[ClayTheScribe]

Claudius, my heart goes out to you. I have major depression, but I can't comprehend the madness and pain and confusion you've suffered as a schizophrenic person.

To answer your question, yes, there is a link. There's a link in that many of us people with mental disorders try to help reduce the pain and frustration of our illness by self-medicating with drugs and alcohol. Your rationalization is common among people with addiction, to me, that's the addiction talking. Self-medicating when you have a mental illness, no matter how hard you try doesn't help or cure or save you. In fact, the addiction gets worse and you can die from an overdose. I don't know how much you take, but I would consider getting into rehab ASAP. But first talk to your doctor.

I did just that, self-medicating, for about 3 years with pot and alcohol. Now 4 months sober, it seems illogical I would self-medicate because while pot and alcohol were fun and a distraction from my emotional problems at first, they in the end did more damage than good. I hope you've come to that conclusion by now about your opiate addiction. Alcohol and pot basically made it so my psych medicines didn't work as effectively, thus I'd get really anxious, agitated and depressed the next day--or when I was coming off the high--, and toward the end, the moment I stopped drinking. Pot turned me into a nervous wreck for the last 3 years, or so and alcohol made me depressed. On those days after drinking or smoking, my depression would get so severe my feelings of self-hatred would boil up inside of me and I would cut myself, and sometimes burn. Those scars will never go away, and perhaps they shouldn't to serve as a reminder of what alcohol and drugs can to me. Pot and alcohol cost me a good scholarship, the respect of some teachers, a good friend and roommate and delayed my graduation by 2 years

Drinking and using drugs can not only perpetuate mental illness, but bring on depression or switch on a latent mental illness for which someone might self-medicate, perpetuating the disorder, and around you go on the vicious cycle of dual diagnosis.

But there is hope.

In April, my therapist I had been seeing for 3 years told me she could no longer treat me because she wasn't qualified to treat addiction. So I had to seek out a therapist that treats dual diagnosis--addiction and mental illness--and I'm seeing a new one in a week. You may want to find such a professional yourself as this person can help answer your mental health and addiction questions probably better than I can. You also might want to read Zencat's DRA (Dual Recovery Anonymous) thread about a group that focuses on mental illness and addiction together and google it to find a meeting if that interests you. If you're not on medication, you may want to get help for your addiction and consider, with a psychiatrist, about getting on some psych meds. If you're already taking meds, then talk to your doctor about treating your addiction because the opiates and the meds won't work together. And sometimes I have to tweak my drugs with my psychiatrist to get on the right cocktail. No doctor or scientist has found the cure for any mental illness, yet. But they can be treated and managed and you can live a healthy life.

There is also a hotly debated genetic component to addiction, but I think anyone can become an addict, regardless of genetics. There's no such thing as an addictive personality because anyone, no matter how revered, rich or poor, can fall prey to using. It just so happens so many of us with mental illness reach for the bottle, or the pills, or the pipe or the syringe to calm the fury raging inside of our heads. I've learned it only makes things worse and robs you of time you could've spent getting better.

Keep in mind I am not a doctor, so before you do anything in regard to either your schizophrenia or addiction, see a doctor or a psychiatrist.

Addiction and mental illness are a vicious cycle, but you can break it.

Good luck on breaking free.