Mental Health & Addiction

Which came first — the mental illness or the substance abuse? For patients with co-occurring disorders, sometimes also called dual diagnosis, understanding the overlapping symptoms is crucial to determining the most effective treatment. (more…) more...

Addiction and mental health problems often co-occur. Depression, anxiety and other mood disorders are common in people who also struggle with drug or alcohol addiction. Sometimes the mental health issues come first and substance abuse is used as a way to self-medicate. Substance abuse can also trigger symptoms of menta more...

There’s often a strong correlation between drug and alcohol abuse and mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, each year in the United States there are approximately 17.5 million people over the age of 18 with a more...

Unless you’re an adult with your own Xbox or PlayStation console, you probably question why so many young people spend so much time enraptured by video games. But consider that nostalgia paints childhood with rose-colored glasses. The reality for kids is that general daily life contains a lot of boredom, no independe more...

Substance treatment is the umbrella term for all of the means available to help people affected by some form of substance use disorder (substance abuse and/or substance addiction). Millions of Americans require such treatment each year. However, many people never receive the help they need. In a report released in S more...

Depression and addiction are inexorably tied to each other. This has been known for some time, and a closely related concern is the risk of suicide. A new piece of research has been released that aims to investigate the underlying factors that drive some people struggling with addiction to attempt suicide. Although the more...

Research shows that as many as half of all psychiatric patients also struggle with addiction, but less than 1 in 10 eligible patients receives treatment. Substance abuse and mental health problems such as depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and anxiety disorders are challenging to treat individually, but when a more...

A boy with a genetic predisposition for depression succumbs to the “black fog” and alcoholism before finding help in a dual-diagnosis recovery program. Before Cass was 10, he was a quiet boy and only sometimes sad. His father traveled a lot and his mother suffered long periods of depression that kept her in bed. B more...

The average twenty-something has a lot going on. Many are finishing college, forming a personal identity apart from the family unit, working through some of their first close relationships and starting a career. And since change can trigger a low mood, it isn’t surprising that people this age might struggle with some more...

In July 2014, Florida became the first state in the U.S. to create a health plan through Medicaid that is specifically designed for people with serious mental illnesses. Florida hopes that the new program will provide better care for people with serious mental illness while also using the state’s Medicaid funds more more...