For the last six years, I have been working in the substance abuse industry in both inpatient and outpatient settings. It would be fair to say that most people that are in need of substance abuse treatment have a co-occurring disorder such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and anxiety. These people are diagnosed by a psychiatrist or medical doctor and are typically given medication to help the patient. However, the problem can be that if a person sees a psychiatrist and is not honest about their substance abuse history the mental diagnosis can be deceiving. For example; a person who is diagnosed with anxiety; could be in substance abuse withdrawal or intoxication. It’s likely that a person who has substance abuse problems may show signs of depression; due to family, interpersonal, social, and employment problems. An alcoholic is going to be depressed; as the drug is a depressant on the central nervous system. In my opinion, I feel that there are some psychiatrists and medical professionals out there that completely miss-diagnose people based on DSM 5 criteria. “Its diagnoses are …show more content…
Doctors and psychiatrists are too willing to place someone on medications for a quick fix. We are an overmedicated society looking for an easy answer for a solution to our problems. Research suggests that one in five Americans are diagnosed with a mental health disorder. I firmly believe that there is a mental health crisis in the United States and many people go undiagnosed. Mental health, does in my opinion, has stigmas attached to it. I have seen many people struggle with the stigma of mental illness and use substances to cope with it. There appears to be a grey line when it comes to diagnosing mental health and I think people can really get lost in the