Dual diagnosis can be a situation whereby two independent disorders exist, and most often denotes a co-occurring drug or alcohol use and mental health disorder. A dual diagnosis might help a person that may not have been able to be helped previously, finish substance abuse because they can be properly diagnosed and helped. Their mental health disorder could have been misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, or treated incorrectly that may have prompted and resulted in their substance abuse problems. Establishing the fact that someone is certainly a dual diagnosis client not just helps establish an efficient course of treatment for them, but may also help clients better determine what caused their drug abuse and ways to prevent it in the future. Addressing dual diagnosis might be a more extensive process when compared to a typical drug rehab program, and folks who have a dual diagnosis might need to participate in an extensive aftercare program that might include appropriate medical support in addition to further treatment services. Being clinically determined to have co-occurring disorders doesn't mean that the individual should be medicated for the rest of their lives either, and in reality many individuals who have a dual diagnosis experience more effective results when treated holistically and when alternative therapy is utilized.