawal from pharmacological or toxic agents. The most frequently implicated medications are anticholinergic drugs, sedative-hypnotics and narcotics.[SUP][5]
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/579817
[/SUP]