Teen & Adolescent Mental Health Treatment in Rehab

Addressing Mental Health in Holistic Adolescent Addiction Treatment

Mental health, behavioral issues, and substance use may seem like independent concerns, but they’re inextricably intertwined. Depression, anxiety, trauma, ADHD, eating disorders, and more can lead to self-destructive behaviors including truancy, defiance, indifference, substance misuse, etc. These behaviors, then, can worsen mental health, which in turn can escalate behavioral concerns—perpetuating a vicious cycle. 

Guardian Recovery breaks this cycle via holistic behavioral, mental health, and substance use treatment. Empowering teens and families to step off the path of self-destruction and step into a bright future, our comprehensive care treats the causes as opposed to the symptoms of mental health and behavioral concerns.

Dual Diagnosis & Assessing Mental Health Disorders

Substance use and mental health disorders often go hand in hand. When they occur at the same time, the condition is known as a dual diagnosis or as co-occurring conditions. 

Adolescents facing dual diagnosis often find themselves trapped in a relentless cycle. In their quest for relief, they may turn to substances as a way to escape the overwhelming challenges of their mental health symptoms. However, this path can lead to a harsh realization: The very substances they seek for comfort can deepen their struggles. For example, if a teenager is grappling with depression, they might choose alcohol or drugs to dull their emotional turmoil, only to find that these substances amplify their despair.

This intricate interplay highlights the urgent need for a comprehensive, holistic treatment approach that not only addresses both mental health and substance use issues but also effectively identifies them. 

At Guardian Recovery, our comprehensive assessment process evaluates your teen’s physical, emotional, and mental well-being, seeking to identify related issues. Armed with a full understanding of your teen’s struggles and strengths, we then provide your teen with the tools they need to navigate their challenges and foster resilience.

The Link Between Co-Occurring Disorders & Teen Substance Use

Mental health, behavioral issues, and substance use are three sides of the same triangle. They often occur concurrently and can significantly influence one another, leading to a repetitive cycle that escalates and worsens conditions.

In fact, research reveals that adolescents with substance use disorders also have high rates of co-occurring mental illness. What’s more, since the brain continues to develop in adolescence, the circuits that control executive functions such as impulse control and decision-making are among the last to mature. Thus, adolescents are at an increased risk for substance use and the development of a substance use disorder, which can also be a risk factor for mental illness later in life.1 It’s not surprising, then, that the onset for mental illness and substance use disorders often occurs during adolescence.2

While all of this information sounds troubling, help and hope are available via Guardian Recovery’s dual diagnosis treatment. A form of integrated treatment, our dual diagnosis care treats both mental health and substance use conditions currently—as opposed to tackling them independently. Employing evidence-based strategies such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and motivational interviewing (MI), our integrated approach boosts interpersonal coping skills and supports motivation for recovery.2

According to insights from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, this type of integrated, concurrent-disorder treatment has proven consistently superior to treating each disorder independently.2

How Common Are Co-Occurring Disorders Among Teens?

Research has found a significant link between mental health disorders and substance use among teens. The 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) offers several insights on co-occurring major depressive episodes and substance use disorders among those age 12 to 17:3

• More than 18.1% (4.5 million people) in this age group had a major depressive episode (MDE) in the past year. 
• Those with past year MDE were more likely than their counterparts without an MDE to have used illicit drugs (28.4% vs. 11.6%), marijuana (21.9% vs. 8.7%), or opioids (3.5% vs. 1.9 %) in the past year. They were also more likely to have been past month binge alcohol users (7.1% vs. 3.1%). 
• Those with a  past year MDE were more likely than those without a past year MDE to have used tobacco products or to have vaped nicotine in the past month (14.9% vs. 5.7%). 
• Roughly 3 in 10 adolescents aged 12 to 17 with a co-occurring MDE and an SUD in the past year did not receive treatment for either condition. 
• Among the 609,000 adolescents aged 12 to 17 with a co-occurring MDE and an SUD who received either substance use treatment or mental health treatment in the past year most (68.8%) received only mental health treatment.

Additionally, data from the National Institute on Drug Abuse shows high rates of comorbid substance use disorders and anxiety disorders—which include generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder.4 Plus, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) reveals a direct correlation between trauma and substance use as well as the presence of posttraumatic stress (and other trauma-related disorders) and substance use disorders.5

The Impact of Co-Occurring Disorders on Treatment Outcomes

Those who struggle with both substance use and mental health disorders may experience more intense symptoms and tend to have higher rates of relapse and difficulty sustaining long-term recovery. Moreover, co-occurring disorders can complicate the treatment process by making it more challenging to correctly diagnose and address both simultaneously. As such, a well-informed understanding of these disorders is imperative to developing a personalized treatment plan that addresses both of them effectively.

Guardian Recovery is a key ally in co-occurring disorder care for your teen. Well-versed in both diagnosing and treating a host of mental health conditions and substance use disorders, our concurrent treatment is the gold standard of care.

Mental Health Disorders Treated During Substance Use Treatment

Guardian Recovery is equipped to tackle a wide range of mental health conditions, including:

• Major depressive disorder
• Anxiety disorders, such as social anxiety and panic attacks
• Bipolar disorder
• Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Borderline personality disorder (BPD)
• Eating disorders