Misorder And Substance Abuse Disorders

Co-occurring disorders can be difficult to treat due to the complexity of symptoms. Both the mental health and substance abuse disorders have biological, psychological, and social components assessed throughout the treatment process. Co-occurring disorder individuals battle to maintain their sobriety as they need to find services for both mental health and support groups catering to their unique needs.

A broad range of medical and psychological therapies is currently available for people who struggle with substance addictions. The scientific community is working on evaluation of various treatments to determine which strategies offer the best chances of successful outcome. People who need treatment for alcoholism and drug use are very diverse group. Addiction is a disorder that requires an individual case approach; therefore, different ways to

Although the task force does effectively address the problem of substance abuse and addictive disorders, it does not effectively address co-occurring disorders. Early on in the text, a co-occurring disorder is defined as an individual who has a substance abuse disorder and a mental disorder at the same time. The task force mainly focuses on substance abuse. There are elements that are present in the treatment such as release prevention, engagement, and persuasion. The task force provides a number of interventions strategies address problems with substance use.

Persons with common mental disorders such as schizophrenia have been deemed a danger to society, and substance abuse is known to be a contributing factor to this theory.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2009) the most effective dual diagnosis treatment plans combine mental health and substance abuse programs contain interventions that are customized for the client. While inpatient James will receive an Integrated Dual Diagnosis Treatment (IDDT) plan personalized for him (Boyle & Kroon, 2006). The treatment plan for James must include the problems, symptoms, goals, outcomes, methods and services to be successful (Stevens & Smith, 2013).

Individuals with a mental illness often turn to drugs or alcohol to reduce their symptoms, as opposed to or in addition to seeking treatment for their illness. This problem is much worse than previously imagined, with experts estimating 65 percent of prison inmates suffering from a dual diagnosis. The prevalence in the general population is likely very high also, thus anyone with a mental illness or substance abuse problem may find they need specialized care.

A statistical piece of information that was interesting is that how the number of mental disorders increases as the number of substance abuse disorders increases as well. Services, U.D. (2005) states the likelihood of mental disorders rises alongside with substance abuse dependencies. With the rise of both abuses at the same time, it complicates treatment for the mental disorder patients that have drug use however, multiple drugs is normal for those who are substance abusers (Services, U.D., 2005). The reason this information is found to be interesting is because with the two disorders rising at the same level, it appears that the challenges will be harder and more co-occurring disorder patients are going to need help with their issues. As a counselor, one must be dually competent to treat these clients or have staff available to treat the clients who have co-occurring disorders to ensure an effective outcome.

The majority of research that exists on 12-step programs often focus on determining the success rate of 12-step programs such as AA. There is little to no research on problems associated with 12-step programs or problematic areas of 12-step programs. The little research that does exist argue that 12-step programs are not structured for comorbid individual, they may not be the best option for mild substance use disorder, and the central theme of powerlessness can conflict with a therapist’s theoretical orientation and be harmful to the therapeutic alliance. (Kelly & Myers, 2007, Laudet et al., 2004, L, Ingvarson, Richard, 1995). The National Institute of Mental Health (2013) has found that 43.6 million adults aged 18 and older have at least one mental illness and 45 percent of individuals with one mental disorder met criteria for two or more disorders. The presence of comorbid disorders can severely affect the treatment and outcome of individuals (Terra et al., 2006). Many studies have found that clients with a dual diagnosis experience increased rates of hospitalization and increased use of emergency services (Helzer & Pryzbeck, 1998). It is easy to imagine how hospitalization can interrupt treatment by making it difficulty for individuals to attend.

Strengths and Weaknesses for Integrated Treatment In a perfect world, integrated treatment approaches for all clients is a thorough, thoughtful, and positive approach to the overall recovery of the individual, especially for those with co-occurring disorders. Currently, through my professional work as a drug and alcohol case manager, both site and field-based, I see the strengths as a collaborative and integrated approach to treatment for these individuals, including a variety of programs and professionals, ranging from drug and alcohol treatment providers, mental health counselors, psychiatrists, and certified recovery and peer specialists. Van Wormer and Davis (2018) highlighted the evidence-based Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) approach

Individuals with substance use disorders (SUDs) are difficult to treat due to the high prevalence of relapse, with an average of 50% relapsing within the first year (Bowen et al., 2014). Research has shown that current relapse prevention therapy is ineffective and other techniques are needed for effective treatment. To decrease the incidence of relapse, Bowen et al. (2014) set out to assess the effectiveness of mindfulness-based relapse prevention (MBRP) compared with standard relapse prevention (RP) and treatment as usual (TAU) in a randomized clinical trial during a 12-month follow-up period. Bowen et al. (2014) hypothesized that MBRP would significantly decrease the risk of relapse and participants would stay sober longer compared with RP and TAU. The study included 286 participants between the ages of 18 and 70, which were selected from a SUD treatment facility and randomly assigned to into the MBRP, RP, or TAU group. The MBRP group included eight weekly 2-hour group sessions with two therapists. The RP intervention, followed the same format, but instead utilized cognitive behavioral therapy. The TAU program was formatted around Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) 12-step program and included 1.5-hour groups 1 to 2 times per week. All participants were assessed at baseline, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months after the interventions. The study found that MBRP and RP significantly lowered the risk of relapsing and decreased the days of substance use compared with the TAU.

Based on my experiences working with individuals involved in the criminal justice system, those suffering from co-occurring disorders is common. With the current opiate epidemic we are facing, I have come across a majority of individuals who are both opiate depended, as well as having a psychiatric diagnosis consisting of either, or both, depression and anxiety. When trying to provide services for these individuals, both their substance abuse and psychiatric issues need to be addressed. To be most effective, they need to be treated at the same time through integrated treatment. Based on the concept of “No wrong door”, the client will be provided with services to make sure they receive the appropriate treatment. After the client is assessed

Many individuals suffer on a daily basis with one mental disorder let alone multiple. Few have the resources needed to cope and can turn to other methods of improvement without thinking about the potential outcomes of addictions and worsen their condition. Mental disorders are often than not linked to substance abuse because of the stigma placed over humanity. Society places such a constricting grasp on what is considered normal that people are hiding their symptoms and attempting to mask them to get by; only causing chaos to their lives. It is easier to try an attempt to mask symptoms with alcohol and other narcotics. I chose to focus on Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) mixed with Substance Abuse for the focus of this piece. All of this can be alleviated by erasing the stigma we 've placed and given these people the many methods of help they seek. One of the first things to think about is the comorbidity between abuse disorders and other mental disorders from an epidemiological standpoint. What is comorbidity exactly? The term was introduced to “refer to any distinct additional clinical entity that has existed or that may occur during the clinical course of a patient who has the index disease under study.” Which basically means when two or more medical conditions ensue simultaneously or consecutively in the same individual they are commonly said to be comorbid. 1

Substance abuse complicates almost every aspect of care for the person with a mental disorder. When drugs enter the brain, they can interrupt the work and actually change how the brain performs its jobs; these changes are what lead to compulsive drug use. Drug abuse plays a major role when concerning mental health. It is very difficult for these individuals to engage in treatment. Diagnosis for a treatment is difficult because it takes time to disengage the interacting effects of substance abuse and the mental illness. It may also be difficult for substance abusers to be accommodated at home and it may not be tolerated in the community of residents of rehabilitation programs. The author states, that they end up losing their support systems

Clearly, this is a very serious disorder, which is often utterly incapacitating. Therefore, individuals urgently require efficacious treatment, both for survival and for quality of life, and many different kinds of treatment and therapy are used. This paper will examine the use of two of these, cognitive behavioral therapy and drug therapy, and evaluate which one is better. It will take the position that drug therapy is a more effective therapy for treating schizophrenia than is cognitive behavioral therapy.

Although it is true that for most people the initial decision to take drugs is voluntary, over time the changes in the brain caused by frequent drug abuse can impair a person's self-discipline and ability to make sound judgements, and at the same time create an intense impulse to take drugs. It is because of these alterations in the brain that it is so puzzling for a person to stop abusing drugs. Luckily, there are treatments that help people to neutralize addiction's powerful disruptive effects and regain control of their lives. Study shows that combining addiction treatment medications, when suitable, with behavioral therapy is the best way to ensure success for most patients. Treatment approaches that are custom-made to each patient's drug abuse patterns and any concurrent medical, psychiatric, and social problems can help achieve sustained recovery and a life without drugs.