Gender Differences in Dually-Diagnosed Clients Receiving Chemical Dependency Treatment

Abstract

This article considers gender differences among 97 clients with dual diagnoses of severe mental illness and chemical dependency (46 male and 51 female). Comparisons are made at the time of their admission to an inpatient chemical dependency treatment program and at follow-up in cases where data are available. Many of the findings at time of admission are consistent with the few studies that have compared men and women with co-occurring mental and substance use disorders. For example, the women were more likely to have experienced emotional, physical, or sexual abuse, and they reported being charged with fewer types of crimes. Most differences at admission concerned psychiatric problems and family/social relations. Women reported that they were more bothered by their psychiatric symptoms and their family/social relations, but they also reported more happiness and closeness in some relationships. The women also said they had more relatives with alcohol, drug, and especially psychiatric, problems. At follow-up, gender differences in the family/social and psychiatric domains persisted. Findings suggest that men and women with dual diagnoses might benefit from different emphases in treatment programs.

The Prevalence of Postpartum Depression among Women with Substance Use, an Abuse History, or Chronic Illness: A Systematic Review

“…The results are comparable to studies in the general population of substance-using women, which have also demonstrated high rates of comorbid depression. 47,48 However, substance-using participants in these studies typically exhibited numerous sociodemographic risk factors for depression, including single status and low socioeconomic status. Indeed, the only study to find no significant increase in rates of PPD among substance-using women was also the only study in which sociodemographic variables, such as socioeconomic status and marital status, were comparable between the substance-using and comparison groups.…”

Trauma history and relapse probability among patients seeking substance abuse treatment

“…Compared to individuals without SUD, those with SUD report more traumatic events (Cottler, Compton, & Mager, 1992). Among those seeking treatment for SUD, 42-95% report histories of trauma (Argeriou & Daley, 1997 Brown et al, 2003;Dansky, Byrne, & Brady, 1999;Dansky, Saladin, Brady, Kilpatrick, & Resnick, 1995;DiNitto, Webb, & Rubin, 2002;Miller & Downs, 1995;Swan, Farber, & Campbell, 2001).…”

Violence perpetration and childhood abuse among men and women in substance abuse treatment

“…However, gender differences exist in both of these areas; sexual and physical abuse appear more common among women in SUD treatment (DiNitto, Webb, & Rubin, 2002;Najavits, Weiss, & Shaw, 1997), whereas severe violence perpetration is more common among men (Chermack, Stoltenberg, et al, 2000). Therefore, studies examining violence perpetration and its associated characteristics among patients with SUD require sizable samples of men and women.…”