decompensate

verb

1. To deteriorate in function due to an inability to invoke normal defensive mechanisms that compensate for ailments and other stresses.

   “The infant whose heart is decompensating has a rapid pulse, rapid respirations, and respiratory distress.”

   “In some cases, the fragile individual, overwhelmed by the implicit demands and expectations for sociability, coherence, and "constructive" behavior, rapidly decompensates, taking flight into psychosis or protective withdrawal.”