What’s The Connection Between Addiction And Mood Disorders?

Mental health disorders are far more common among addicts than they are among the general population, and mood disorders specifically very commonly co-occur with substance abuse. Depression and bipolar disorder are frequently accompanied by heavy drinking, abuse of painkillers or sedatives, and/or use of a combination of different substances. When this occurs, the effect can be significantly impaired mental health symptoms due to the combined effects of substance abuse and the mental health disorder.

A co-occurring mood disorder with alcoholism or drug addiction can make treatment a challenge. So what can you do if you or a loved one is exhibiting signs of the need for dual diagnosis treatment? The most effective way to address both issues and stop the untreated disorder from sabotaging progress in the treatment of the other disorder is to enroll in a dual diagnosis rehab program that provides comprehensive care for both disorders simultaneously.

Self-Medication

Many patients first experience symptoms of a mood disorder and attempt to use drugs and alcohol to “medicate” those symptoms. Because the symptoms of depression or the anger or mood swings associated with bipolar disorder are uncomfortable, patients may attempt to drink to change their mood or in an attempt simply to feel better.

In the same way, some patients may turn to prescription drugs like opiate painkillers or benzodiazepines, but ultimately find that nothing helps them deal with their symptoms effectively or for the long-term. Many, in fact, instead find that drug use only worsens the symptoms, but rather than turn to a more effective solution, the pull of substance abuse can create an even deeper hole of isolation and despair.

Substance Abuse as the Primary Disorder

For some patients, drinking and drug use may have appeared before the symptoms of their mood disorder began to manifest. Diagnosable signs of these disorders don’t usually begin until the early adult years, but prior to diagnosis, many patients begin experimenting with drugs and alcohol. Though it can begin as a social experiment, patients may develop a substance abuse problem that accentuates the issues stemming from their mood disorder. Unfortunately, the following problems can result when the two disorders are co-occurring:

·         Worsened mental health symptoms

·         Intensified cravings for drugs and alcohol

·         Increased periods of depression

·         Increased difficulty during detox

Treatment for Addiction and Mood Disorders

The natural inclination of many patients is to attempt to isolate and treat either the mood disorder or the substance abuse problem, depending upon which one appears to be most intrusive in their day-to-day lives. Though this may seem easier than taking on a comprehensive treatment program that addresses both issues, it ultimately only creates more work and longer time spent in treatment. A treatment program that attempts to isolate the issues attached to just the substance abuse disorder, (addiction and depression for example), won’t be as effective as one that recognizes that the symptoms caused by the mood disorder are intense triggers.

Many patients will relapse because they are not getting help in addressing those symptoms in a healthier fashion. Similarly, those who attempt to treat the mood disorder while continuing to drink or use drugs will find that little progress will be made in managing their mental health symptoms because their substance use continually offsets the value of therapy and/or medication. This is why the need for dual diagnosis and specifically designed programs for its treatment exist. Mood disorders are best treated simultaneously with substance abuse issues.

Questions about Mood and Substance Use Disorders

At Shafa Home, we offer a comprehensive and personalized treatment program for patients who are struggling with a mood disorder and substance abuse. Your journey into recovery from both disorders can begin today. Get in touch with our resident counselors now.

Shafa Home is country’s premier organization for treatment of alcohol/drug problems, de-addiction, rehabilitation, counseling, treatment for females, nasha mukti , psychiatric disorders and secondary addictions like gambling, internet etc.

Lonely, addicted, depressed – Who cares?

Life can be overwhelming. Look around your community and see that depression, suicide, and addictions are on the increase. Clearly people are hurting and feel alone with their pain. But who cares? Maybe you feel there’s nothing you can do that would make a difference. Admittedly you may not be able to change the earth, but you may be able to change how someone feels about themselves and their world.

No matter how small your gesture, it can make a difference to someone. A smile costs nothing but it may just brighten someone’s day. A sympathetic ear can help someone feel that they are not alone with their problem. An offer of help may give someone an extra boost to achieve their dream. It’s not important how you show you care, as long as you do. For when you do, you initiate a chain of kindness that is passed on to others and it is this collective caring that creates change.

Sometimes though it isn’t the lack of care or love that is the concern, it is the ability to receive it that is difficult. If you’ve experienced rejection you can be left with a lack of trust which forms a barrier to accepting any level affection. I went through many years convincing myself I didn’t want anyone to love for me out of pure fear that I would attach to their love only to have it ripped away from me. And even believing that someone would want to care was improbable. How could anyone care about me when my own mother had physically abandoned me and mentally killed me off in her mind? Yet I did need someone to care. I needed it desperately. Yet whilst I was too terrified to take the risk to reach out, it was impossible for anyone to reach in. The combination of depression and alcoholism constructed an emotional barricade that was impenetrable.

Unfortunately my mental fortress served only to trap me further in my own cycle of despair by restricting me to living each day based only on my experiences of rejection and abuse. Worse, it prevented any chance of allowing healing or restoration. There was only one way that I was going to ever be able to be helped and that was for the walls to come down. Of course this was an inevitability that I hadn’t the courage to face, and so it was my mental breakdown that resulted in the collapse of my barriers. As they came crushing down, my vulnerability was exposed and I waited for the end of my life to come.

But it didn’t. Because someone cared. Professionals stepped in and there were friends who stood by me. They cared for me when I didn’t care. They loved me when I was at my most unlovable. They believed in me when I was unable to believe in myself. Over time I learnt how to renew my boundaries in a positive way. Life stopped being simply a battle against the bad, and became a home for the good.

Most importantly I found a faith founded in unconditional love. God cared. He loved me and done all along. When I was willing to receive the love that had been waiting for me, I was then able to heal.  And as I handed over my past, present and future into the security of His hands, so I found the refuge I had longed for. Today I am safe in His care.  We all need someone to care for us. But that love needs to be rooted in truth. And it needs to be given freely. A word of warning – if someone is showing you that they care only to want something from you in return, then it isn’t genuine. Steer clear.

Shafa Home is country’s premier organization for treatment of alcohol/drug problems, de-addiction, rehabilitation, counseling, treatment for females, nasha mukti, psychiatric disorders and secondary addictions like gambling, internet etc.

‘Who cares?’ 

I do. I care.

(These articles are the sole property of “The Cabin Chiang Mai”, they are its original authors.)