Dual diagnosis can be a circumstance in which two independent disorders exist, and most often describes a co-occurring drug or alcohol use and mental health disorder. A dual diagnosis will help a person that might possibly not have been capable of being helped in the past, stop substance abuse because they can be properly diagnosed and treated. Their mental health disorder might have been misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, or treated incorrectly that may have prompted and led to their drug or alcohol use problems. Establishing the fact someone is in fact a dual diagnosis client not only helps establish an effective course of treatment for them, but could also help clients better determine what caused their drug use and how to prevent it later on. Addressing dual diagnosis is often a more extensive process than the usual typical drug rehab program, and people with a dual diagnosis might need to participate in an extensive aftercare program that might include appropriate medical support and also further rehab services. Being clinically determined to have co-occurring disorders doesn't imply that the person will need to be medicated through out their lives either, and actually lots of people who have a dual diagnosis experience far better outcomes when treated holistically and when alternative therapy is utilized.