Warren-Gash and Zemen (2003) proposed a useful clinical assessment framework for distinguishing between pathological and non-pathological DV. On the contrary, careful distinction between colloquial and ‘true’ experiences of DV in clinical contexts can separate a typical experience from a neurological or psychiatric condition. Given that DV has a lifetime prevalence of 60-80% in nonclinical samples, it is clearly not always pathological. Caregivers for patients with multiple myeloma may suffer from anxiety and depression.Multi-agency team responding to mental health emergencies leads to better outcomes.Integrating mental health support with routine care is essential for people with congenital heart defects.Taking the results of these studies together, DV is thought to exist as a nonpathological phenomenon.

Furthermore, there is no obvious relationship between DV and positive symptoms of schizophrenia such as delusions and hallucinations, suggesting that DV experiences are not related to the mechanisms involved in these symptoms. Arguably, this may account for previous false associations between schizophrenia and DV. Conversely, the frequency of DV experiences is increased in the sub-sample of schizophrenic patients who are on higher doses of antipsychotic medication. It may be concluded that the brain dysfunction underpinning negative symptoms likely interferes with DV experiences. Individuals with schizophrenia who exhibit more negative symptoms such as poverty of speech, reduced motivation and social drive have fewer DVs than those with fewer negative symptoms and healthy controls. A follow-up study by the same authors explored why schizophrenic people may experience DV less frequently and found an association between DV and negative symptoms of schizophrenia, and DV and antipsychotic medication.

People with schizophrenia, however, experience DV as more distressing and disturbing, and are more likely to experience them when under physical or mental duress. However, when the prevalence of DV is compared between individuals with and without schizophrenia, the frequency of DV is higher in the neurotypical individuals. Also referred to as derealization, it is a state of detachment whereby thoughts seem unreal and individuals feel as though they are external observers of themselves. In schizophrenia, experiences of DV may be longer, more intense and accompanied by feelings of depersonalization. Subsequently, a large body of research has shown that many individuals with TLE experience DV as a manifestation of the accompanying seizures, often immediately prior to convulsion. The relationship between the two was first described in 1888 as a ‘dreamy state’ often co-occurring with TLE. This sub-type affects the hippocampal region, the area of the brain responsible for the processing and storage of short- and long-term memories, and research has shown a strong association between DV and seizures in people with TLE.

TLE is the commonest form of epilepsy, accounting for approximately 60% of all people with the diagnosis. Epilepsy is a neurological disorder, caused by abnormal electrical activity within the brain and characterized by loss of consciousness and seizure. Clinically, DV is sometimes understood as a manifestation of a mental or neurological disorder, most commonly temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) or schizophrenia.

Excessive deja vu psychology