Dual diagnosis is the term that’s given to individuals having a mental illness and alcohol or substance abuse both occurring at the same time. Conditions like these occur frequently together within a person’s behavior.

Management of either one of these problems are stressful enough to the medical practitioner handling the case. To make things more complicated, adding the symptoms caused by a mental disorder that overlaps and may mask itself from the ability of the practitioner to recognize both events and make an accurate diagnosis. Inevitably, it’s a status which is complex, challenging and is extremely exhausting to all concerned.

It’s believed by professionals that the disorders should be treated in a way that addresses both illnesses. Simultaneous attempts must be made in order for cumulative effects to influence an individual’s personality and can greatly increase any risk for relapse upon recovery.

Dual Relationship

There is good evidence that both mental illness and substance dependence go hand-in-hand. Although, it is still questionable which aggravates which. Experts are trying to figure out if the cause for the mental disorder is because of the abuse of the person in drugs or alcohol. Another contradictory factor is that when a person is already experiencing symptoms of mental illness, alcoholism soon follows because of the negative coping skills of the person.

Some professionals feel the psychiatric problems initiate the disorder. When the person can no longer deal with their issues, they self medicate in order to feel better, and this leads to chemical dependency. If a person is already at the brink of alcoholism or drug addiction, evidences of anxiety, depression and other emotional breakdowns are often present.

Whatever the cause is, the primary step in living a healthier and more productive life is to eradicate the
alcohol from the individual’s body as well as all the harmful and addictive substances. Detoxification is ideally done inside a rehabilitation center or under the supervision of a professional medical practitioner. The process can last for a couple of days and even weeks. It’ll all depend on the substances that the person has abused.

Dual diagnosis is sometimes referred to as co-existing morbidity or co-occurring disorders. Statistics show that in dual diagnosis, the split is about 53% drug dependency and about 38% of alcohol abuse. More or less, there are about fifty percent of individuals suffering from the severity of a mental disorder and is also being affected by the problem is substance dependency.

The possibility of indentifying co-existing disorders is vague. It is can be quite difficult on the part of the psychiatrist to hit two birds with one stone. Several symptoms of substance and drug abuse can be also be the same symptoms of mental illness some of which are depression, anxiety, paranoia, hallucinations and delusions. With these symptoms’ impact, the individual can no longer function in a proper and healthy state because of the decline in self-mobilization and self-care.

Dual diagnosis affects the lives of people around the individual suffering from it. Therefore, it is important that the family can also recognize the early symptoms for treatment to take place.

How do you truly know when it is time to stop smoking marijuana? It’s a fact that many people start smoking weed as young as 12 years of age. Most are smoking by the time they hit college or university. The weed helps them get through the pressure of exams, the pain of being away from home, and more importantly, helps them deal with social issues.

It has been reported that 102 million Americans aged 12 and over have tried smoking marijuana at least once. This is almost 41% of the population! The numbers of grade 8 students smoking pot or weed is at an all time high, this grade makes up the highest percentage of young people smoking marijuana. By the time these students have reached grade 12, the numbers have dropped but the number of teens now suffering with a marijuana addiction has risen.

Smoking weed normally starts off by having a joint when at a party, and is seen as a social thing, no worse than having a cigarette. What occurs though is that this one weekly joint, turns into a couple of times a week and then without realizing becomes a daily habit. By the time the student reaches university they truly have a marijuana addiction.

Many university students report waking up in the morning and having a joint, they then train themselves to chase this high all day long. This chase would require more joints when possible, easily smoking a quarter ounce or more per week. Many people take up smoking a cigarette directly afterwards, believing it enhances the effects. Smoking pot along with cigarettes results in damaging your lungs that much faster.

Worrying about smoking soon becomes an obsession, you worry about not having enough, will you be able to get more, and how you are going to find the money for your next smoke and more.

Take a good look at yourself, are you getting sick more often and not sleeping properly. Have your friends told you that you are more moody and unsociable, unless you’re smoking? Have you caught yourself going around your parent’s home looking for cash to buy marijuana with? May be, if you are totally honest with yourself, you just don’t know who you really are anymore?

If so, then it’s time to admit you have a marijuana addiction and seek help from one of the several self help methods available today.

Drug addiction and mental illness often occur together. When people abuse drugs, it’s usually a form of self-medication. Self-medication may temporarily relieve some of the symptoms associated with mental illness such as anxiety, stress, and depression, but even medical professionals will tell you it’s difficult to point out both problems at the same time.

Self-medicating when you have a mental illness is a slippery slope. Often drugs exacerbate mental illness by worsening the symptoms or cause the mental illness to appear sooner than it would have otherwise. Some medical specialists in addiction believe that mental disorders are symptoms of drug addiction, while mental health practitioners beg to differ. It’s a case of which came first – the mental health disorder or the addiction?

In 2002, the Department of Health placed the responsibility for dual diagnosis clients within mental health services in the form of the Dual Diagnosis Good Practice Guide. Make no mistake, supporting someone with a mental health illness as well as a substance abuse problem is one of the biggest challenges facing mental health services, and clients often fall between the cracks.

It is known that brain diseases share biology. Since addiction and mental illness are both brain diseases, they involve the same brain chemicals and pathways. For example, serotonin transporters are associated with both mood disorders and alcoholism.

A well known study done in 1990 reported a dual diagnosis prevalence of 53 percent for problem drug users and 37 percent for problem alcohol users. A more recent study in 2004 found a prevalence of 60 percent for independent mood disorders and 43 percent as having at least one anxiety disorder.

Note that neither analysis takes into account those with a diagnosis of personality disorder — a disorder that is becoming more widely recognized as having a significant impact upon drug and alcohol abusing individuals.

Mentally ill patients with substance dependency and abuse carry a burden that can cause them to drop out of mental health treatment centers as clients who didn’t have any substance addiction problems which can become a future predicament.

Awareness is the key It is important that a medical professional dealing with a dually diagnosed patient address to both disorders in a way that’ll be fruitful for the whole. Treating one disorder will mean nothing. Awareness of both disorders is crucial. Without awareness there is no understanding and treatment.

According to the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, approximately 5 million people participate in self-help programs for alcohol and drug abuse each year. This includes about 2.3 million that completely abstain from use of these substances. The report is based on data collected in 2006 and 2007. Some other statics from that report –

• 45.3% attended a self-help group because of their alcohol use only
• 21.8% attended because of illicit drug use only
• 33% attended because of both alcohol and illicit drug use

Recovery from drug addiction is a lifetime pursuit. Long term recovery is essential for the person who has been addicted to a specific habit or substance.

Tip 1

Occupy yourself with something worthwhile. It’s important to keep yourself productive. Find a job or enroll yourself in classes. You don’t want an abundance of free time on your hands. Staying busy will keep your mind from resorting to old patterns of thought. When you get out of rehab, make plans for your future; however, make sure they don’t involve the old friends that you indulged with. If you revert to your old habits, you’ll resume the lifestyle that got you in rehab in the first place.

Tip 2

Re-establish nourishing relationships. It is essential that you work on relationships with your family, friends and even relatives. If your past behavior has put a strain on these relationships, work on repairing them. Don’t be expect their reactions to all be positive. Damaged relationship take time to repair, but real friends will not abandon you during trying times.

Tip 3

Continue counseling. After completing rehabilitation, it is crucial to continue counseling in order to heal underlying issues. This can be one very effective way to remind yourself why you need rehabilitation in the first place. Your counselors and therapists will be the ones to provide objectivity and keep you on the right track.

Tip 4

Remember. When the craving strikes you, remember all you have gone through. Remember the circumstances you found yourself in and how it affected your entire life. This will enable you to focus your mind on what you want to accomplish.

Tip 5

Reinvent yourself. It’s ok to admit that the old you didn’t work out so well. Now you have a perfect opportunity to be someone different. Craft a lifestyle that is healthy and positive. Start by replacing bad habits with good ones. Get out of your head by helping someone else.

Tip 6

Pace yourself. You’ll only be frustrated if you try to make too many changes at once. Being in recovery isn’t easy, so cut yourself a break and be patient. Sometimes, recovery takes years before a person completely overcomes their addiction.

Tip 7

Never give up. It’s key that you participate in your own recovery and give 100 percent effort. If you hope to be healed of addiction, remember that negative circumstances come and go. Your rehabilitation will depend on a positive attitude and belief in yourself.

Reference: Understanding Addiction