People who suffer from mental illness as well as drug or alcohol abuse
often fall under the 'dual diagnosis' category. The most frequently
seen mental health problems include depression, bipolar disorder,
personality disorder and schizophrenia. When a person is diagnosed with
a mental health illness, it is often discovered that he or she also has
a history of drug or alcohol abuse. In a study done by the Royal
College of Psychiatry in 2002, it was revealed that people diagnosed
with schizophrenia are six times more likely to abuse drugs as well as
misuse alcohol. Reports published in the Journal of the American
Medical Association (JAMA) state that approximately 50 percent of those
with severe mental illness are also struggling drug addiction, and 33
percent of alcoholics and 53 percent of drug users suffer from one or
more severe mental disorder. In total, all individuals diagnosed as
mentally dysfunctional, 29 percent are alcohol or drug (or both) users.
In addition to these studies, there ...