Is substance abuse a form of mental illness?

Dual diagnosis: Addictive disorders are often treated by psychiatric professionals. It is important to realize addiction is a disease and trained professionals are important in treatment. A "dual diagnosis" isn't uncommon when living and healing an addictive disorder. Addiction can present with psychiatric manifestations such as an antecedent, withdrawal or other. For this reason psych is heavily involved.

Both: Mental illness and substance abuse (sa) can be co- occurring disorders. Sa by itself can be seen as a mental illness. Some conditions like depression and anxiety can be causative factors or can be as a result of the substance being used. However the chemical dependency is usually treated first. Then it is easier to know if its a cause or an effect. Getting clean is the path as u treat the others.