The Connection Between Substance Abuse and Mental Health

Our mental health affects the way that we feel and respond to life on a daily basis. When there is something wrong or out of balance in our mental state, it is going to throw off everything until it is properly
addressed, diagnosed, and treated. There is a very definite connection that has been discovered between substance abuse and mental health, or better said, a lack of true mental health. This is not to say that every person who abuses drugs or alcohol have a mental illness, but that there is a higher rate of mentally ill addicts than those who are not.

Of course, there is also the fact that many people believe that substance abuse and addiction are mental illnesses in and of themselves. This may very well be the case, but even if it's not, substance abuse is certainly an ailment of sorts and it needs to be treated alongside the mental illness that may have brought it on to begin with.

Many times, people with a mental illness, especially one that has not been diagnosed and is not being treated by a professional, will begin to "self-medicate". This essentially means that they will seek out substances that relieve the inner pain, stress, confusion, or other negative feelings that they are experiencing. For instance, a person with severe depression may begin to take "uppers" to allow them to feel happiness, even if it's only temporary. Often, the person with the mental health problem doesn't understand why they feel the way that they do, but once they find a substance that relieves the bad feelings, they are likely to become addicted quite quickly.

When that occurs, the person is now dealing with a dual diagnosis, meaning that there is a substance abuse problem as well as an additional mental health problem and both will need to be addressed and treated. An inpatient facility is likely the place to start, where the person is going to have intensive treatment, followed by aftercare day treatment programs for the substance abuse and psychiatric treatment and monitoring for the mental illness.

It is so easy to judge people that we see who are obviously dealing with substance abuse, but there is always an underlying problem that has led to the point we are seeing today. Often, that problem has to do with a mental illness that needs to be properly diagnosed and treated by a professional.

Published by Victoria Tiegert