Effect of marriage on pre-existing psychoses

The relationship between marriage and mental illness is very complicated, and this issue commonly arises in psychotic illnesses. Psychosis is usually diagnosed at late adolescent and early adulthood. Being a disease of the age at which decision of marriage is taken, the question of whether to marry or not and whether marriage will lead to improvement or deterioration in psychoses is equally faced by patients, their family members, and treating psychiatrists. Mental disorders and problems in marriage are closely linked although there is a controversy about the sequence. In India, marriages are usually arranged by parents and are influenced by a number of factors such as astrological compatibility, caste regulation, geographic proximity, and expectations of dowry. We have worked for two decades in this area. The work summarizes as “Effect of marriage on clinical outcome of persons with bipolar affective disorder: A case–control study.” Married persons had experienced more episodes of illness and for longer duration. Males are more prone for illness than females in both groups (married and never married). Marriage did not influence the severity of illness in persons with bipolar affective disorder. The effects of marriage on women with schizophrenia are as follows: This study concluded that most of the patients and relatives were of the opinion that marriage can cure mental illness. Child birth was found to be a protective factor for decreasing separation in cases. Severity of mental illness was slightly higher in cases than comparison group. It was observed that with increasing severity of illness marital adjustment deteriorates with antagonistic interaction among members.