Dual Diagnosis

When someone is struggling with addiction, it’s rarely just about the substance. Behind every bottle, pill, or compulsive behavior, there’s often a deeper story—untreated trauma, anxiety, depression, or another mental health challenge. That’s why dual diagnosis treatment isn’t a luxury. It’s a necessity.

A co-occurring diagnosis is a condition in which an individual is struggling with addiction, while simultaneously coping with some form of mental illness. This type of situation is common enough that addiction treatment centers have incorporated mental health treatments into their programs. While co-occurring may sound like an easy condition to identify, it's actually a very complex psychological problem that has generated myths and rumors.

“Addiction begins with the hope that something “out there” can instantly fill up the emptiness inside.” According to a study conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2014), approximately 43.8 million people ages 18 and older experience some form of mental illness. Of those, approximately 7.9 million people suffer from a mental disorder and a substance abuse disorder, also known as a co-occurring disorder. According to the Foundations Recovery Network, an organization that assists individuals with several addictions and mental illness, the following are the most common co-occurring disorders:

Millions of people suffer from both a mental illness and an addiction, and there are so many resources to assist an individual in recovery. From therapists to treatment programs, anyone can get the help that they need. Recovery is a courageous, beneficial step to living a healthy, balanced life and can increase a person’s overall happiness and well-being. Suffering from a mental illness and an addiction is called having a co-occurring or dual disorder. This is best treated through integrated care, such as therapy and medical treatment, and there are many excellent programs that health facilities provide to assist individuals who suffer from this. Having a co-occurring disorder does not mean that the person has “too much wrong with them” or that there are no resources out there. Co-occurring disorders are quite common because many individuals do not realize that they suffer from a mental illness and therefore try to self-medicate with drugs or alcohol to relieve the negative symptoms they are experiencing. Integrated dual disorder treatment (IDDT) is a common evidence-based form of treatment that focuses on both mental health and substance abuse treatment, typically in the same facility and with the same healthcare team. Research has shown that this form of treatment has been effective in working with individuals who suffer from co-occurring disorders. This form of treatment helps reduce relapse, hospitalization, arrest, duplication of services, and more by providing comprehensive care to the individual. By utilizing IDDT, a person will experience increased continuity of care, increased quality of life outcomes, stable housing, and independent living, which will help the person manage their co-occurring disorders while receiving optimal care. There are several core components of IDDT. Here is a small, but not exhaustive, list of some of the amazing components of this form of treatment: