Background: Individuals with first episode psychosis (FEP) encounter both positive and negative life experiences during the early course of illness, yet these remain underexplored in the Indian context. Aim: To explore the lived experiences of patients with FEP by using qualitative methods. Methodology: Twenty patients with FEP in clinical remission were purposively sampled from a tertiary-care hospital in North India. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, translated, and thematically analyzed. Results: Analysis revealed eight themes and 28 sub-themes, including limited illness knowledge, causal attributions, acute episode experiences, treatment barriers, family impact, doctor–patient trust, stigma, and illness consequences. Conclusion: The study highlights early lived experiences of FEP patients in India, showing challenges of stigma, knowledge gaps, and treatment barriers, but also positive experiences of family and doctor support. These findings underscore the need for culturally tailored psycho-education and stigma-reduction strategies.
Sharma et al. (2026) studied this question.