Why Co-Treatment Matters: Mental Health and MAT in Recovery

Discover how treating mental health issues alongside MAT enhances recovery from opioid use disorder and promotes sustained success through integrated co-treatment. 

Mental health and opioid use disorder often go hand in hand. When both conditions exist together, it’s called a co-occurring disorder, or dual diagnosis. Treating only one issue can lead to relapse or incomplete recovery. That’s why combining mental health care and MAT (medication-assisted treatment) offers the most effective, long-term support.

Middlesex recognizes that each person experiences addiction and mental health issues uniquely. Our patient-centered care provides personalized treatment tailored to the full range of every patient’s needs, promoting long-term recovery. Keep reading to learn more about why co-treatment matters and how mental health and MAT go hand in hand.  

3 Key Reasons Mental Health Support Is Essential in Recovery

Mental health is crucial because it impacts overall well-being, shaping your thoughts, emotions and behaviors. It helps you manage stress, foster healthy relationships and engage with your community. Additionally, mental health and physical health intersect in a major way. Poor mental well-being can cause physical symptoms and raise the risk of chronic illnesses such as heart disease and addiction. 

The top three reasons mental health is essential include:  

Builds resilience for life’s challenges: Strong mental health helps you manage stress, stay emotionally stable, and make healthy choices, especially during tough times. 
It promotes strong relationships and social bonds: Mental health impacts your capacity to build and sustain healthy connections with others. Developing social skills and connections creates a support system, reducing the risk of isolation.  
It enables you to realize your potential and make a positive impact on society: When your mental health is strong, you are better at working, learning and contributing to your community. This sense of well-being helps you participate actively in life and achieve your goals.  

Serious mental health problems can affect your relationships, career, education and future goals. With the global increase in mental illness, managing issues early can make a big difference. That’s why prioritizing mental health during recovery is essential—it can be life-changing, and even life-saving. 

The Benefits of Co-Treating Mental Health During MAT

People with co-occurring disorders need to get appropriate treatment for both conditions at the same time. Addressing only one condition without the other frequently results in relapse or an incomplete recovery. The benefits of addressing mental health during treatment include:  

Breaking the cycle: Addiction and mental health issues often occur together, with each condition exacerbating the other. Addressing them simultaneously in dual diagnosis recovery can break this cycle and target the underlying causes of the problem.  

Improving self-esteem and self-worth: Mental health counseling helps challenge negative thinking, highlight your strengths, and rebuild confidence.  

Improving emotional regulation: Therapies such as Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) can help you with regulating your emotions. This is a crucial step for maintaining overall mental well-being and promoting long-term recovery.  

Gaining tools of recovery: Treatment provides you with effective coping strategies to manage symptoms and stressors that may arise. Building these mechanisms will help decrease the chances of relapse. 

Achieving long-term success: Evidence suggests that integrated care for dual diagnoses leads to a reduced risk of relapse and enhances long-term recovery. Sticking with a comprehensive program that addresses addiction and mental health is the key to success.  

Addressing mental health during medication-assisted recovery offers many impactful benefits. It can improve your dedication to recovery, boost your self-esteem and teach you healthy coping skills. Treating co-occurring disorders breaks the cycle of mental illness that fuels addiction and vice versa. Through trauma-informed care, you can focus on emotional regulation, strengthening relationships and lasting recovery to a better life.  

How Suboxone and Counseling Work Together for Dual Diagnosis Care

Treating mental health and opioid use disorder with MAT therapy is essential because co-occurring disorders require integrated care. Addressing both conditions simultaneously increases the likelihood of achieving a long-lasting recovery. Dual diagnosis treatment targets both mental health issues and substance use disorder, and is considered the best approach for both.   

Suboxone combined with support therapy can aid recovery and is often the most recommended route for patients with dual diagnosis. Benefits of Suboxone include:  

Eases withdrawal: Suboxone targets the physical side of opioid addiction by alleviating withdrawal symptoms and decreasing cravings. This stabilization is vital for dual diagnosis as it enables you to concentrate on managing your mental health and building coping mechanisms. 
Improves mental health: Research indicates that buprenorphine can ease symptoms of comorbid mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. Using buprenorphine for anxiety encourages you to stay engaged in the treatment and recovery process. 
Reduces relapse risk: Co-occurring conditions raise the chance of relapse. Suboxone reduces cravings and blocks the effects of opioids, making it easier to stay engaged in mental health treatment.
Increases schedule flexibility: Unlike methadone, you can take Suboxone at home. Your medical provider will prescribe the medication, which you can then fill at a pharmacy. This offers a more private and accessible treatment option. It also enables you to incorporate your recovery into a daily routine, such as attending counseling sessions.  
Provides a long-term option: Suboxone has a “ceiling effect,” meaning that increasing the dose does not enhance the opioid effect. This greatly reduces the risk of respiratory depression and overdose. This makes it a safe choice for long-term dual diagnosis treatment compared to full opioid agonists. 

Combining mental health counseling with medication-assisted treatment provides a well-rounded and effective strategy for overcoming addiction. It tackles both the physical and psychological components of substance use disorder, boosting the chances of long-lasting recovery. Engaging in both substance use counseling and MAT gives you a comprehensive, supportive experience. It encourages you to take charge of your recovery and work towards a healthier, more fulfilling life. 

Get Integrated Mental Health and MAT Support at Middlesex Recovery

At Middlesex Recovery, we work to help patients overcome addiction and mental health issues. Our team of skilled medical providers, counselors and administrative staff collaborate to offer tailored, compassionate care aimed at achieving long-term success. 

If you or a loved one is facing challenges with opioid addiction and mental health, Middlesex Recovery provides compassionate, evidence-based care that treats both. Our integrated approach to mental health and MAT can help you build a strong foundation for long-term recovery.

Learn more about our full range of services and how we can support your journey by visiting our treatment programs page.