》A delusion is a firm belief in something despite evidence or logic that contradicts that belief.
"Persecutory" refers to the feeling of being persecuted or attacked.
》Persecution complex / Delusions are an irrational or delusional belief that other people are trying to harm or conspire against them. Delusions can be defined as a fixed and irrational belief.
》The main symptoms of persecutory delusions is a person believing that others intend to harm them or that they're being accused of doing something horrible that they never did.
》Some examples of persecutory delusions include:
Being spied on by someone who means harm or who is part of a conspiracy
Being followed or tracked
Being lied to or given misinformation
Being the victim of a plot
That harm is going to occur imminently
》Persecutory delusions may cause symptoms like:
fearing ordinary situations
feeling threatened without reason
frequently reporting to authorities
extreme distress
excess worry
constantly seeking safety
》Generally, any kind of false belief that involves being harmed, being mistreated, or being plotted against are counted as persecutory. Individuals may have different, specific details in their delusions.
》The exact cause of persecution complex is unknown. It is likely caused by a combination of genetic, biological, and environmental variables.
》Persecutory delusions aren't considered a mental illness on their own. Rather, they're a symptom of other mental health conditions, including:
schizoaffective disorder
schizophrenia
delusional disorder
schizophreniform disorder
psychotic disorders
》treatment options for persecutory delusions:
Therapy
Therapy is individualized to each client based on the reason they're coming to sessions.
Medication
As mentioned above, the combination of therapy and psychotropic medication has been noted to help treat psychosis.
Hospitalization
Hospitalization is not a daily treatment for mental health disorders, but the existence of persecutory delusions can be a predictor of emergency hospital admissions.