Substance Abuse and Mental Health Facilities in Huntingdon, TN

In case you abusing substances like alcohol and drugs in Huntingdon, they can prove effective at managing - albeit in the short term - the symptoms of your mental health disorder. This form of self-medication, however, can be dangerous because it can lead to addiction.

The temporary relief that you derive from these substances could soon be overtaken by other negative physical and psychological effects. Eventually, you may even find that you have started struggling with more of the common mental health problems that are linked with drug and alcohol addiction.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

It can be difficult to recognize the existence of post-traumatic stress disorder especially when it co-occurs with substance abuse and addiction. If you are living with PTSD, you might hide your substance abuse because of the feelings of shame that you deal with.

Prolonged substance abuse, however, will eventually rewire the circuitry of the brain. Over time, you will find that you need alcohol and drugs just to feel normal. Eventually, you will develop an addiction or a substance use disorder - over and above the post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms that you have also been dealing with.

Schizophrenia

Research studies report that most of the people who live with schizophrenia - a common mental health disorder - also struggle with substance abuse and addiction. If you are among these people, you might use drugs and alcohol to manage the symptoms of your mental illness.

In the short term, this could provide you with some relief. However, it will soon lead to the development of a substance use disorder, or an addiction. When this happens, you will require dual diagnosis treatment to manage both disorders before you can get started on the road to recovery.

A dual diagnosis treatment program can help you understand the reasons behind your substance abuse and addiction as well as how this disorder is affected and continues to affect the other co-occurring behavioral and mental health disorders that you have also been diagnosed with.

This type of treatment would most likely be highly specialized and integrated. This is because it has to manage all the disorders that you have been struggling with at the same time - or simultaneously. It is recommended that you go through dual diagnosis treatment if you have been living with both addiction as well as any other co-occurring medical or mental health disorders.