Linking Mental Health and Substance Abuse – Dual Diagnosis

Dec 8

The link between mental health and substance abuse is often disregarded. This article explores the connection between mental health and substance abuse, and offers several strategies to help those struggling with these issues.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), between 15% and 20% of people in treatment receive substance abuse counseling along with their mental health therapy. And, according to SAMHSA, approximately 2-5% of those served by a county behavioral health services program have both mental illness and drug or alcohol use disorders.

The Influence of Psychological Disorders and substance abuse can be an issue which are closely linked to one another. Mental disorders and drug addiction set the stage for use of drugs and alcohol. Deal with addictions soon after possible, but to coordinate treatment care that is best takes research over a long period. When you don't will need a medication regimen or therapy, it's crucial that you talk about the situation with your physician or therapist in order to appreciate what needs be done next even so if their advice appears unreliable, provide them with an opportunity to explain through your own peculiar circumstances before assuming they're unable to help you.

What Leads to Mental Illness and Substance Abuse?

When a patient consumes medication, alcohol, or toxicants without a prescription to get a desired sensation, this is known as mental illness and substance addiction. The majority of people misuse drugs for recreational motives. They can't go without regular dosages once they've begun on continuous use. Most of these compounds, such as Nicotine in tobacco, have addictive elements that can lead to misuse.

When a mentally sick person is at their most rational, they are well aware of their condition. They seek the sense of acting better as a result of this insight. With or without professional help, there is an increasing urge to overcome a mental disease. Patients are naturally drawn to various intoxicants or drugs that allow them to regain control of their mental state. Hiding mental illness from others, including your doctor, increases the likelihood of substance usage.

What Comes First: Mental Health Problems or Substance Abuse?

Every individuals situation is unique and while some people who wind up suffering from drug addiction had a diagnosible mental health condition prior, the reverse is also true at times. One common progression is for people with mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, and PTSD to begin to self-medicate their condition. When patients self-medicate, they use substances that they believe will provide them relief from the mental illness with which they are suffering. For example, people with anxiety disorders may begin to drink more frequenly to sooth their nerves. As a result, their anxiety when they are not drinking begins to become more severe and they wind up increasing their alcohol use to cope. In this way, a positive reinforcement loop is created that can quickly spiral out of control and leave a person suffering from more severe mental health conditions and an active substance use disorder.

Signs and Symptoms of Substance Abuse

Signs of alcohol use disorder include: Intoxication, hangovers, withdrawal symptoms. Use of alcohol to feel better; denial by the person with the condition that they have a problem. Alcohol dependence: A life span disease in which one has to drink large amounts (20-30+ drinks) on daily basis and takes days off from drinking to decrease its effects. Symptoms include staying up late into the night; slipping into depression; sadness upon not drinking regularly; using more alcohol than intended because of side effects such as blackouts and falls

Addiction is a disorder in which the weakened capacity to resist, control, or modify drug use continues despite adverse consequences. Signs of addiction include:

The inability to stop using that substance despite its known health risks and the persistent pursuit of pleasurable effects at any cost. In other words, addiction is behavior driven by compulsion rather than choice.

Persistent desire, unsuccessful efforts to satisfy this desire (but not necessarily physical craving), and recurrent bouts of intoxication that are clearly out of proportion with normal uses for that substance over time (i.e., you might be having only two drinks on Friday night , five drinks on Saturday night, and 12-15 drinks every day then crashing after a few hours of sleep).

A preoccupation with getting, using or recovering from that substance. Action drinking patterns: alcoholism is characterized by compulsive indulgence in alcohol which interferes with the user’s ability to carry out normal social relationships and leads to periodic bouts of heavy intoxication leading to failure at work or school (if not already affected).

Common Co-Occuring Disorders

Eating disorders like anorexia or bulemia
Schizo-affective disorders like schizophrenia
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Depression
Dissociation and dissociative personality disorder
General Anxiety disorders
Tourettes Syndrome
Bipolar Disorder
Phobias
Mood Disorders

How Are Mental Health and Addiction Diagnosed and Treated?

A dual diagnosis requires a professional who has experience with both addiction and mental health disorders. There are several different ways that co-occurring conditions can be diagnosed and treated:

The combination of symptoms plus history will determine the necessary course of treatment, which may include traditional therapy with a qualified counselor, medications and/or other forms of therapy such as Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) or Mindfulness.

Depending on a patients drug of choice and use patterns, a medical detoxification may be neccesary as part of the course of treatment. During detox, a patient is supervised by medical professionals and tapered off of addictive drugs and alcohol in a way that minimizes painful withdrawal symptoms that may put the patient at risk for medical complications.

Getting Help for Mental Health and Addiction

If you or a loved one are struggling with mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, PTSD, bipolar disorder, or other mental illnesses that have either caused or been caused by an addiction to drugs or alcohol, there are many options available for help. As mentioned above, depending on the severity of the substance use disorder, a patient may require inpatient detox and stabilization before they can productively begin to partake in a recovery program. 1 Solution Detox, in West Palm Beach Florida, offers a comfortable and private setting with advanced clinical and medical supervision for patients requiring dual diagnosis addiction treatment. They offer specialized addiction treatment programs to help patients suffering from mental health disorders in combination with:

Alcoholism and alcohol addiction
Benzodiazepine addiction (this includes drugs like Xanax, Klonopin, Valium, and more)
Cocaine addiction (and crack addiction)
Heroin addiction
Prescription opiate addiction (this includes drugs like Oxycodone, Morphine, Vicodin, Percocet, Fentanyl, Dilauid, and Codeine)
Methamphetamine addiction
Adderall addiction
And other drug addictions

To learn more about dual diagnosis addiction treatment in West Palm Beach, visit https://www.1solutiondetox.com/west-palm-beach-rehab/