Drug Abuse and Schizophrenia
By Lynn Yoffee
Medically reviewed by Lindsey Marcellin, MD, MPH
Drug use in people with severe mental disease is quite common. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) reports that 47 percent of people with schizophrenia also have a substance abuse problem, which is about four times greater than the general population.
"Some may want to use drugs to feel better and may use it as a means to improve their mood and comfort level," Dr. Citrome says. "There are others who become easily addicted to drugs and need that constant reinforcement."
Another drug that people with schizophrenia abuse regularly is tobacco. It's estimated that at least 85 percent of those who are diagnosed with schizophrenia smoke. Of course, the ill effects of smoking do not bypass those with mental illnesses: People with schizophrenia have a higher risk of dying from diseases associated with smoking, including lung cancer and cardiovascular disease. The Society for Neuroscience reports that their bodies tend to absorb more nicotine from each cigarette, and those with schizophrenia smoke more cigarettes than those with other mental disorders.
People with schizophrenia are heavy smokers for a number of reasons. One of them is that nicotine is an addictive stimulant that may improve memory and cognitive (thinking and reasoning) performance — areas of the brain that schizophrenia negatively affects. It's believed that nicotine provides a form of medication that might even normalize certain deficiencies in the central nervous system.
Treating Schizophrenia and Substance Abuse
NAMI states that, for a full recovery, anybody with substance abuse and mental disorders — known as a dual diagnosis — needs to have both problems treated. A variety of treatments for those with substance abuse problems as well as mental illness are available, in addition to standard therapy or drugs for schizophrenia. Those services might include:
- Assertive outreach, which is intensive case management
- Work and housing assistance
- Family counselling
- Financial and relationship management
It's vital that people with a dual diagnosis receive help for both the schizophrenic disorder and substance abuse, because they are otherwise more likely to become homeless or jailed. Also, they are at a higher risk of contracting AIDS. Furthermore, the overall cost to society is much greater when a person has these two types of disorders due to the repeated encounters with both the public health care and criminal justice systems, according to NAMI.
One of the first steps in stopping the cycle it to find out exactly why people with schizophrenia are abusing drugs.
"We try to focus on why and then we try to address that, possibly with a change in medications," Citrome says. "Then, after they are hospitalized, we try to arrange new residential placement, because many people don't want to return to the same place, which may trigger use of drugs again and the schizophrenic symptoms."
The Have I Got A Problem website is a free online resource to help people better understand any issues or concerns they may have about mental health or addiction. The website includes resources specifically focused to; general Mental Health, Depression, Stress, Anxiety, Insecurities, Self-harm Schizophrenia, Bipolar, Anger Management, Eating Disorders, Coping, general Addiction, Alcohol, Smoking, Gambling, Drugs, Cocaine, Heroin, Marijuana (Cannabis) Ecstasy, PCP, Mephedrone, Ketamine & Crystal Meth.
The site was created to give the public information to help them understand mental health and addiction issues and to assist people in making better informed decisions about their life and personal choices.
www.haveigotaproblem.com was created and is run by 'Advising Communities’, which is a UK registered charity (Charity No. 1061055)
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