Dual Diagnosis

What is Dual Diagnosis?

A dual diagnosis occurs when an individual is affected by a substance addiction as well as a psychiatric/emotional health disorder. Both illnesses can cause significant damage to a person physically, mentally, and spiritually. At times the symptoms of the substance addiction can mask the psychiatric or emotional disorder and vice versa. This makes treatment multi-faceted and difficult. To fully recover it is vital that both problems get addressed

Determining the relationship between drug addiction and the mental health status of each individual is an incredibly important part of addiction treatment. While it is difficult to determine if a mental health problem caused the drug addiction or vice versa, it is more important to understand that these two issues interact with one another, making the healing process more complex. The relationship between mental illness and drug abuse is commonly misperceived. There are many negative connotations that come with drug addiction, and many times people do not understand how easily people with existing mental illnesses can be affected by drugs. Factors such as family history, peer acceptance, and self-identity search are prominent when it comes to substance abuse for those with mental illness.

Though a person may diligently try to recover from a drug addiction, if there is a mental illness present that is not also addressed, there is a great risk of relapse or failure in treatment. Over time, the absence of recovery from either problem may result in feelings of failure and alienation. A person might also experience the inability to be stable on their own and may also have a loss of their support systems.

Statistics:

37% of alcohol abusers and 53% of drug users also have at least one serious mental illness

Of all people diagnosed as mentally ill, 29% abuse either alcohol or drugs

In 1993, as many as 50% of the mentally ill population were reported to have a substantial abuse problem.

In 2002, depending on the setting, prevalence rates for the co-occurring disorders (dual diagnosis) ranged from 20 to 80%.

How is Dual Diagnosis Determined?

Dual diagnosis can be very difficult to determine. Symptoms of substance abuse such as extreme anxiety, depression, paranoia, delusions and hallucinations are similar to those of mental illness. In many instances, one problem is blamed on the other. It takes time and patience to separate the behaviors and symptoms of each, but it is possible.

Treatment for Dual Diagnosis:

Optimally, both issues should be treated simultaneously. The first step may need to be detoxification under proper medical supervision to allow the body to cleanse itself of all alcohol and/or drugs. A gradual approach should be taken by all involved as dual diagnosis is complicated and may require more time.