Dual diagnosis is a circumstance whereby two independent disorders exist, and most typically describes a co-occurring drug or alcohol use and mental health disorder. A dual diagnosis may help someone that might possibly not have been capable of being helped previously, finish substance abuse because they can be accurately diagnosed and treated. Their mental health disorder could have been misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, or treated incorrectly that may have prompted and led to their substance abuse problems. Establishing the reality that someone is in fact a dual diagnosis client not simply helps establish a highly effective treatment course for them, but may also help clients better know what triggered their drug use and how to prevent it in the foreseeable future. Addressing dual diagnosis might be a more extensive process when compared to 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 in addition to continued rehab services. Being diagnosed with co-occurring disorders doesn't mean that the individual should be medicated through out their lives either, and in fact many people with a dual diagnosis experience more effective outcomes when treated holistically and when alternative therapy is employed.