Concurrent Disoders Essay - 1807 Words

Mental health is being aware, accepting yourself, and striking a balance in all aspects of your life; in particular social, spiritual, physical, economical, and mental (Association C. M., 2001). Mental health can be described as our positive interactions with the context and events in our life, and having the ability to cope with life’s stressors. Mental health problems can begin at anytime during your life. In fact, anything can make it difficult for an individual’s ability to interact effectively, which may lead into a mental health problem (Association C. M., 2001) (CAMH, 2010). There is thought to be three causes of mental illness (Association C. M., 2001). The first is genetic and some researchers suggest that mental illness is†¦show more content†¦M.). Some effects that tend to arise with concurrent disorders include disruptive behaviour, severe psychiatric symptoms such as hallucinations, and suicidal feelings. Research also suggests that individuals who have a mental illness are more likely to struggle with addiction, and those who struggle with addiction are more likely to develop a mental illness. 37 percent of people diagnosed with an alcohol disorder will have a mental health disorder at some point in their lives, close to twice the rate found in people who do not have life time history of a substance use disorder (Bergman, 2011). Studies from the 1980’s and 1990’s found that 50-75% of substance abuse client’s had some type of co-occurring mental illness, and 20-50% of mental illness client’s had co-occurring substance abuse disorder (David Capuzzi, 2008, p. 174). Besides its relationship to mental illness, substance abuse was found to drastically complicate treatment outcomes for those with a mental illness (David Capuzzi, 2008, p. 174). The more that is learned about concurrent disorders, the more it is expected that substance abuse and mental health occur together. However people who have a concurrent disorder are sometimes misidentified, as one disorder can mimic another (Network, 2008; Association C. M.). Many of the symptoms of drug abuse are similar symptoms of mental illness, such as extreme anxiety, depression, delusions and