Substance use disorder (SUD) is considered a mental health disorder. It can take over your entire life and lead to other mental health conditions, such as depression. This can make it harder for you to see a problem and seek the help you need. Fortunately, depression and SUD are just some conditions our team at Next Level Recovery is trained to treat. 

What Is Depression?

Depression is classified as a mood disorder and can impact your ability to perform daily tasks, affect your thinking, and your ability to process emotions. 

Types of Depression

There are several types of depression, which vary in symptoms, including:

• Major depression: This form of depression is common, and symptoms include disruption of your ability to eat, sleep, and function

• Persistent depressive disorder: In this type of depression, the symptoms last years instead of weeks or months

• Seasonal depression: Comes and goes depending on the season and usually starts with the colder seasons, subsiding during the warmer ones

• Perinatal depression: Occurs in mothers while pregnant or after having a baby.

• Depression with psychosis symptoms: This is major depression with symptoms like delusions and hallucinations

Signs and Symptoms

Must persist for at least two weeks to be diagnosed with major depression. Not everyone will experience all of these symptoms, nor will the timeframe be the same. 

• Continuous sad or empty feeling

• Feeling hopeless, helpless, irritable, or frustrated consistently

• Loss of interest in activities you used to get pleasure and joy from

• Decreased energy and feeling fatigued

• Difficulty concentrating or regulating sleep

• Aches or pains without a physical cause

• Self-harm or suicidal thoughts or attempts

Type of Depression Treatment

There are several treatment methods to consider, which include the following.

Medication

Antidepressants can take weeks to show any change in symptoms. It can be a bit of trial and error before the right one or combination is found to help you. You should not stop taking them without talking to a health care provider because it could lead to withdrawal symptoms if stopped suddenly. 

Psychotherapies

These are also known as talk therapies, cognitive behavioral therapy, and interpersonal therapy both fall in this category. The point of these therapies is to help modify behaviors and thoughts around your depression and to help stop the things that contribute to your depression.

Brain stimulation therapies

Electroconvulsive therapy is a form of treatment where you are put under anesthesia, and electric impulses are sent through your brain in hopes of modifying your behavior and thoughts. 

Substance Use Disorder

SUD is a mental health disorder that affects your ability to control your substance use. It can impact your ability to work, sleep, eat, and function. These substances can be legal, such as alcohol, tobacco, and nicotine, or illegal, such as heroin and cocaine. They can also be legal when given by a medical professional for appropriate reasons and illegal when obtained otherwise, such as barbiturates. 

Signs and symptoms include: 

• Changes in effort and work ethic at work or school

• Using in dangerous ways, like while driving

• Using when there are known consequences to it

• Changes in appetite, sleep, and personality

• Abrupt weight changes

• Slurred speech

• Changes in friends and hobbies

• Unexplained financial hardship

Different Forms of SUD Treatment

Depending on what you need, treatment can be inpatient, outpatient, or a mixture of both—the severity of your SUD and what best suits you determine how your treatment will be done.

Rehabilitation Process

This can be done inpatient or outpatient and often starts with detoxing from the substance. A team of healthcare professionals works together to form and implement a treatment plan.

Behavioral Therapy

• Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT): CBT is talk therapy aimed at changing your thought and behaviors surrounding substance use

• Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT): DBT uses awareness of the present to treat SUD, control intense emotions, and help with relationships

• Assertive community treatment: This form of treatment uses community involvement and a personalized plan to treat SUD

• Therapeutic communities: Such communities are residential treatment that focuses on forming a new and healthier lifestyle

• Contingency management: This uses incentives to get the desired changes in behavior.

Group Therapy

This could be inpatient or outpatient and could include those with SUD. It can also be family group therapy, which means you and your family go to therapy together with the hope of all getting the help you need. 

Support Groups

Support groups help remind you why you are sober, lend a listening ear, show you that you are not alone, and provide strength when you feel weak. They can be a great help in your treatment and recovery journey, making finding the right groups all the more important. 

Next Level Recovery

Next Level Recovery is an outpatient facility in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, that uses personalized treatment plans to help those with different conditions, including SUD and depression. Individualization ensures your needs are met so you can thrive in your treatment and recovery journeys, but it also emphasizes family. We want to make sure your family is getting the help they need so that they can feel better and also so they can be a strong support system for you. 

Recovery Companions

Part of the way we personalize treatment is through using recovery companions. These companions are trained, compassionate professionals that are hand-picked to match you and your needs. They perform a multitude of tasks to help in your recovery journey and can be with you from the start of treatment to transitioning out and after. Their purpose is to make it easier on you during this time and to provide support. 

Substance use disorder can be hard enough to manage by itself, let alone when you have other conditions that can affect your sobriety. Many co-occurring conditions can accompany substance use disorder, such as depression. Finding the right facility to treat both conditions and not just one can be difficult, time-consuming, and overwhelming. You don't have to do it alone. We at Next Level want to help provide a personalized experience to ensure you get everything you need to thrive in your recovery journey. We take the time to get to know you and those close to you, so we can work together to find the best plan for you. For more information, email us at consult@nextlevelra.com.