Dual Diagnosis in San Antonio (877) 804-1531

A dual diagnosis is made when a person suffers from both a mood disorder (e.g. depression, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), etc.) and substance addiction. Current estimates suggest that between 9 and 14 million Americans meet criteria for dual diagnosis in San Antonio. Treating those suffering from dual diagnosis conditions requires attention to both disorders at once. Treating each disorder separately can worsen outcomes. Call today at (877) 804-1531 to find out more about available Alcohol Treatment Centers in San Antonio.

Anxiety and Alcohol

About 20% of individuals seeking treatment for anxiety have a dual diagnosis in San Antonio that includes a substance abuse disorder. Anxiety is often treated with benzodiazepines, prescription medications that have the same physiologic effects alcohol. It should come as no surprise then that alcohol can help to reduce the symptoms of anxiety and become a crutch for those suffering from it. Dependence on alcohol to treat anxiety can hasten progression to addiction.

Depression and Alcohol

Alcohol worsens depression, but it also helps those with depression escape their problems for a limited time. Unfortunately, using alcohol to treat the mood disorder creates a vicious spiral into heavier and heavier drink as one attempts to escape the worsening depression caused by ethanol.

OCD and Addiction

Approximately 25% of individuals who seek treatment for OCD also meet the criteria for a substance use disorder. Alcohol can help to dull the obsessions that plague individuals suffering from OCD. The overwhelming nature of OCD makes addiction to alcohol or drugs appear minor in the beginning. It is only later that the problems associated with this dual diagnosis fully manifest as an addiction that is as much a compulsion as the classic hand-washing and lock-checking behaviors associated with OCD.

PTSD and Alcohol

Many individuals with PTSD say that they turn to alcohol as a means of numbing pain that they feel or as a way to gain some measure of control over their lives. PTSD is not just associated with military combat. It may arise as a result of a violent assault, a natural disaster, sexual assault, or childhood abuse. PTSD is characterized by anxiety, depression, emotional duress, and physical pain. These symptoms occur in part because of endorphin (the body's natural painkillers and mood elevators) withdrawal brought about by the original trauma. Alcohol can help to counteract endorphin withdrawal.

Bipolar Disorder and Alcohol

The link between bipolar disorder (once called manic depression) and alcohol addiction is the strongest of all. Forty-six percent of individuals with bipolar disorder will be addicted to alcohol at some point in their life. Bipolar disorder is associated with loss of inhibition and risk-taking behavior, both factors that help to obscure the risks of alcohol abuse and make addiction more probable.

Treatment Programs

The core of treating any dual-diagnosis disorder is to address the underlying psychological factors that increase propensity for addiction. Studies show that addressing both conditions at once is critical to success. Attempting to deal with only a single factor in a patient with a dual diagnosis can actually worsen both conditions. The following forms of therapy are often applied while treating a patient with dual diagnosis in San Antonio.

Group Therapy

Group therapy is critical in dual diagnosis treatment because it helps to counteract the isolation and social withdrawal that affect so many with mental illness and substance abuse disorders. Group therapy provides a supportive environment in which individuals at various stages of recovery can provide trust, compassion, and understanding to one another

Individual Therapy

Individual counseling focuses on treating both the psychiatric condition and the addictive disorder at the same time. Links between the two are explored and mechanisms for dealing with or breaking those links are learned. Individual therapy tends to be intensive, starting off with frequent sessions and then tapering to fewer and fewer sessions as results allow. Individual counseling can sometimes be confrontational as a means of pushing past barriers to healing.

Family Therapy

Addiction and mental illness rarely affect a single individual. Though these conditions can be isolating for those who suffer from them, spouses, children, parents, and other individuals are also affected. Families can play a critical role in both exacerbating a condition and helping individuals recover. Proper counseling to help family members modify their own behavior and deal with the stress of addiction and mental illness is necessary for long-term abstinence.

Pharmacotherapy

The use of prescription medications to address an underlying mental health condition is critical to long-term abstinence. Treating the underlying condition can help to reduce the symptoms that may have led to alcohol abuse in the first place. It also provides a legitimate and highly-effective means by which patients can address the worst of their symptoms.

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) focuses on providing patients with the tools they need to change thought patterns and automatic responses. In the case of addiction, CBT identifies triggers to addictive behavior and provides patients with tools for avoiding or overcoming those triggers.

Didactic Therapy

Didactic therapy is designed to be low-key and focused on rational problem solving. It provides mechanisms for altering dysfunctional beliefs and often focuses on particular skills, such as relapse prevention strategies, that are critical to treatment. Didactic therapy is generally carried out in a group setting.

Motivational Interviewing

Motivational interviewing (MI) is an approach that evolved out of the treatment of alcoholics in the early 1980s. MI focuses on creating goals and then rewarding individuals for reaching those goals. The technique is non-judgmental and non-confrontational, centering instead on increasing an individual's awareness of patterns of risky behavior and the consequences they entail. Its greatest value is in eliminating ambivalence and encouraging individuals to fully commit to recovery.

Call today at (877) 804-1531 to learn more about available Alcohol Treatment Centers in San Antonio.