Dual diagnosis is a circumstance whereby two independent disorders are present, and most often describes a co-occurring drug abuse and mental health disorder. A dual diagnosis may help someone who may not have been capable of being helped before, stop substance abuse by being accurately diagnosed and treated. Their mental health disorder might have been misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, or treated incorrectly which may have prompted and resulted in their drug abuse problems. Establishing the fact someone is actually a dual diagnosis client not simply helps establish a highly effective treatment course for them, but may also help clients better understand what led to their substance abuse and ways to prevent it later on. Handling dual diagnosis may be a more extensive process when compared to a typical drug rehab program, and folks who have a dual diagnosis might need to take part in an extensive aftercare program which can include appropriate medical support as well as continued rehab services. Being clinically determined to have co-occurring disorders doesn't mean that the individual will have to be medicated for the remainder of their lives either, and actually a lot of people who have a dual diagnosis experience more effective outcomes when treated holistically and when alternative treatment solutions are utilized.