Mental Illness & Addiction
Slowly, the general public is beginning to realize that eight of the 20 million individuals with a substance abuse disorder also have a mental health illness. Many people with mental health problems use drugs and drinking as ways of coping with their depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, schizophrenia and other mental disorders. According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, people that have been diagnosed with a mental disorder at some point in their lives, buy 69 percent of alcohol and 84 percent of cocaine. If you are one of these people, it is imperative that you seek help at an addiction recovery center.
But, this self-medication does little for those struggling with mental health issues. Instead, it opens up a new can of worms. A whole new range of problems, struggles, and inconveniences. People with mental illnesses are much more like to get addicted to the drugs they use to cope because each of their conditions triggers the other. A vicious cycle of depression and euphoria, nothing gets done by momentarily ceasing the pain. Nor is anything done by our country’s militant stance of the last forty years with the War on Drugs. If you are experiencing a drug addiction, please contact United Drug Rehab to find the ideal drug rehab center for your needs. If you have a co-occurring mental illness, that will be treated as well with dual diagnosis treatment.
Compulsive behavior is seen in both drug addicts and mental health disorders. People with both of these disorders feed off of substances to keep them for doing terrible things to themselves or others, or to simply bear the pain of everyday life. Those with social anxiety drink and use drugs to get through social interactions. Enabling them to interact more successfully, they feel less insecure about their nervousness around new people. Uppers like cocaine and crystal meth are used for those who can’t seem to find the energy to get out of bed, work on productive things, or care about living a rewarding life.
Poor decision making is a key component of both of these disorders. Without care for the future, the substance abusing person with a mental disorder takes part in activities that are only concerned with the here and now. For example, a lack of respect for the future allows them to take health ruining drugs. Then, the urge for certain drugs gets so pressing that they perform illegal actions to get the drugs that they are addicted to.
However, there is hope. With the revelation of dual diagnosis treatment, you can escape the binds of drug addiction and mental illness. At a drug rehab facility you can get the treatment that will both show you the triggers of your drug use as well as where they came from. Perhaps, your mental disorder was caused by drug addiction instead of a cause of it. Either way, both ailments need to be treated for a successful recovery at an addiction treatment center. Please call United Drug Rehab today to schedule an appointment with a drug rehab clinic.
