Dual Diagnosis occurs when someone has an alcohol or substance abuse problem and one or more mental health disorders (mental illnesses.) Sometimes Dual Diagnosis is referred to as Co-existing, Co-occurring or Concurrent Disorders, Co-morbidity or Co-occurring Illness.
Examples of mental health disorders which occur with alcohol and drug abuse:
- Depression
- Anxiety Disorders
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
- Personality Disorders
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Mood Disorders
- Bipolar Disorder
- Learning Disability (LD)
- Schizophrenia
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) shared that according to reports published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA):
- Approximately 50% of individuals with severe mental disorders are affected by substance abuse.
- 37% of alcohol abusers and 53% of drug abusers also have at least one serious mental illness.
- Of all people diagnosed as mentally ill, 29% abuse either alcohol or drugs.
NAMI reports that more than 50% of all young people diagnosed with alcohol or substance abuse also suffer from a mental illness. This is a staggering statistic.
Is your son abusing drugs or alcohol? Has he been diagnosed with a mental illness? Has he been given a dual diagnosis? Do you think he needs more help than he is getting?
Triumph Youth Services is a licensed residential treatment center for teenage boys and young men. Their staff is experienced working with dual diagnosis in teenagers and have been highly successful in helping teen boys process their issues, learn skills and thinking patterns to improve behavior and provide individual growth.
Contact Triumph Youth Services today. They can answer your questions and offer help.
Reference:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_diagnosis
http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=By_Illness&Template=/TaggedPage/TaggedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=54&ContentID=23049
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