Dual diagnosis can be a situation in which two independent disorders exist, and most often denotes a co-occurring drug or alcohol use and mental health disorder. A dual diagnosis might help someone who may not have been able to be helped in the past, end drug abuse by being properly diagnosed and helped. Their mental health disorder might have been misdiagnosed, not diagnosed at all, or mistreated that could have prompted and led to their drug abuse issues. Establishing the truth that someone is in fact a dual diagnosis client not merely helps establish a highly effective treatment course for them, but could also help clients better determine what triggered their substance abuse and how to prevent it down the road. Addressing dual diagnosis can be a more extensive process when compared to a typical drug rehab program, and people who have a dual diagnosis may need to take part in an extensive aftercare program which can include proper medical support in addition to further rehabilitation services. Being clinically determined to have co-occurring disorders doesn't mean that the person should be medicated through out their lives either, and in reality lots of people with a dual diagnosis experience much better outcomes when treated holistically and when alternative therapy is employed.