When treating substance abuse and addiction, it is widely accepted that mental health plays a huge role in creating effective and lasting recovery. Before an individual can completely give up substance abuse, they must recover from their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual states. Even further, individuals need to recover from any unresolved trauma that may have caused or amplified their substance abuse.

During drug and alcohol rehab, many individuals partake in trauma therapy. By completing trauma-informed counseling, individuals have an easier time healing from both the mental and physical aspects of their addiction. Let’s take a look at the connection between addiction and trauma, how trauma affects recovery, and what trauma therapy is.

What is Trauma and How Does it Relate to Addiction?

Trauma therapy in addiction treatment relies on collecting information from a patient and assessing the lasting effects they must recover from. But, what exactly is trauma? And, how does it relate to addiction?

According to The American Psychological Association, trauma is “an emotional response to a terrible event like an accident, rape, or natural disaster.”[1]

Examples of traumatic experiences include, but are not limited to:

• Experiencing or witnessing violence or crime
• Being a victim of or witnessing domestic violence, intimate partner violence, or family violence
• Being a victim of physical abuse, sexual abuse, or sexual assault
• Experiencing child abuse and maltreatment
• Witnessing or being a victim of natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes, fires, or earthquakes, or manmade disasters
• Being in a serious accident or witnessing one
• Experiencing a serious illness or medical procedure
• Experiencing war, political violence, or unrest (terrorist attacks)
• Forced displacement
• Neglect
• Traumatic grief or separation
• System-induced trauma and retraumatization (foster care, child protective services)

Experiencing a traumatic event will cause an array of negative emotions. The most common emotions associated with experiencing trauma include; anger, sadness, pain, loss, betrayal, guilt, confusion, entrapment, shame, and helplessness. Additionally, social isolation and dissociation from reality are common side-effects of unresolved trauma.

If an individual does not undergo trauma therapy, they may begin to develop symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). If you deal with symptoms such as flashbacks, unpredictable emotions, strained relationships, and physical symptoms, such as nausea, you may be suffering from PTSD and would greatly benefit from trauma-informed care.

The Connection Between Trauma and Addiction

Oftentimes, individuals who suffer from trauma are unaware that they require professional treatment. As a result, their trauma continues to negatively impact their mental state as well as their life. When an individual is unable to move on from their trauma, they are most likely suffering from PTSD.

To explain, “not being able to move on” from trauma might mean:

• Having unwanted memories of the traumatic event that cause significant distress
• Reliving the event through flashbacks
• Having nightmares about the traumatic event
• Avoiding reminders of the event, including places, people, and activities
• Experiencing extreme emotional or physical reactions (e.g. chills, heart palpitations, or panic) when flashbacks or thoughts of the trauma surface
• Being on constant guard or hyper-aroused at all times. This includes feeling irritable or suddenly becoming angry.
• Having trouble sleeping, concentrating, or being easily startled

During normal stress responses, people typically recover from trauma in a month or less. However, if the symptoms of trauma persist longer, the individual’s life will begin to be impacted. Individuals with PTSD often deal with extremely uncomfortable and painful symptoms. Over time, it is common for people with post-traumatic stress disorder to look for ways to cope with these symptoms. Unfortunately, many individuals turn to drugs or alcohol to soothe the symptoms of their PTSD and trauma. This is referred to as “self-medicating”, and is how many addictions begin.

What is Trauma Therapy?

Trauma therapy, commonly referred to as trauma-informed care, is a form of counseling that identifies and addresses unresolved trauma. When a patient begins trauma therapy, their therapist will design a treatment plan that is customized to their specific needs. The ultimate goal of trauma-informed care is to provide insight and healing to individuals who have suffered from trauma or PTSD.

Six principles of trauma-informed care are used across multiple types of settings, especially within addiction treatment. These include:[2]

1. Safety. Staff and clients should feel physically and psychologically safe within the organization.
2. Trustworthiness and transparency. Organizational operations and decisions must be conducted with transparency. Additionally, the goal of building and maintaining trust among staff, clients, and family members must be prioritized.
3. Peer support and mutual self-help. These ideals are integral to the organizational and service delivery approach and should be understood as key methods for building trust, establishing safety, and empowerment.
4. Collaboration and mutuality. There is true teamwork between staff and clients and among organizational staff.
5. Empowerment, voice, and choice. Throughout the organization, and among the patients, people’s strengths should be recognized, built on, and validated, and new skills must be developed as necessary.
6. Cultural, historical, and gender issues. The organization actively moves past cultural stereotypes and biases, considers language and cultural considerations in providing support, offers gender-specific services, leverages the healing value of traditional cultural and peer connections, and recognizes and addresses historical trauma.

What is Trauma-Informed Addiction Treatment?

Addiction treatment programs that use a trauma-informed approach always consider the effects and consequences of trauma on the whole person. Additionally, these programs work to understand the role traumatic experiences and events play in the development of addiction. Trauma-informed addiction treatment also works to treat trauma that has resulted from drug and alcohol use.

A person’s trauma history will be reviewed during the planning of a recovery treatment program. This is done to ensure that each patient’s treatment plans meet their unique and specific needs. This is essential in helping patients heal from both their trauma and addiction. People who have a mental health disorder and a substance use disorder (SUD), a condition known as dual diagnosis, typically attend trauma-informed addiction treatment. If an individual suffering from trauma and addiction does not attend a trauma-informed facility, treatment will not be effective. This is because healing from addiction requires individuals to also recover from the issues that may have caused their substance abuse, such as trauma and mental health conditions like PTSD.

Trauma Therapy and Substance Abuse Recovery

If you or a loved one have dealt with something traumatic and turned to alcohol or drugs to cope, you should consider attending trauma therapy at an addiction treatment center. Without the help of trauma-informed care and traditional addiction treatment modalities, recovery is unlikely. With that being said, contact Rehab Recovery Centers to find a rehab in your city that will help you effectively recover from the effects of both trauma and addiction.

References:

1. https://www.apa.org/topics/trauma/
2. https://www.cdc.gov/cpr/infographics/6_principles_trauma_info.htm