Anxiety and addiction often go together, and at Santa Barbara Recovery we treat both at once. For men who drink or use to quiet anxiety, treating the addiction alone leaves the anxiety driving relapse. Our dual diagnosis care addresses the anxiety and the substance use together, with one team, across every level of care.
How Anxiety and Addiction Connect
Anxiety and addiction feed each other in a cycle. A man dealing with constant worry, panic, or social anxiety often finds that alcohol or drugs quiet it, and for a while they do. That relief is exactly the problem: it teaches the brain that the substance is the way to manage anxiety, and use deepens.
Over time the substance makes the anxiety worse, not better. Alcohol and many drugs increase anxiety as they wear off, so the next morning, or the next craving, brings more anxiety than before, which drives more use. Each side feeds the other. This is why treating only the addiction tends to fail: the anxiety that started it is still there, still driving the next drink.
How We Treat Anxiety and Addiction Together
We treat the anxiety and the addiction at the same time, with one clinical team. The substance use is stabilized through the appropriate level of care, while the anxiety is treated directly with evidence-based therapy rather than left to resolve on its own.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy helps a man identify and change the anxious thought patterns that drive both the worry and the using. Dialectical Behavior Therapy adds distress tolerance and emotion regulation skills, practical tools for getting through anxious moments without a substance. Where appropriate, psychiatric support addresses the anxiety medically. Together these treat the anxiety as its own condition, not just a side effect of addiction.
How Men Often Experience It
Many men do not name what they are dealing with as anxiety. They call it stress, push through it, or treat it as something to handle on their own, and reach for a drink or a substance to take the edge off. The anxiety underneath goes unaddressed, sometimes for years, until treatment brings it into focus.
Recognizing the anxiety is often the turning point. For a man who has tried to stop using and could not make it stick, the missing piece is frequently the anxiety he was using to manage. Naming it is not a weakness, it is what finally makes recovery workable, because now both halves of the problem can be treated.
Care That Runs Through Every Level
Anxiety treatment runs through the whole continuum, not a single stage. From detox and residential through PHP, IOP, and outpatient, the anxiety work continues alongside the addiction work, with the same team and the same plan. As the structure steps down, the anxiety skills a man has built carry forward with him.
Insurance and Cost
We work with all major insurance providers, and most commercial plans cover dual diagnosis treatment for anxiety and addiction. Verify your benefits with us and we will tell you what is covered, quickly and confidentially, before you commit to anything.
Because the anxiety care is integrated into your level of care, it is covered the same way that care is. If you do not have insurance or it falls short, private pay and scholarship options exist. Call and we will walk through what is realistic for your situation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can anxiety cause addiction?
Anxiety does not directly cause addiction, but it is a common driver. Many men use alcohol or drugs to quiet anxiety, and that self-medication can develop into addiction. Treating the anxiety is part of treating the addiction.
Why does my anxiety get worse when I drink or use?
Alcohol and many drugs reduce anxiety briefly, then increase it as they wear off. This rebound anxiety is often worse than the original, which drives more use. Breaking that cycle requires treating the anxiety directly.
How do you treat anxiety and addiction at the same time?
With integrated care: one team treats both. The substance use is stabilized through the right level of care, while the anxiety is treated with therapies like CBT and DBT and, where appropriate, psychiatric support.
Do I need to treat the anxiety or the addiction first?
Both at once. Treating only the addiction leaves the anxiety driving relapse, and treating only the anxiety lets the substance undo progress. Integrated dual diagnosis care addresses them together.
Does insurance cover treatment for anxiety and addiction?
Yes. We work with all major insurance providers, and most plans cover dual diagnosis treatment as part of your level of care. We verify your benefits in minutes.
How do I start?
Call (805) 429-1203 or verify your insurance online. Admissions is open 24 hours a day, and we will walk you through the next step.
Treat the Anxiety and the Addiction. Start Today.
If you have been using to quiet anxiety, treating both together is what finally makes recovery hold. We are here 24 hours a day. Call (805) 429-1203.
Medically Reviewed By
Dr. Courtney Scott, MD — Medical Director, board-eligible in Addiction Medicine.
Reviewed for clinical accuracy against ASAM guidelines, SAMHSA practice standards, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Dr. Scott oversees medical care and clinical quality at Santa Barbara Recovery.
