Long Beach Dual Diagnosis Treatment Centers & Rehab

When exploring substance abuse treatment alternatives, you might encounter the phrase “dual diagnosis” and wonder “what is dual diagnosis”. Here’s a comprehensive explanation.

Basically, when you experience a substance use disorder alongside a co-occurring mental health condition, this scenario is termed a dual diagnosis. Sometimes addiction stems from an existing mental health condition. For other individuals, addiction precipitates a mental illness. Both conditions may also emerge concurrently.

Based on NSDUH statistics, 45% of individuals with substance use disorder experience a co-occurring mental health disorder. Information from NAMI (the National Alliance on Mental Illness) indicates that 9.2 million adults in the United States live with a dual diagnosis.

Such dual diagnosis requires integrated treatment that tackles both interconnected issues simultaneously, an approach available at Renaissance Recovery.

So what is dual diagnosis in mental health, precisely?

Understanding Dual Diagnosis Meaning

So what is dual diagnosis co-occurrence?

Both terms essentially describe identical concepts. Dual diagnosis is frequently referred to as a co-occurring disorder. Such terminology is more precise than co-morbidity, which describes multiple illnesses appearing together.

Specifically, dual diagnosis indicates a concurrent substance use disorder and significant mental health condition.

Various substance use disorders can encompass any of these:

• Alcohol
• Marijuana
• Meth
• Cocaine
• Crack
• Heroin
• Benzodiazepines
• Opioids

Likewise, numerous mental health conditions commonly co-occur with substance use disorders, such as:

• GAD (generalized anxiety disorder)
• Major depressive disorder
• PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)
• Bipolar disorder
• ADHD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder)
• Schizophrenia

Countless possible combinations exist with dual diagnosis, making each case uniquely different.

For co-occurring disorder diagnosis, at least one substance use disorder and mental health disorder must be confirmed. Independent diagnosis of each condition is required rather than symptoms clustering from a single disorder.

Exploring Co-Occurring Disorder Fundamentals

Based on the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, individuals with mental health conditions are twice as susceptible to substance use disorders compared to those without. Alternatively, people with substance use disorder or alcohol use disorder show higher vulnerability to co-occurring mental health disorders than the general population.

Current consensus acknowledges that substance abuse can trigger mental health disorders, while mental health disorders can initiate substance use disorders. Ongoing research continues exploring what causes these conditions to appear together.

Scientists recognize that various overlapping factors can exacerbate both substance use disorders and mental health disorders, including:

• Genetics: Recent research demonstrates that genetics contributes up to 60% of addiction development risk.
• Brain responses: Abusing certain drugs can produce symptoms resembling mental illness. Excessive marijuana use can sometimes trigger psychosis.
• Environmental triggers: Ongoing anxiety, trauma, or chronic stress can contribute to developing both addictions and mental health disorders.
• Early substance exposure: Young adults and adolescents face greater brain damage susceptibility than adults when abusing substances. Early substance experimentation increases dual diagnosis likelihood later in life.

Self-medication represents one of the most common dual diagnosis triggers. This happens when you try soothing mental illness symptoms using alcohol or drugs (illicit substances or prescription medications).

Short-term relief often results from self-medicating. However, this relief proves temporary, failing to address underlying causes.

Additionally, substance use can create dependence and addiction, ultimately worsening the mental health condition simultaneously.

Fortunately, you don’t need to face these challenges alone when dealing with mental health conditions or struggling with substance abuse.

Identifying Your Dual Diagnosis Status

Several questions can help clarify this situation for you…

1. Do you frequently turn to alcohol or drugs when feeling unhappy?

2. Have you experienced emotional difficulties for extended periods without pursuing therapy?

Answering yes to both questions suggests you might have an undiagnosed mental health issue driving substance use to counter negative moods.

Realistic self-assessment proves important here. Life naturally includes ups and downs. However, when you experience abnormally low periods that prompt substance use, seeking help becomes advisable. Many people avoid this step, yet dual diagnosis problems won’t resolve independently.

For instance, when depression suddenly worsens and you begin consuming wine bottles at dinner or smoking joints to cope, discuss this openly with your doctor. Underlying conditions like bipolar disorder or PTSD might be present.

Identifying the root cause of negative thought patterns significantly improves your ability to control triggers and maintain recovery progress.

Without addressing both substance abuse and accompanying mental health conditions, finding a specialist dual diagnosis treatment facility becomes essential for maximizing sobriety success.

How can you obtain such treatment?

Locating Dual Diagnosis Treatment Services

Whether you developed mental health conditions like depression or anxiety before abusing drugs or alcohol, or your long-term alcohol abuse resulted in major depressive episodes, the finest dual diagnosis treatment programs address both conditions concurrently.

SAMHSA (the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) endorses integrated care treatment models for co-occurring disorders. Comprehensive and integrated treatment typically maintains better engagement than attempting to address each condition separately.

Frequently, residential rehab proves most effective for dual diagnosis. When preferring outpatient therapy, programs requiring greater time commitments may prove beneficial. Through an IOP (intensive outpatient program) or PHP (partial hospitalization program), you can gain many inpatient rehab benefits without associated costs or restrictions.

Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) frequently features in dual diagnosis treatment. FDA-approved medications help diminish withdrawal symptom intensity and cravings. Mental health disorder treatment also benefits from medications.

Combined with psychotherapies like CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) and DBT (dialectical behavior therapy), MAT achieves optimal effectiveness. Talking therapy, also called psychotherapy, helps explore connections between feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. Additionally, you’ll identify substance abuse triggers and discover healthier coping strategies.

Holistic therapies complement these evidence-based dual diagnosis treatments, ensuring you receive comprehensive whole-body healing and recovery approaches.

Our Renaissance Recovery’s California and Florida rehab programs feature highly personalized dual diagnosis treatment plans designed to address life obstacles. Contact admissions today at 866-330-9449.

Sources

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2713155/
2.https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/index.shtml