Bradipsiquia: what is it and what are its most frequent causes?

March 31, 2024

Thinking is a highly complex mental action . Reasoning requires a lot of intermediate mental processes. In order to adapt to the environment, it is necessary that we can react and use these processes with sufficient speed to be efficient.

However, sometimes some people suffer from some type of injury or problem that makes them more difficult to achieve, having a slowed down thinking due to some circumstance. These people have bradypsychia .

Maybe you're interested: "Abulia: what is it and what symptoms warn of your arrival?"

What is bradypsychia?

Bradypsychia is understood symptom characterized by a generalized slowing down of thought processes . Bradypsychia is a variable injury according to the degree in which it appears.

The slowdown occurs at all levels, both in terms of the generation of thought and the implementation of different types of actions and processes like when it comes to understanding external information .

Some of the aspects that are slowed down are the capacity for attention, the capacity for judgment and reasoning, the speed of reaction . Sometimes it can affect other aspects such as language, especially when accompanied by praise.

Thought is slowed down by different causes. Frequently it wanders without reaching a conclusion , repeating the thought in question until achieving an end. There is also a certain rigidity and perseverance.

Being a symptom that affects the way of thinking at a general level, the affectation occurs in all the vital areas of the person.

Etiology of this symptom

The causes of bradypsychia can be multiple and varied .

At a neurological level, it can be observed that in many cases there is a damage in the basal ganglia or in the connection of the cortex with these or with other subcortical pathways. Sometimes a lower volume of blood is observed in the prefrontal area of the brain, decreasing its functionality in what is known as the hypo-frontality.

The hippocampus may also be reduced . With regard to neurotransmitters, a deficit of noradrenaline and / or dopamine can cause a decrease in alertness which in turn can slow thinking down. The lack of acetylcholine can also be an important factor.

Another possible cause is derived from the focus on the part of the person in certain types of thought and mental schemes, which absorb and hinder the capacity of attention and reaction.

Related article: "Hippocampus: functions and structure of the organ of memory"

Disorders and situations in which it appears

Bradypsychia is a symptom that can appear in a large number of situations, both in different mental disorders and non-pathological conditions (for example, associated with drug use). Next we will see the main causes .

1. Normative aging

Once reached a certain age, over the years most people notice a more or less noticeable decrease in most of their mental capacities . As the bones and muscles age, they weaken, the memory gets worse and learning becomes slightly more complex than in other vital moments. It is common to see a generalized slowdown, both physically and psychically.

2. Dementias

Bradypsychia results very common in neurodegenerative disorders such as dementias , due to the degradation and neuronal death and the greater difficulty of transmission of nerve signals.

Related article: "Types of dementia: forms of cognition loss"

3. Schizophrenia

Slow thinking is a negative symptom of schizophrenia, which usually appears linked to the alogia .

Maybe you're interested: "Alogia: when language and thought stop flowing"

4. Major depression

The fact of focusing on negative thoughts, the hopelessness and the feeling of lack of control suffered by depressed subjects means that in the long run they are more difficult to concentrate on and react to stimulation , being another context in which the bradypsychia appears.

5. Substance use

Many drugs have depressant effects on the nervous system , sometimes even having narcotic effects. The psycholeptic or depressive substances cause in many cases a slowing down of thought as a direct effect of consumption (both short and long term) or as an effect of intoxication.

Treatment

Bradypsychia It is not a disorder by itself, but a symptom , appearing before certain injuries or disorders. The treatment to be used will depend on its cause.

In the case of major depression and schizophrenia, the symptoms can improve to a greater or lesser extent based on the therapy psychological and / or pharmacological that is applied. In the case of schizophrenia, the application of atypical antipsychotics can be very useful even with negative symptoms such as bradypsychia.

In other cases in which bradypsychia is directly caused by neurodegenerative disorders as occurs with dementia the treatment tends to be palliative and based on preserving the functionality of the subject. Some drugs can help delay symptoms, including bradypsychia.