When someone enters rehab, the details behind their addiction issues are largely a mystery to the addiction treatment staff. The staff depends on an intake interview to gather the information they need. Sometimes, they discover that the client is also suffering from a mental health illness such as a personality disorder. This kind of information could be very relevant if there is a connection between the client’s personality disorder and addiction.
Before continuing on in this discussion, it needs to be noted that some clients aren’t aware they have a personality disorder. It’s only through the addiction treatment process that a staff member comes to realize that something else is amiss. Again, that’s a potentially relevant discovery. Why does the presence of a personality disorder matter? Sometimes, there is no connection between a client’s addiction and mental health issues. If that’s the case, the client’s treatment program will follow normal paths.
However, the story changes significantly if there is a connection or correlation between the two illnesses. If a client has an addiction to drugs or alcohol and a personality disorder where one issue is causing the other, the client is said to have co-occurring disorders. If the connection between the two disorders is clear, the preferred treatment option becomes what the industry calls “dual-diagnosis therapy.” In the following section, we will discuss how a Delray rehab can use dual diagnosis therapy to treat co-occurring disorders.
Can a Delray Rehab Address Untreated Personality Disorders?
When a client is aware of their personality disorder, there is a good chance they are receiving some kind of treatment for it. It’s when the client isn’t aware of the problem that the client isn’t getting the treatment they need. With both an addiction problem and connected personality disorder, the client is eligible for the dual diagnosis therapy option. That’s good news because they could finally get the help they need for both disorders.
The key characteristic of dual diagnosis therapy is it requires that the client gets treatment for both disorders at the same time. Why is that important? Remember, there is a connection between the two disorders. In other words, one of the disorders is at least partially responsible for the existence of the other disorder. Since there is a causation relationship, simultaneous treatment is necessary because the untreated disorder will always put the entire treatment process at risk. Here is something everyone needs to understand.
The causation relationship could go either way. On one side, it’s possible that the personality disorder has driven the client to start using drugs or alcohol. They likely do so to hide from the pain they feel from having to deal with their personality disorder. Conversely, there are cases where the client’s addiction actually morphs into a personality disorder. Things don’t normally flow in this direction, but it does happen. It serves as further evidence that drug and alcohol addictions can create a long list of very serious problems.
That list includes:
- Health problems
- Sleeping issues
- mental health issues
- legal issues
If the client has not yet received any formal treatment for their personality disorder, that becomes a serious issue. After getting some treatment in rehab as part of a dual diagnosis therapy program, it’s something the client is going to need to address after rehab. Personality disorders don’t disappear. They will usually require the victim to go through months or years of treatment as a means of controlling the disorder. When dual diagnosis therapy is the call, the addiction treatment staff is put under extra pressure.
If the rehab facility has a staff member educated and trained to treat mental health issues, they have to be part of the dual diagnosis therapy process. Hopefully, that individual is a regular staff therapist who is also certified to treat addiction issues. If that person does not exist, the client will have to work with two therapists. If the rehab facility does not employ a licensed therapist who can deal with personality disorders, they might have to outsource that portion of the treatment process.
It’s not always convenient for the client, but it is necessary in order for the client to get what they need from rehab. If you suspect you might have co-occurring disorders, you need to follow your instincts. You need to find a rehab facility that has the ability to treat both disorders at the same time. At our Delray facility, we have the ability to offer dual diagnosis therapy. To help us get access to helping you, we need you to initiate the contact by calling one of our representatives at 833-846-5669.