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'Invisible Children' Co-Founder Suffered 'Brief Reactive Psychosis'

The co-founder of Invisible Children, who was detained by police in San Diego last week after residents complained he was naked on a residential street, was not on drugs, his wife said.

Jason Russell, who was catapulted into the national spotlight after his video on Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony went viral, has been shown in videos naked and apparently talking to himself on the streets of San Diego.

Danica Russell, Jason's wife, said his actions weren't caused by alcohol, but by "brief reactive psychosis, an acute state brought on by extreme exhaustion, stress and dehydration."

In a statement, Danica added:

"Though new to us, the doctors say this is a common experience given the great mental, emotional and physical shock his body has gone through in these last two weeks. Even for us, it's hard to understand the sudden transition from relative anonymity to worldwide attention - both raves and ridicules, in a matter of days."

She said that the "recovery process could take months."

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.