For people struggling with substance use and mental health issues, dual diagnosis treatment can be the best road to recovery. Substance use disorders and mental health conditions often occur at the same time. The most effective mental health treatment programs consider both issues together, rather than treating either one in isolation.
A dual diagnosis program focuses on both diagnoses, attending to clients’ sobriety and mental health needs. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration recommends dual diagnosis treatment as a best practice in recovery care.
Lotus Recovery Centers’ Delaware mental health facilities offer dual diagnosis treatment from experienced medical professionals. For clients at every stage in recovery, this treatment plan has exceptional benefits.
1. Dual Diagnosis Treatment Breaks Substance Abuse Cycles
Untreated mental health conditions can increase a person’s chance of developing a substance use disorder. People may turn to addictive substances to cope with overwhelming emotions or manage symptoms of mental illness. In fact, people with diagnosed mental health conditions are twice as likely to have a substance use disorder as the general population. Since these conditions are so often linked, they’re difficult to treat independently.
As people continue turning to substances for relief from mental health issues, they often develop higher tolerances — they need larger substance doses to achieve the same effect. This can create a cycle of addiction that’s hard to break.
Mental health treatment can break this cycle of substance dependence by addressing its underlying causes. At the same time, the client receives treatment targeted to their substance abuse recovery. A dual diagnosis program may help them:
- Identify triggers that lead to substance use
- Practice healthier coping mechanisms
- Learn more about their mental health condition
- Manage mental health symptoms in smart ways
- Develop a plan to avoid relapses
If medication is part of the treatment plan, doctors will work with clients to figure out the best medicine and dosages for their situation. Some medications treat symptoms of mental illness, while others ease the symptoms of withdrawal from addictive drugs.
When dual diagnosis treatment meets the client’s needs, they’re more likely to stay in treatment, live independently, handle responsibilities, and feel satisfied with their lives.
Our Delaware mental health facility offers ongoing aftercare that continues after clients have completed a dual diagnosis program. Connections to support groups and alumni events can help build a community, making it easier to stay sober over the long term.
2. Therapy Provides Support at Mental Health Facilities
Talk therapy is an integral part of mental health treatment. Therapeutic techniques can provide strength and motivation for clients to overcome substance abuse as well.
Individual and group therapy at a dual diagnosis treatment center is designed to treat multiple mental health diagnoses, including common diagnoses like:
- Generalized anxiety disorder
- Depression
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
- Bipolar disorder
- Borderline personality disorder
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
Each condition requires a specialized approach. Therapists at our Delaware mental health facility use a range of techniques to meet the needs of each individual client.
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) works on changing thoughts to change behavior.
- Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) treats mood disorders and integrates coping mechanisms to reduce self-harm.
- Support groups offer a community of people working to overcome similar substance abuse issues.
- Trauma therapy helps clients deal with the impact of past trauma.
- Family therapy focuses on repairing and strengthening relationships.
Group therapy can also become a place where clients celebrate successes and rebound after setbacks together. Knowing they’re not alone in the struggles of dual diagnosis treatment can help clients significantly in recovery.
3. Outpatient Treatment Offers Flexibility
At our mental health treatment center in Prices Corner, Delaware, clients are treated on an outpatient basis. They’ll receive the same high standard of care as they would at an inpatient program, but they’ll have more flexibility and freedom. Clients can attend school, go to work, and fulfill family responsibilities while continuing dual diagnosis treatment. The outpatient model gives clients a chance to practice new, healthy coping mechanisms in the real world.
At the same time, regular treatment sessions provide an important sense of stability. When clients feel tempted to relapse into substance abuse, they know help is always nearby. Depending on the client’s progress and individual treatment plan, outpatient treatment can be infrequent or as intensive as 30 hours a week. Outpatient dual diagnosis treatment may be appropriate for clients who have completed a residential program and need ongoing support, or clients who are able to live independently in a community.
Lotus Recovery Centers Are Here for You
The dual diagnosis treatment program in our Prices Corner, Delaware center can help you or a loved one overcome substance use issues and manage mental health conditions.
Staffed by doctors, therapists, and other recovery professionals, our program combines counseling, medication as needed, and primary care to help clients heal in body and mind.
If you’re ready to take the next step in recovery, or you want to refer someone else, contact 833.922.1615 to get started.
