Dual diagnosis is a circumstance whereby two independent disorders exist, and most often denotes a co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorder. A dual diagnosis might help someone that might possibly not have been able to be helped in the past, stop drug abuse by being correctly diagnosed and treated. Their mental health disorder could have been misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, or mistreated that could have prompted and led to their substance abuse issues. Establishing the fact someone is in fact a dual diagnosis client not just helps establish an effective treatment plan for them, but will also help clients better determine what led to their drug abuse and how to prevent it later on. Handling dual diagnosis may be a more extensive process than a typical drug rehab program, and people who have a dual diagnosis might need to participate in an extensive aftercare program which can include proper medical support and also further rehabilitation services. Being clinically determined to have co-occurring disorders doesn't imply that the individual should 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 therapy is utilized.