Dual diagnosis is a circumstance whereby two independent disorders are present, and most typically denotes a co-occurring drug abuse and mental health disorder. A dual diagnosis may help someone that might not have been able to be helped during the past, stop substance abuse by being correctly diagnosed and treated. Their mental health disorder could have been misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, or treated incorrectly that could have prompted and led to their drug abuse issues. Establishing the truth that someone is in fact a dual diagnosis client not just helps establish an effective treatment course for them, but could also help clients better understand what triggered their drug abuse and ways to prevent it in the foreseeable future. Addressing dual diagnosis might be a more extensive process than the usual typical drug rehab program, and people who have a dual diagnosis might be required to participate in an extensive aftercare program which can include proper medical support as well as continued rehab services. Being clinically determined to have co-occurring disorders doesn't signify the individual must be medicated for the rest of their lives either, and in fact many individuals who have a dual diagnosis experience more effective results when treated holistically and when alternative treatment solutions are employed.