You may not have known it before, but schizophrenia is one of the disorders most commonly associated with addiction. It doesn’t matter which came first, schizophrenia or substance use disorder. With dual diagnosis, the specific onset of the disorder never matters, but what does matter is that you’re able to get the important help you need to deal with the overwhelming problem of dealing with both a substance use disorder disorder and mental illness.
Often, an individual with schizophrenia will withdraw and avoid situations that can trigger the onset of schizophrenic symptoms. An individual with schizophrenia might believe that there are people plotting to harm them, or have delusional experiences, such as that people from the television, radio, and so on are attempting to transfer important messages to them. Hallucinations can occur with any of the five senses, in visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory, or gustatory experiences. You might smell things that aren’t there, hear things that aren’t there, or even taste them.
Substance use disorder disorders often occur when the user attempts to suffocate those symptoms by using drugs or alcohol. Self-medication, or the use of substances in order to combat negative mental health symptoms, is a common reaction to the symptoms of schizophrenia.
Unpacking co-morbidity when it comes to schizophrenia is complicated. This is for several reasons, including the fact that there are different types of stimulants that can create symptoms similar to schizophrenia. Users of methamphetamine often report hearing voices or seeing things that are not there, such as the common symptom of searching for more meth in carpet, wood, fibers and so on. Many meth users also report seeing people that are not there, watching them.
These symptoms can also occur during the onset of a drug-induced psychosis, with the misuse of other stimulants like Adderall, Ritalin, and so on. Or the prolonged use of those drugs can also contribute to the onset of schizophrenia, especially if the addict was genetically predisposed.
However the onset of both schizophrenia and substance use disorder occurred, the important step for those dealing with both disorders is integrated, or dual diagnosis treatment.
