Drugs affect mental health in many ways. In some cases, drug addiction can lead to long-term mental health problems. If you’ve been doing drugs for a while, you may start seeing signs of depression. Patients with drug abuse problems are more likely to develop depression and other health conditions, like schizophrenia. That’s how drugs negatively impact mental health. If you think you’re dealing with a mental condition, get help. Look for an expert so that you can ask about your options.
Emotionally Unable to Cope
People who often use drugs do so to escape a situation. They are unable to handle emotional issues and find themselves stressed, overcome, and stretched to the breaking point. If you find yourself in that position, it may seem easier to turn to drugs to manage your emotions. But addiction doesn’t have a good outcome. Stay healthy by staying away from drugs. If you’re struggling, enroll in a program for drug rehab in Arizona. That should get you started on the right path.
Medical Uses of Recreational Drugs
Many patients unable to find effective pain relief may turn to recreational drugs. That’s how addiction to prescriptions happens. Patients living with chronic pain or chronic conditions want to use drugs to numb the pain and discomfort. By turning to drugs, though, many end up developing an addiction.
Addiction Before a Mental Disorder
Some patients use drugs to deal with symptoms of their mental illness. However, by self-medicating and using drugs, they only end up in more trouble. They already have an addiction problem before developing a mental condition. In some cases, using drugs even worsens the symptoms of their mental disorder.
Medication Leads to Mental Disorders
If you are being treated for addiction, some of the medication you’ve been given may put you at risk of developing a mental illness. Developing a mental disorder makes it harder to treat your addiction. You need an integrated treatment problem to deal with both problems.
The Right Treatment
It doesn’t matter which condition first developed. Whether a patient first had a mental condition only to develop addiction problems later or vice versa, it doesn’t matter. What matters is both conditions must be addressed. You’ll need to find the right treatment program. Look for a rehab facility that offers dual diagnosis treatment. That program is designed to treat co-occurring disorders.
How Does It Happen?
Dual diagnosis involves treating a mental health disorder and addiction problem at the same time. Some patients may think it’s all right to focus only on their addiction problem. But if they already have symptoms of a mental health disorder, it’s necessary that both conditions are treated. Otherwise, patients who see improvements in their rehab recovery will only end up depressed or suffering from their mental health disorder. If you don’t want your progress to slow down, look for rehabs that offer dual diagnosis treatment and receive the help you need immediately. With mental health and drug rehab services working together, you’ll have the support and help you’ll need to finally get better.