Article by Kendra, LMAC, LPC

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and for me, it’s a time that feels deeply connected to the work I do every day at Soul Solutions.a

People often think of substance use disorder and mental health as two separate things: two different problems, two different kinds of people, two different paths to treatment.

But in my work as a Licensed Master Addiction Counselor and Licensed Professional Counselor, I see something different. I see how intertwined these two things really are, and how understanding that connection changes everything about how we approach healing.

The numbers reflect what I witness in my office. In 2024, nearly one in four adults in the United States experienced a mental illness. That same year, 16.8% of the U.S. population met criteria for a substance use disorder. And among adults living with a mental illness, nearly one-third also met criteria for a SUD. These aren’t coincidences. They are connected conditions that often develop together, fuel each other, and need to be treated together.

For many of the individuals I work with, substance use didn’t begin in a vacuum; it began as a way to cope, to quiet anxiety, to numb grief, and to get through the day when everything felt too heavy to carry. That doesn’t make it a moral failure. It makes it a human response to pain, and it means that treating the addiction without addressing the underlying mental health piece often isn’t enough.

That’s why I pursued licensure in both fields. I wanted to be able to meet people where they are, with the full picture in mind. When we treat the whole person, not just the diagnosis on paper, we give recovery a much stronger foundation to stand on.

At Soul Solutions, that whole-person approach is built into everything we do. It’s not an add-on. It’s the philosophy. And it’s something I’m proud to be part of every single day.

If you’re struggling, whether it’s with substance use, mental health, or both, I want you to know that you don’t have to have it all figured out before you reach out. We meet people exactly where they are, and we walk alongside them from there.

Reaching out is easy. Call us at 701-356-7772 or visit us at soulsolutions.org.