Dual diagnosis occurs when someone suffers from drug addiction and a mental health disorder at the same time. In the past, mental illness was treated separately from substance abuse. However, your mental well-being has a great influence on your chances of achieving long-term sobriety. Thus, when it comes to recovering from a dual diagnosis, an integrated and personalized treatment plan is crucial.
Here are some benefits to treatment that focuses equally on your specific mental illness and your drug addiction:
Save time and money with integrated treatment
If you receive integrated treatment, you won’t have to go to a different center for your mental illness once you leave rehab. You will be treated for both disorders at one facility, by the same team of health care professionals. Not only will this save you time and money; but it will also allow you to build relationships with your doctors, nurses and therapists.
Targeted support
Either mental conditions or addiction can develop first, but it is common for underlying emotional issues to trigger substance abuse. By focusing on your specific mental disorder, therapists can identify the triggers that cause your addiction and adapt your treatment accordingly. During rehab, you will learn how to avoid and manage specific things or situations that might have caused drug or alcohol dependence. In the end, your treatment can be individually tailored and your rehabilitation will be more effective.
Restore your sense of agency
Dual diagnosis of a mental health disorder and a substance addiction can often leave people feeling helpless and not in control of themselves or their diagnosis. For this reason, patients and their families are often involved in developing their treatment plans. You will be allowed to set your own goals and to raise the specific concerns that you want to address. Thus, instead of being a victim of dual diagnosis, you will be actively involved in your own recovery.
Increase your chances of completing rehab
Recovering from an addiction is never easy and the rehabilitation process can be emotionally overwhelming. This can add to the stress that you might already be experiencing as a result of your mental illness. However, if your mental disorder is treated together with your addiction, it can help to reduce your emotional stress significantly. In the end, the rehab process will be much easier.
Prevent a relapse
If only your addiction is treated, your mental illness might still exist once you leave rehab. To cope with underlying emotional issues, many people rely on drugs or alcohol in this case. Ultimately, this could create a cycle of dependence once again. However, your chances of relapsing are reduced when you receive integrated and personalized treatment for your dual diagnosis. Therapists will provide you with the tools you need to deal with stress, relationships, anxiety, and other concerns once you leave rehab. As such, you won’t need to rely on drugs to cope with emotional issues. In this way you can ensure that you become permanently sober.
As mental disorders and addiction are interrelated, recovery from dual diagnosis will be most effective with personalized treatment. By focusing on your individual mental well-being, your chances of attaining permanent sobriety will be so much greater.