Whether you’re crazy or psychotic yourself, or you’ve just had experiences with crazy and psychotic people, we’re all familiar with these two terms. However, there’s a common misconception that they mean the same thing. Here’s how to know the difference, because while we all have a little (or a lot) of crazy in us, there are some psychos out there (no offense).
Crazy: silently wonders why you’re not answering their texts. “OMG. Maybe he/she doesn’t like me? Did I say or do something wrong?” (Reason A. You’re studying for an exam. Reason B. We talked like one time?).
Psychotic: calls you five times, texts you nineteen times, and maybe even declares hatred for you.
Crazy: wonders if you still talk to that girl/guy you met at XX Fraternity a couple months ago.
Psychotic: makes it his/her mission to find out, and reads your texts and sneaks through your phone while you’re not in the room. Bonus points if they call you out on it.
Crazy: chances are high that when this person types in the first letter of your Instagram name on his/her search bar, your name is the first to come up.
Psychotic: sees whose Facebook Instagram pictures you’ve liked (again, bonus points if they call you out on it. Ex. “I saw you liked _______ ‘s picture on Instagram. Are you cheating on me?! Do you think they’re better looking?!”).
Crazy: gets jealous when you hang out with your friends.
Psychotic: actually doesn’t let you hang out with your friends/doesn’t have friends of his/her own.
Crazy: is threatened by your friend of the opposite sex, and you know it.
Psychotic: straight up doesn’t let you have friends of the opposite sex (Ex. It’s her or me).
Crazy: sends you multiple angry text messages about what a horrible person you are right after your breakup.
Psychotic: posts a Facebook status announcing to the cyber world what a horrible person you are right after your breakup.
Crazy: talks about getting married someday a few months in.
Psychotic: talks about what you’re naming your kids, how many years they’ll be apart, where you’re getting married, and when uncomfortably early in your relationship.
Crazy: suspiciously (not casually) asks where you were last night… Uhh, I was with my friends?
Psychotic: waits for you outside your door to see if you hook up with someone else (yes, this actually happens. I have multiple friends who this has happened to).
Crazy: hooks up with a friend of yours for revenge.
Psychotic: hooks up with your roommate, big/little, or best friend (bonus points for all three).
Crazy: really wants kids at an early age.
Psychotic: sabotages birth control methods.
Crazy: you’re not hooking up anymore, yet he/she still isn’t okay with you going anywhere near anyone in his/her sorority, fraternity, sports team, etc. (even if you’re not close with that person).
Psychotic: marks his/her territory on anything that moves. “No! One time I had a class with her, you can’t talk to her!”
Crazy: gives you the death glare when encountering you in social settings, but you know deep down that you messed things up.
Psychotic: gives you the death glare when encountering you in social settings, and you literally did nothing wrong, things just didn’t work out.
There you have it: the difference between crazy and psychotic.
