Can Substance Use Induce Mental Health Problems?

Feb 22, 2019 | LAMSA, Mental health

By LAMSA

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“Delusions”, photo credit: Pablo

Conditions associated to Substance Use can be:

  1. Substance Use Disorders (SUD)
  2. Substance Induced Disorders:
  • Intoxication (Symptoms of “high” specific to each class of substances)
  • Withdrawal (Symptoms of craving which is behind the urge to use the substance again)
  • Mental Disorders (Not existing before using substances)

Mental Health problems induced by substance use can be:

  • Psychotic disorders
  • Bipolar disorders
  • Depressive disorders
  • Anxiety disorders
  • Obsessive Compulsive Disorders (OCD)
  • Sleep disorders
  • Sexual dysfunctions

When someone experiences a mental illness and a substance use disorder (SUD) simultaneously, clinicians, according to DSM V*, use the term of Dual Diagnosis (co-occurring disorders).

In Dual Diagnosis, either disorder -substance use or mental health- can develop first

In the case of Dual Diagnosis, the two disorders should be treated simultaneously.

 

LAMSA note:

Please ask for help if you or someone you know is using drugs and/or has mental problems.

References:

*DSM V (DSM 5): The Diagnostic sand Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition

National Alliance on Mental Illness

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