Concurrent Disorders and Mental Health Treatment

Mental Health Disorders

Addiction takes many tolls on an individual’s life such as decreased physical health and the deterioration of healthy relationships. It is also important to understand how mental health plays a role in active addiction. The process of addiction can often operate in a cyclical manner, as it relates to mental health. Certain life experience can evoke emotions and cognitions that may produce a mental health illness, such as anxiety or depression. In order to cope with these feelings, the individual may turn to drugs or alcohol, which then can lead to engaging in risky behaviours or situations and continue the cycle of mental health deterioration.

Causes and Effects of Concurrent Disorders

Concurrent disorders are when an individual is being affected by a combination of mental health and substance abuse disorders. For example, an individual may suffer from anxiety but also have an Addiction to alcohol.

Concurrent Disorders can feel like an impossible battle because the individual is dealing with many intersectional mental health factors, which can be amplified by substance abuse. As stated before, it’s impossible to talk about Addictions without talking about Mental Health. As we continue our conversation about mental health,

Treatment for Concurrent Disorders

Addiction Rehab Toronto strives to treat Addiction from a holistic and client-centred perspective that encompasses Biopsychosocial components of Mental Health. The clinical Team focuses on the underlying mental health concerns and how the client can best address their cognitive functioning. Our team of addiction therapy specialist, psychotherapist, and clinical staff collaborate each day on how to meet and treat the unique mental health needs of every client. Techniques for coping with mental illness vary widely and can include strategies such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy, and psycho-education. Addiction Rehab Toronto looks at each client on an individual basis to best develop a personalized treatment plan.

Mental Health and Mental Health wellness mean taking care of your mind, and soul. It’s about focusing on mental health, mindfulness, and counselling. Through active addiction, the brain becomes impaired. A specialized Addiction treatment plan utilizes an array of programming, methods, and activities to help rewire the brain to focus on individuals mental well-being and sobriety.

Mental, Physical and Spiritual support services offered include:

• One on One counselling
• Psychotherapy
• Mindfulness through Yoga, Reiki, Walks, Breathing Techniques, Independent Reflections, and Journaling
• Meditation
• Anger Management Programming
• Stress Management Programming
• Music Therapy
• Art Therapy
• Nutrition
• Fitness through our gym, outdoor walks, recreational activities, and fitness boot camps
• And more.

For so long, individuals have been burdened with the idea that being emotional and being vulnerable means being weak, but it’s important to embrace emotions as a key part of the addiction recovery process. Our addiction treatment programming provides individuals with programming, methods, and activities that promote emotions as valid and wanted.

Emotional support services offered include:

• One on One Counselling
• Psychotherapy
• Group Therapy through weekly Programming on Relapse Prevention, Anger Management, Communications, Self-Esteem, Codependency, Values, Grief and Loss, Stages of Change, Self-Love, Loneliness, and much more
• Music Therapy
• Art Therapy
• Fitness Therapy such as Yoga, Reiki, and Maui Thai
• Outdoor campfire
• Onsite Therapy Do
• Feelings Wheel
• Journalling
• And more.

It’s important to integrate family into each individual’s addiction recovery. As part of our treatment programming, we offer weekly Family Support days in which family members sit with their loved ones and a counsellor to have open and honest conversations about Addiction, Addiction Treatment, Recovery, Relapse Prevention, Support, Co-dependency, Healthy Boundaries, Communication, and Moving Forward in Recovery. As these factors intersect, we can better understand Mental Health in these aspects. In addition, on Sundays, when individuals are allocated time offsite, there is an emphasis on the importance of spending this time with family, friends, and loved ones that are a positive support system for a collective goal of sobriety and addiction recovery.

Support System Services offered include:

• Community Outings
• Group Therapy
• Sober Living
• Family Therapy
• Programming that focuses on: support systems, relapse prevention, situational triggers, codependency, and relationships
• Aftercare
• Family Support Day
• Constant communication between Counsellor and Family members
• Alumni Groups
• And more.

Our treatment incorporates individuals’ mental health well-being even after completing onsite treatment. We offer individuals an Aftercare program. Phase III is a 14-week outpatient program that helps prevent relapse and assist with the further development of problem-solving and coping skills required in day to day recovery. The Aftercare program allows individuals to identify their needs after their stay because the work of addiction recovery is significantly enhanced with participation in an extended follow-up Aftercare program. Within Aftercare, individuals will work with our Addiction Specialized Counsellors to continuously support through any distress on an individual’s mental, emotional, spiritual and physical well-being.

Types of Mental Health & Concurrent Disorders

Depression

Depression can be embodied in many ways. For some it feels like an overarching sadness, for some it feels numb, for some, it feels normal and for some, it feels like an impossible conflict. For some, depression can be characterized as hopelessness, loss of interest in activities that once were pleasurable, irregular sleep, lethargic demeanor, and self-blame. In extreme circumstances, depression can also lead to the risk of suicide and/or self-harm. When these feelings become an overwhelming and constant state – there is a need for exploration and self-discovery.

Although depression can manifest in many different ways if you are experiencing any or more of these signs in a consistent manner – seeking support would be beneficial. At Addiction Rehab Toronto, we work with individuals on a daily basis who experience depression. 

Depression Treatment at Addiction Rehab Toronto

Our clinical team, nurses, and psychotherapists will work with individuals to discover the underlying causes of depression. We will work with the individual to support different perspectives, different holistic methods to help manage and overcome depression symptoms. Our Clinical Team deploys strategies such as behavioural activation: this technique involves the individual taking an active and engaging role in their recovery by completing homework, tasks such as engaging in exercise and interacting with peers and family. We emphasize a holistic approach including personal training, yoga, reiki, art therapy, and music therapy. We utilize these types of therapies in conjunction with cognitive and emotional counselling – allows a more comprehensive approach to managing depression. Our program offers both group and individual counselling, which also enables the client to process previous or current experiences that may be contributing to their depression in a safe space.

Anxiety

Anxiety can be embodied in many ways. There is no one way to experience it. For some, it looks like social anxiety, for some it looks like panic attacks and for some, it looks like phobias. These feelings and behaviours have no limitation – but its important individuals can learn to identify anxiety and how it places a part in their lives. And with the additional concurrent disorder of addictions, the symptoms of anxiety can be amplified.

Anxiety is often the body’s response to a stressful life event, though, feeling or memory. It can be an overwhelming sensation that can become difficult to manage on a daily basis. It can manifest itself through physical cognitive and emotional. These symptoms may include, but not limited to: trembling, sweating, difficulty sleeping, consistent worrying, rapid breathing, sense of danger, a sense of panic and continuous racing thoughts.

Our clinical team utilizes a holistic approach that begins with behavioural, cognitive, and emotional therapy strategies in an attempt to lessen the intensity of anxiety. From a cognitive perspective, counsellors, nurses, and psychotherapist will use techniques such as identifying distorted thinking and cognitive reframing (reframing thought patterns.) Behaviourally, we help individuals manage anxiety through mindfulness strategies and promote the participation of tasks that will increase mood and distract from certain anxiety-evoking thoughts. In addition, as addiction amplifies these symptoms, our goal is to distinguish abstinence with counselling and therapy – we support individuals on the learning of management and mitigating uncomfortable feelings associated with anxiety.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a condition in which the individual may experience symptoms such as, but are not limited to, vivid flashbacks, emotional distress, and uncontrollable thoughts about a terrifying or traumatic event. Whether it be the loss of a loved one, an accident or an experience associated with violence, PTSD can arise from a variety of different sources. The inability to manage the constant, cognitive reliving of the event is often times what will lead an individual to seek substances. Alternatively, the individual may want to avoid situations and thoughts related to the past, which can be done consciously or subconsciously.

In a number of cases, the individual will become addicted to their drug of choice because they have used this method to cope with and disassociate from their past. PTSD may also manifest itself as other mental health issues such as anxiety or depression. An individual may experience anxious or depressive thoughts when thinking about the event.

Our Clinical Team performs trauma-informed support and therapy. A part of our comprehensive scope of practice is understanding the root of addiction and how it may relate to previous, traumatic experiences. We focus on a variety of therapeutic strategies with the clinical goal of helping the client to process and manage trauma.

Mental Health and Concurrent Disorders – Moving Forward

At Addiction Rehab Toronto, we advocate a mental health stigma-free environment. We are actively involved in the conversations about Addiction, Addiction stigma and how they work together to stigmatize Mental Health. We pride ourselves in being an inclusive, safe, and non-judgmental space. We understand we only scratched the surface with Mental Health. Our Clinical Team is aware of how Mental Health can take control of our lives, as even though we may not always be able to wish it away, we will be by your side, supporting each step of Addiction Recovery and Mental Health. You are not alone and we are ready, and wanting to listen.

For information on our Mental Health and Concurrent Disorders treatment, please give us a call at 1-855-787-2424. We’ll be happy to help you.