Frequency of Mental Health & Addiction

It may be unsurprising but there is a high frequency of people with co-occurring addiction and other mental health disorders. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately half of all individuals with substance use disorder (SUD) are also diagnosed with another type of mental health disorder. In this article, we’ll cover types of co-occurrence, dual diagnosis treatment, and more!

Types of Co-Occurrence

There are numerous types of co-occurrence people may experience. Below is a list of the most common types of mental health problems associated with substance use disorder. 

  • Trauma including PTSD, Complex PTSD and others
  • Attention Deficit Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
  • Anxiety Disorders
  • Mood Disorders (i.e. Bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, and more)
  • Psychotic Disorders (i.e. Schizophrenia, Schizoaffective disorder, and more)
  • Depressive Disorders 
  • Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Dual Diagnosis Treatment

Dual diagnosis treatment for mental health and substance use disorders can be incredibly complex for a variety of reasons. First, it can be difficult to know what came first, mental health struggles or addiction. Oftentimes, prolonged substance use can lead to physical and psychological problems. Conversely, people struggling with mental health sometimes use substances to self-medicate such as weed for anxiety. Secondly, substance use can mirror or suppress symptoms associated with a variety of mental health diagnosis. In many instances, people will use substances to help cope with their mental health disorders. When prescribed by a doctor and taken as directed, medications can be instrumental in treating mental health disorders. However, when people take unprescribed or illicit substances to cope with disorders such as trauma, they can catastrophically affect their own lives. 

In the end, it’s sometimes difficult to determine if substances are masking mental health problems or their cause. Ultimately, mental health professionals are the best people to help diagnose and treat people struggling with dual diagnosis. 

Proper treatment for dual diagnosis sometimes starts with detox. This prepares individuals for residential or outpatient treatment programs that provide clinical education and support to work with their diagnosis. Effective treatment starts with a comprehensive intake assessment to evaluate mental health and substance use history, trauma history, genetic vulnerabilities, social environment and any other factors that may be relevant to one’s treatment protocol. Following this, most people tend to receive a combination of medication management and clinical therapy to treat their dual diagnosis. With the passage of time, most clinical professionals will be able to see changes in their patient’s mood, behaviors and general factors that will contribute to their patients’ stabilization.