Dual diagnosis is a situation whereby two independent disorders are present, and most typically describes a co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorder. A dual diagnosis can help someone who might possibly not have been capable of being helped before, stop drug abuse by being properly diagnosed and helped. Their mental health disorder could have been misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, or mistreated that may have prompted and led to their drug or alcohol use problems. Establishing the fact someone is certainly a dual diagnosis client not just helps establish a highly effective treatment course for them, but can also help clients better understand what caused their drug abuse and ways to prevent it down the road. Addressing dual diagnosis is often a more extensive process than a typical drug rehab program, and folks with a dual diagnosis may need to participate in an extensive aftercare program which might include appropriate medical support and also continued rehab services. Being clinically determined to have co-occurring disorders doesn't imply that the person must be medicated through out their lives either, and in reality many people who have a dual diagnosis experience far better results when treated holistically and when alternative treatment methods are utilized.