A Guide to Dual Diagnosis

Did you know that the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration found that 7.9 million Americans experience a mental health disorder and a substance use disorder at the same time?

Despite the prevalence of these conditions, many recovery programs fail to adequately address both of them. Typically, they only focus on the addiction instead of underlying mental health conditions. Luckily, a new dual diagnosis method has been gaining traction in the recovery industry.

If you want to learn more about this concept, you’re in the right place. In this guide to dual diagnosis, we’ll briefly go over everything you need to know about the subject.

What Is A Dual Diagnosis?

In the past, diagnoses for mental illness and substance use disorders were done separately. However, these two separate conditions affect one another. So, these days many facilities diagnose them together.

This is important because the interaction between these two conditions can cause the other one to worsen. So, if they’re not treated together, then professionals often won’t be able to get to the root of the problem.

Why Do These Disorders Often Occur Together?

While these two separate disorders don’t cause each other, it’s still not entirely known why they often occur together. One possibility is that they both come with common risk factors, like trauma, stress, and genetics.

Another theory is that addiction to substances can cause temporary relief from mental health disorders. For example, if someone is depressed, they might turn to opioids to numb the feelings.

This type of self-medication can change the brain and make you more susceptible to substance abuse disorder. The final theory is that substance abuse disorders can cause mental health disorders.

Many drugs can rewire our brains in negative ways. So, they may cause certain conditions. Regardless of why they occur together, the important thing is that they’re treated together.

What Are The Treatments For People With A Dual Diagnosis?

Before addressing the mental health disorder, the individual will first need to stop using drugs and alcohol. Typically, a detox facility is used for this.

Once the person is sober, they move on to rehab facilities that provide behavioral therapy and medicines. Ideally, you want to find a facility that combines both detox and rehab, like Hope Rising Recovery.

That way, the individual can get clean and get the help they need for their mental health disorder.

Want More Content? Keep Reading

We hope this article helped you learn more about dual diagnosis. Diagnosing mental health disorders and substance use disorders together might not seem that revolutionary.

But, for many individuals, it’s the key to addressing underlying issues and creating a successful recovery plan. If you found this article informative, then you’re going to love some of the other topics that we have.

We have categories in everything from business tips to technology. So, keep reading to learn more.