Dual diagnosis can be a situation in which two independent disorders exist, and most typically describes a co-occurring drug or alcohol use and mental health disorder. A dual diagnosis might help someone who might not have been capable of being helped during the past, stop substance abuse by being properly diagnosed and helped. Their mental health disorder might have been misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, or treated incorrectly that may have prompted and resulted in their drug or alcohol use issues. Establishing the truth that someone is certainly a dual diagnosis client not simply helps establish an effective treatment course for them, but may also help clients better know what led to their substance abuse and how to prevent it in the future. Addressing dual diagnosis is often a more extensive process when compared to a typical drug rehab program, and people with a dual diagnosis may need to participate in an extensive aftercare program which might include proper medical support in addition to further rehabilitation services. Being diagnosed with co-occurring disorders doesn't imply that the individual will have to be medicated through out their lives either, and in fact many people who have a dual diagnosis experience more effective results when treated holistically and when alternative treatment methods are utilized.