hendershot

Everyone has said good things, so I will just add something brief. Whether you have a mental health problem that is somehow contributing to your use of alcohol/drugs is seperate issue. Why you use is less important than the fact you do. In treating people with dual-diagnosis (that is addiction + other mental disorder), sobriety always comes first. What I found when I sobered up was that my many of my menal health issues disappeared entirely. You will be amazed to what extent alcohol, pot, and pills effect how we regulate emotions. I never felt more depressed than in the afternoon before I got high and drunk. Doesn't mean I have a major depressive disorder. Just that I am an addict/alcoholic.