Dual Diagnosis Treatment in Cuyahoga Falls, OH

It tends to be a novel concept to many, but it's the established scientific position: chronic mental disorders underlie most addictions. At our rehab for dual diagnosis treatment in Cuyahoga Falls, it's the principle at the core of all our treatment programs, and it's something that we try our best to educate our clients and their families in.

If you have a loved one who struggles with addiction, it's important that you learn about dual diagnosis treatment before you seek out a rehab program. In most cases, addiction treatment can only succeed when it is designed on the dual diagnosis principle.

Not everyone who abuses drugs ends up addicted. Most do manage to quit before their habit goes too far. Some, however, find themselves sucked into a habit that they cannot escape. Their unusual vulnerability comes down to a number of different possibilities. Genetic factors are often to blame, and so are personality disorders such as poor self-image or poor impulse control. In slightly more than 50% of addicts, vulnerability to addiction stems from chronic mental illnesses such as anxiety, depression, bipolar, OCD or schizophrenia. When people remain undiagnosed and untreated, these conditions cause them to relentlessly move towards substance abuse.

When an addict suffers from an underlying mental disorder, successful treatment of that disorder is primary to successful long-term treatment of the addiction. If the underlying condition is ignored in the treatment of the addiction, the result, usually is relapse before long -- the mental disorder creates conditions for the reappearance of addictive behavior.

Unfortunately, knowledge of dual diagnosis science is not common. Two decades after the introduction of the concept into mainstream addiction care, dual diagnosis treatment is still not a part of the programs offered at most rehabs. It is up to addicts and their families to do their own research and find competent rehabs that keep their treatment programs updated.

How is a Dual Diagnosis Condition Treated?

Many rehabs that offer dual diagnosis for addiction resort to some of the simpler approaches available. They may use a parallel treatment plan, for example, or the sequential approach. Neither tends to be very successful. The parallel approach, for example, favors concurrent treatment of both conditions by different professionals, but does not require collaboration. Such disjointed treatment usually results in poor quality care. At our center for dual diagnosis treatment at Cuyahoga Falls, we favor the more comprehensive integrated approach recommended by most experts today.

At our inpatient rehab in Cuyahoga Falls, the addiction and mental disorder are treated concurrently by psychiatrists and addiction specialists. They collaborate through dual diagnosis treatment in Cuyahoga Falls. There are tangible benefits to this approach.

Such treatment is safer: People who suffer from mental disorders are often capable of suicidal tendencies or a hostile attitude. With psychiatrists on every addiction treatment team, a dual diagnosis rehab center that follows the integrated approach is likely to be equipped to handle these tendencies.

Treatment is consistent: When treatment is delivered by psychiatric and addiction specialists in touch with one another, they are better able to form a consistent plan. Neither type of specialist is likely to come up with treatment policies not acceptable to the other.

The team is ultimately responsible: With integrated care, the psychiatrist and addiction specialist are aware of each other's moves at all times. Should treatment fail, responsibility can be determined to rest with the team. The buck cannot be passed, as it can with treatment approaches that involve care by specialist who do not collaborate.

What Happens After Drug Detox in Cuyahoga Falls

The dual diagnosis approach to detoxification does achieve results. Detoxification, however is only one part of the work required to defeat addiction. Once detoxification concludes and the withdrawal symptoms and cravings recede, these gains need to be cemented. Detoxification is followed by relapse prevention, an intensive course of psychological therapy and training that lasts months.

At every specialized dual diagnosis treatment center, relapse prevention is delivered by therapists who possess expertise in the treatment of addiction patients with mental disorders. Therapists who do not possess such specialization, such as those present at regular (non-dual diagnosis) rehabs, are usually unable to help dual diagnosis patients. It takes a special set of skills for therapists to be able to help patients deal with impulse control or anger management when they also suffer from a mental disorder. The addiction specialists at our program for relapse prevention in Cuyahoga Falls carry these special set of skills to help.

Admittedly, a short introduction to the concept of dual diagnosis care doesn't begin to cover the depth of information that patients need to find the best care. It's important to learn as much as possible before you embark on a treatment program. In our center for dual diagnosis treatment in Cuyahoga Falls, we offer patients and their families the counseling that they need to understand and appreciate the kind of treatment that they need. If you would like to speak to an expert, it would be a good idea to call us for an appointment. Call us now at (877) 804-1531.