Substance Abuse and Mental Health Facilities in Stratford, CT

In case you abusing substances like alcohol and drugs in Stratford, 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

If you went through a traumatic experience, your brain would start producing endorphins in lower quantities. These chemicals are responsible for helping you to feel comfortable and happy.

As a result, you might find yourself turning to mood-enhancing drugs and alcohol to ensure that your brain produces these endorphins in higher levels. Over time, however, you will start relying on these substances to deal with the additional feelings of irritability, anxiety, and depression arising from your post-traumatic stress disorder. This is how you will soon find that you are also living with addiction over and above the PTSD condition.

Psychosis

The likelihood of developing the symptoms of psychosis while taking non-prescription intoxicating substances will largely vary from one drug to the next. For instance, if you abuse cocaine in excess - by using too much at the same time - there is a high likelihood that you will experience psychosis in a matter of minutes. When this condition develops from amphetamine or cocaine abuse, it will typically lead to persecutory delusions.

You might also experience tactile, auditory, and visual hallucinations as a result of abusing hallucinogens. However, these experiences are not the same as a diagnosis of psychosis. Even so, taking too much of these drugs or suffering an adverse reaction from using them could also cause you to develop paranoia and delusions.

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.