Substance abuse disorders (SUD) affect people from all walks of life. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 167.2 million people used substances in a single month in 2023.

SUD is a common mental health issue that’s recurrent and often serious. The drugs can change a person’s mood, thinking, behavior, finances, relationships and several other aspects of life. However, substance use disorders are generally treatable, and the research shows that many people recover and live productive lives in sobriety.

What Is a Substance Use Disorder?

Substance use disorder is the continuous and uncontrollable use of drugs (alcohol included) despite experiencing substantial harm or adverse outcomes from their use. Common substances involved include:

According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, an SUD occurs when an individual experiences substance use alongside two or more symptoms in a 12-month period. These symptoms include:

• Strong cravings
• Increased tolerance
• Interference with work or personal responsibilities
• A perceived inability to stop using the drug

An SUD can develop whether the substance an individual uses is legal, recreational, socially acceptable or approved for medical use. The consumption of these substances results in the activation of the brain’s reward system and produces feelings of pleasure.

Depending on the substance, the activation may strongly drive users to crave the substance and neglect normal activities to obtain and use the drugs.

Substance Use Disorder Symptoms

Signs of a substance use disorder include:

• Spending large amounts of money on the substance
• Feeling like you can’t live without the drug
• Suffering from withdrawal symptoms whenever you stop using
• Neglecting work, school and personal responsibilities
• Taking increasingly large amounts of the drug

How Are Substance Use Disorders and Mental Health Conditions Linked?

Substance use disorders (SUDs) and mental health conditions are tightly connected, often reinforcing each other in ways that make both harder to treat in isolation. About 35% of people with a mental health condition also experience an SUD, and the overlap is especially high among adolescents and young adults. In many cases, substances can help individuals cope with underlying symptoms like anxiety, depression, or emotional distress, which can deepen dependence over time. This is why most effective treatment programs address mental health diagnoses and substance use interventions together.

SUDs are most commonly linked with anxiety-related conditions, including post-traumatic stress disorder, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder. Other frequently co-occurring conditions include:

• Depression
• Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
• Bipolar disorder
• Borderline personality disorder
• Psychotic disorders
• Antisocial personality disorder

Trauma is a major driver of this connection. Without proper support, individuals may rely on drugs or alcohol to manage flashbacks, insomnia, nightmares or panic attacks. During therapy, a psychologist might ask the patient about their past to uncover buried memories that contribute to ongoing distress. Over time, untreated trauma can evolve into a cycle where substance use worsens mental health symptoms, and those symptoms, in turn, increase reliance on substances—making integrated, dual-diagnosis treatment essential.

Effects of Substance Use Disorders

The effects of SUD can vary depending on the substances used, family health history and several other risk factors. However, the consequences of using substances can be severe and long-term. Alcohol and drugs affect the brain, thereby influencing behavioral, emotional, cognitive, physical and social well-being. People with serious SUDs exhibit:

• Paranoia
• Aggressiveness
• Addiction
• Impulsiveness
• Loss of self-control
• Impaired judgment

Common conditions related to SUDs include:

Substance Abuse Disorder Treatment

SUD is a widespread and complicated medical condition with numerous adverse implications. The good news is that it’s treatable, and many people have inspiring stories about their recovery from various substance disorders.

However, SUD requires a specialized treatment approach since it often involves underlying mental health issues. This is something many health care providers don’t consider. Also, since the effects of substance use and addiction are often associated with physical ailments, it’s easy to overlook patients’ severe mental health issues.

At Restore Mental Health, we take your road to recovery seriously. We’re guided by the philosophy that healing is possible. As such, our staff is well-trained and experienced in treating a wide array of mental illnesses and substance use disorders.

How Do You Treat a Substance Use Disorder?

We begin by gaining a deeper understanding of your disorder and situation. This involves thorough evaluation and assessments — a dual diagnosis by an alcohol and drug counselor and psychiatrist. Once diagnosed, we recommend an appropriate substance use disorder treatment program depending on your preferences and health condition.

If you’re like many residents, you may start with inpatient care. For the next 21 to 90 days, you’ll live full-time on campus and spend your days exercising, meditating, eating healthy meals, taking spiritual workshops and engaging in individual and group therapy. We may prescribe medication that treats your mental illness and helps you focus on recovery.

If you’re a good candidate for neuro rehab, you’ll get access to cutting-edge treatments that could significantly improve your outcome. We offer electroencephalography brain mapping, heart rate variability and biosound monitoring, neurofeedback training and transcranial stimulation.

Once this program ends, you may transition to outpatient care. You’ll move back to your home and return to our clinic for several hours of therapy and wellness classes each day. Over time, you’ll switch to shorter visits until you’re ready to resume your life. This allows you to gradually return to work or school and take care of family obligations.

At the end of outpatient treatment, you’ll get access to aftercare programs, such as therapy and sober living houses, that help you avoid a relapse. We’ll help you find a community that cares about your well-being.

Restore’s Mental Health-First Approach to SUD

At Restore, we treat substance use disorders through a mental health-first lens. Rather than focusing only on stopping substance use, we look at what’s driving it—whether that’s anxiety, depression, trauma, or another underlying condition. For many people, substance use begins as a way to cope. Real, lasting recovery happens when those root causes are addressed directly.

That’s why dual diagnosis care is central to our approach. When mental health conditions and substance use disorders occur together, treating one without the other often leads to relapse. Our clinical team evaluates both at the same time, building a treatment plan that integrates psychiatric care, evidence-based therapy, and st