Co-occurring Disorders (COD) refers to the presence of both mental illness and substance dependency or abuse at the same time.

An individual may have a mental illness first, then turn to alcohol or other drugs due to sadness, anxiety or fear of other people. On the other hand, an individual may have a substance use problem first which may cause the brain and other organs to be affected, over time causing the development of a mental illness.

Both issues do not have to be currently active for us to provide assistance. Problems may be recognized as co-occurring even if one has been active only in the past.

NLCMHA provides Co-Occurring Disorder (COD) services for adults who are eligible to receive Community Mental Health (CMH) services and who also have a substance dependency/use concern.