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Mental health illnesses are hard enough to deal with, so just imagine how complicated things become when also facing an addiction problem. Sadly, many people with mental health problems such as depression or schizophrenia abuse drugs and or alcohol. In fact, drug addiction and mental health problems such as depression sometimes occur together. Statistics indicate that approximately 60 percent of people facing one of these problems end up having to deal with both. When faced with this dual diagnosis, treatment can be challenging.
Treatment Options and Support
People with both mental health illnesses and addiction to drugs or alcohol need continuous support to overcome their problem. In many cases, recovery is dependent on the support structure available as well as learning new coping skills. Just think, if just one of these problems can cause such disruption, having two existing together can have a devastating effect on all concerned.
Treatments for the co-occurring conditions have sometimes confounded even experts on both issues. This partially due to the fact that the existence of one problem can make it difficult to diagnose what is really going on. Add to this, the fact alcohol or drug addiction tends to worsen mental health conditions. The reverse is also true, as when mental health issues are not treated, addiction problems tend to worsen.
It is always best to use a combination of treatment options when dealing with co-occurring conditions. This calls for finding a treatment center or program that offers this facility. This will help in identifying all underlying causes so that the proper action can be taken. It is to be expected, even with this two-pronged approach, that relapses will occur. This shouldn’t be seen as failure or a source of discouragement. Many persons in this situation have repeat treatments and counseling therapies before fully overcoming their problems.