Substance Abuse Untreated

The mental health and substance abuse systems have many areas in which they are the same, but different. Two examples of these areas are levels of care and use of medication. Both systems offer a variety of settings from which an individual may receive assistance. Yet, the mental health system has the advantage of a larger variety of settings and levels assistance. For example, mental health can offer acute, subacute, and long term care. Whereas, substance abuse treatment centers around inpatient and outpatient counseling (TIP #9). Medication is another area of both similarity and difference. The use of medication in the addiction setting is very limited due to philosophical reasons (12 Step) and the limited number of trained staff who may

The human and economic toll of co-occurring mental health and substance abuse disorders in this country demands immediate attention. Though the problems associated with co-occurring disorders have long been acknowledged and discussed, there has been little consensus about how to accomplish needed system change. In this time period, there are many different disorders and illnesses that go unnoticed, and unknown.

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.

Substance use disorders (SUD’s) are defined when the recurrent use of drugs and / or alcohol give rise to an array of clinically significant behavioral and physical health problems (Agley, 2016; Dwinnels, 2015). Substance use disorders impair individuals’ safety and quality of life and often co-occur with depression disorders (Dwinnels, 2015; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA], 2014). According to the 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, approximately 21.5 million Americans aged 12 or older had SUDs within the past year (Montgomery, 2015; SAMHSA, 2014). Currently, it is estimated that 20.2 million people with SUDs did not receive appropriate care (SAMHSA, 2014; Small, 2016).

According to the American Psychiatric Association chronic drug abuse may occur together with any mental illness that may include some of the following disorders. “Some common serious mental disorders associated with chronic drug abuse include schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, manic depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, panic disorder, and antisocial personality disorder” (Center, 2004). Some of these disorders carry with them an increased risk of drug abuse. Another example of a drug that can cause a mental disorder, is MDMA (3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine) which is commonly known as ecstasy. It produces long term deficits in serotonin function in the brain, leading to mental disorders such as depression and anxiety.

According to National Institute of Mental Health, behavioral health disorders impact more Americans than any other illness including cancer and heart disease. 60 million Americans have a mental illness. 1 in 4 adults experience a mental illness in a given year. 9 million adults have co-occurring mental health and addiction disorders. Individuals struggling from serious behavioral health issues die on average 25 years earlier than the general population. According to the World Bank, by 2030 depression will become our most costly healthcare issue. In ways subtle and not-so-subtle, mental health problems, including addiction, haven't always been addressed as health problems, but as something somehow different—even as weaknesses in character.

Stress: Many people use drugs because they feel as if it would make them relax and forget about all their issues that stress them up. However, it is the opposite. Once the euphoric feeling they get from the drug is over, they go back to being stressed and depressed. Long-term use of drugs can cause a deep impact on the way one’s brain works, and that can lead to augmented anxiety and stress. (Med India, Network for Health, n.d.)

Addiction can be triggered in any way. People with anxiety, bipolar disorder, depression or other mental illnesses believe drug use helps ease their suffering, people think drugs will relieve stress and people use drugs to cover painful memories of their past. A drug or alcohol addiction is actually a brain disease that causes the body to want more drug or alcohol intake. The abuse of drugs changes the structure and function of your brain. Scientists believe that all addictive drugs activate the brain’s “reward system”, by increasing the release of the chemical dopamine from neurons in primary areas of the brain. Alcohol abuse or alcoholism is the chronic disease characterized by uncontrollable drinking and preoccupation with alcohol. Using alcohol affects your brain, liver, pancreas, mouth and immune

The American Psychological Association defines a mental illness as a health condition that involves changes in thinking, emotion, and/or behavior and is often associated with distress or problems functioning in social, work, or family settings (https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/what-is-mental-illness). Substance abuse falls under this category for how is alters the addicts brain and changes the way they function on a day to day basis. Addiction changes the brain and upsets the normal hierarchy of needs--Maslow’s triangle no longer matters. Maslow's Hierarchy, commonly referred to as Maslow's Triangle because of its shape, is a theory of psychology that is demonstrated in a five step model. The base being basic necessities such as food, water, and warmth, the second step is security and safety, third is belongingness and love, fourth is self esteem, and the final tier is self actualization (https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html). Addiction forces those to bypass their basic needs. Addicts will seek out and do anything for drugs regardless of the conditions they live in, how it will affect their social and work relationships, or even if it

Drugs also affect mental health. Many people who have drug problems also have a mental health problem, such as: depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, ADHD, or antisocial personality disorder (Drug Use and Mental Health Problems Often Happen Together). The more a person abuses an addictive substance, the more they feel dependent on them to endure everyday conditions. Using a drug can trigger a mental illness that was not known about or change chemicals in the brain to cause a mental illness. Drugs do not only affect mental health but physical health too. Drugs can harm organs and systems in the body, such as the throat, stomach, lungs, liver, pancreas, heart, brain, and nervous system (Department of Health & Human Services).

Statistics indicate that there are nearly 21 million Americans who have a substance abuse disorder, but only a significantly small portion of up to about ten percentage has been able to access medical help (Kelly et al. 8). Assessing the reasons why

A substance, otherwise known as a “drug”, alters mental states such as mood, perception or consciousness when taken by a living organism (Fuhr, 1978). In the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) substance abuse, also known as addiction, is considered a disease (Griffin, 2015).

To begin with, I attended my first Narcotics Anonymous meeting with a classmate. Is drug addiction a mental illness you may ask? According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the answer is yes. This is because addiction changes the brain in fundamental ways, disturbing a person’s normal hierarchy of needs and desires and substituting new priorities connected with obtaining and using the drug (Drug Abuse, 2010). As a matter of fact, the DSM includes criteria for drug use disorders, which has two types. These include drug abuse and drug dependence.

Persons who suffer from untreated and/or undiagnosed mental illness are prone to turn to substance abuse in their attempts to self-medicate. Due to the mood-altering effects of substances, those who may experience anxiety, depression, and psychotic symptoms, tend to find temporary relief from such symptoms in their drug usage, however the adverse effects

There are a lot of great people in this world and even the best people make the worst mistakes sometimes. That mistake being drug addiction. According to Foundation for a Drug-Free World, “19.9 million Americans or 8% of the population ages 12 or older use illegal drugs.” Many adolescents experiment with illegal drugs during high school. The repeated use of drugs causes a withdrawal when not using, which is called drug addiction. Drug addiction is a life altering disease. In Healthy Place, it states, “Drug addiction changes the way the brain functions and impacts how the body perceives pleasure. These effects of drug addiction are because the drug repeatedly floods the brain with the chemicals dopamine and serotonin during drug use. The brain adapts and comes to expect, and depend on, these drug-induced highs.” There are several physical and psychological effects that drug abuse can cause.