No one can deny the connection between depression and addiction. However, the correlation between the two is not always linear. Whether you or someone you care about struggles with depression or addiction, understanding how the two are connected is essential to finding the best treatment possible for improved mental health and quality of life.
For example, someone with co-occurring disorders may benefit from dual diagnosis treatment. Someone diagnosed with a depression disorder only may benefit from residential depression treatment, especially if they have exhibited substance abuse behaviors. At Promises Behavioral Health, our depression treatment centers offer residential and inpatient programs explicitly designed for those struggling with depression and addiction. Contact us at 844.875.5609 today if you or someone you love is struggling with mental health. Our staff can help you find the best treatment option for your unique needs and situation.
Can Depression Cause Addiction?
It is possible that depression can contribute to the development of a substance abuse disorder. Often, depression is not officially diagnosed or treated. Individuals may turn to substances like drugs or alcohol to self-treat their symptoms if this happens. Depression and addiction can become co-occurring disorders when this happens.
Individuals may also seek depression treatment but may not come out of it with the desired results. This situation can cause people to abuse prescription drugs or mix them with other substances, increasing the risk of addiction.
Can Addiction Cause Depression?
The connection between depression and addiction can also develop in the opposite order. A person can develop an addiction, and one of the symptoms of that addiction can be depression. After all, addiction is a complicated and challenging mental health condition.
If the idea of working through recovery feels impossible, it is normal to experience depression. Those feelings, combined with the use of drugs or alcohol, can lead to major depression or clinical depression.
How Do Depression and Addiction Correlate?
The worst aspect of addiction and depression is that they can feed off each other. This situation creates a cycle that feels impossible to escape from without professional help.
A person who is depressed will likely feel even more depressed during the first few days of sobriety. This reaction to being off addictive substances is normal, and it takes time for the brain to reset levels of all-important mood hormones like dopamine and serotonin. However, that feedback can make it even harder to maintain sobriety long-term.
At the same time, drug and alcohol abuse can temporarily remove feelings of depression. Or, it can numb people to those feelings altogether. While that might feel good in the short term, it only worsens the underlying symptoms and likely the diagnosis of depression.
How Are Depression and Addiction Treated?
Although this might sound like a very challenging combination of disorders to overcome, it is possible to fight back against depression and addiction. Often, the best approach is through the use of dual diagnosis treatment. This specific treatment doesn’t prioritize the treatment of one disorder over another. Instead, it simultaneously treats depression and addiction.
Some of the other effective treatment methods that Promises Behavioral Health offers include the following:
- 12-step support groups
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy
- Group and family therapy
- Individual therapy
- Motivational interviewing therapy
Dual diagnosis treatment is one of the keys to sobriety, but it is not the only strategy that can positively impact cases like this.
Learn More About the Connection Between Depression and Addiction at Promises Behavioral Health
Depression and addiction are linked, but dual diagnosis treatment can address both conditions and lead to better health and sobriety. If you’re looking for the best dual diagnosis treatment centers, Promises Behavioral Health can point you in the right direction. Wherever you live, call 844.875.5609 to learn about the best program in your area.