The Mental Illness Definition

It’s not unusual for someone who struggles with drug addiction to also deal with a mental illness. That said, it’s often unclear which condition was there first. To treat both, it’s vital to understand the mental illness definition. And therapists at the rehab center must know how to apply it.

A Closer Look at the Mental Illness Definition

Health experts recognize that there’s a broad range of conditions which affect a person’s mental well-being. These disorders can present symptoms of behavior, thought patterns, or moods. Cases in point are depression and anxiety. When someone struggles with a substance abuse problem, having one of these co-occurring disorders can make a recovery more challenging.

Adding insult to injury, mental illness might make you more susceptible to struggling with addiction. The conditions intertwine, which makes treatment more extensive. Leaving one or the other problem untreated perpetuates the problem. Sure, you might be able to quit using in the short term, but in the long run, the co-occurring condition may result in a return to self-medicating behavior.

Handling a Dual Diagnosis at the Rehab Facility

When you begin rehab, an intake counselor will assess you for potentially meeting the mental illness definition during your initial interview. If you and the intake counselor discover that you meet the classification, you receive targeted addiction treatment programs. Examples of evidence-based addiction therapy services include:

• Dual diagnosis treatment that allows you to manage the mental health condition for the duration of your stay at rehab
• Integrated addiction model participation that provides for handling of mental, emotional, and physical needs during recovery
• Group therapy that helps you focus on relapse prevention strategies for both your addiction as well as your mental illness
• Therapy that offers coaching in expressing negative emotions in healthy ways; it benefits clients across multiple planes of healing
• Individual therapy tackles both the mental health condition as well as the substance abuse problem

After you finish your stay at the rehab facility, you’ll have good control over your sobriety. To maintain it, consider seeking continued treatment for your mental illness. Typically, these conditions don’t self-correct and instead require continued medication or counseling for best results. Therapists at the rehab center gladly provide you with referrals to ensure that you continue to receive the best care.

What Happens if You Do Nothing?

Your addiction will progress. In the process, you continue to suffer adverse ramifications from drug or alcohol abuse. Because there’s a connection between your mental illness and the dependency problem, the former also gets worse. Both conditions continue to feed off each other.

Even if you get help for one, you may not experience any improvement in the other condition. But you don’t have to continue the vicious cycle of addiction and mental illness any longer. At The Hills Treatment Center, therapists understand how these conditions play off each other. Call 844-915-0287 today to schedule an intake interview and get on the road to recovery.