Addiction And Trauma

As a support worker, it is necessary that organisation would need to have a foundational understanding of how to identify trauma associated responses. Similarly, there needs to be understanding when initiating treatment interventions for trauma-related symptoms, it is aimed to be conducive and empowering to the individual (Trauma-Informed Care: A Sociocultural Perspective, 2014). Also, all support workers should be skilled in identifying the symptoms of trauma, as well as not disregarding the probability of substance abuse and co-occurring disorders (Trauma-Informed Care: A Sociocultural Perspective, 2014). Hence, when creating an individual treatment plan, all likelihoods of self-medicating and individualised coping mechanisms should be reflected

Addiction has a way of pulling your attention away from your basic needs and making it harder for you to succeed in life. It's a sad truth that I've seen happen to so many people over the years. These are good people, with good brains and real potential, but addiction takes over and they can only focus on that aspect of their life.

There is a war being wage here in America. No, it is not a civil war, nor is it the war on terrorism. This war is an effort to fight drug abuse and addiction; however, America is losing this battle. Doweiko (2012) reports that more than 15% of a state’s budget is used to fight and maintain this war (p. 2). Ruiz (2014) reports that the Ohio state Attorney General Mike DeWine says Ohio has 47 counties out of 88 with an epidemic of heroin use and associated crimes. Likewise, she (2014) reports that Ohio is as well losing this war and Ohioans are dying from overdoses. These figures for Ohio have risen from

An interesting form of treatment for PTSD is exposure therapy, this treatment is for people with PTSD as well as substance abuse disorder (Coffey). There were 126 subjects all from an unlocked 6-week community residential SUD treatment facility. The idea behind the study was to add prolonged exposure to a 12-step program for those with PTSD-SUD. It was found that as with other cases prolonged exposure is helpful to those with PTSD and if it is early on in the substance abuse issue then it is helpful with

The VA runs the largest substance use disorder treatment program in the world. Treatment of veterans with SUDs and co-occurring psychiatric disorders is one of the following three paradigms; parallel, sequential, and integrated. Most VA programs are parallel, where the patient receives treatment for SUD in one program and treatment for PTSD in another. Many SUD-PTSD veterans may be unable to navigate the separate systems or make sense of the disparate messages about PTSD treatment and recovery. One challenge to dissemination and implementation of EBTs is that of dual disorders, particularly SUD and PTSD. These patients use costly inpatient services, tend to have frequent relapses, and are less likely to adhere to or complete treatment.

Women with substance abuse issues tend to pose unique differences when compared to their male counterparts. They are more likely to exhibit PTSD. This is especially true for those women who have experienced physical and/or sexual abuse with high rates of repeated trauma (Najavits et al, 1997).

A broad range of medical and psychological therapies is currently available for people who struggle with substance addictions. The scientific community is working on evaluation of various treatments to determine which strategies offer the best chances of successful outcome. People who need treatment for alcoholism and drug use are very diverse group. Addiction is a disorder that requires an individual case approach; therefore, different ways to

Treatment for co-ocurring disorders fall under the outpatient spectrum for addiction rehabilitation, however, it is an essential and successful form of treatment specifically for veterans. For many civilians who have not been to combat it is difficult to comprehend the toxic combination of pride, anger, duty, anguish and anxiety many veterans feel after their time in the service. Consequently, adjusting back to civilian life is a difficult task to accomplish; while some veterans sustain only minor physical and psychological wounds from combat, others aren’t as lucky. As mentioned above, for veterans, PTSD is considered a mental health condition caused by the traumatic events experienced in wartime. Thus often causing veterans to drugs or alcohol to self-medicate. If left unaddressed, PTSD and substance abuse in veterans can be

Article Citation: Bernhardt, A. (2009). Rising to the challenge of treating OEF/OIF veterans with co‐occurring PTSD and substance abuse. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 79(3-4), 344-367.

This literature review briefly examines the scholarly journal articles and research cited above. The aim of these articles were to identify the effective intervention methods used for the treatment of co-occurring posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance use disorders (SUD). Although there is much evidence to support the high rate of individuals who experience symptoms of or are diagnosed with both PTSD and a SUD, there is little known about the comorbidity of these two disorders. There is also little research focused on specific populations, such as veterans, who experience a high rate of SUD diagnoses generally associated with combat PTSD. The literature also describes possible rationale for the high rate of

Most become addicted because they want to numb their pain or try to gain some control in their life. For this reason, PTSD and substance abuse often lead to legal problems, incarceration, poverty, broken families and unemployment. “A startling 34% of all men and 27% of all women with PTSD will also suffer from drug addiction, while 28% of women and an astonishing 52% of men with PTSD will eventually be classified as alcoholics.” (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and

The experience of trauma can bring about feelings that are difficult for anyone else to understand. The feelings become even more complicated with addiction. It is important for practitioners to first understand the relationship of trauma and addiction to one another. Once the relationship is better understood, connections can be made to possible treatments and why those treatments should be used. Research testing these treatments can give possible avenues for practitioners to venture when faced with someone who is recovering from trauma and also facing a substance use disorder. The research available is a good start when trying to define the relationship between this co-occurring disorder.

This treatment approach is based on cognitive and learning theories, tackling-misleading beliefs related to the traumatic events of acknowledgments related to the abuse and provides a supportive environment of which individuals are encouraged to talk about their traumatic experience. A numerous amount of research has been carried out to investigate into how effective CBT really can be for PTSD. (Resick et al, 2002) carried out an investigation comparing CBT with strong cognitive restructuring focus and CBT with a strong exposure focus and to a waiting-list control of rape survivors. Prior to this experiment approximately 80% of patients who completed either form of CBT no longer met the criteria for PTSD. Once this investigation was complete a follow up treatment took place of which it was noted 2% of the waiting list group had lost the PTSD diagnoses. Only a year after this investigation Bryant, Moulds, Guthrie, Dang & Nixon, (2003) restructured the experiment comparing exposure alone, exposure plus cognitive restructuring, and supportive counselling in civilians with PTSD resulting from various traumatic events. At this particular follow up 65-80% of participants who either completed either form of CBT were now clear of PTSD diagnosis, compared to less than 40% of those who completed supportive counselling.

Wondering if anyone has PSYC 6123 (Counselling Methodology – Cognitive & Behavioural Modalities) syllabus or PSYC 6273 (Cultural Diversity in Counselling) or PSYC 6213 (Research Methodology) as I want to double up but not sure which will be easy to do with either of this course. My elective choices are between Addiction Counselling, Crisis & Trauma in counselling, and Psychopathology for counsellors.

Drug and alcohol addiction is a very serious and widespread problem in America, and across the globe. Drug addiction is a constant craving, seeking, and using of a substance, despite the negative consequences it may have on the addict or those around them. When drug use becomes more frequent, it is considered drug abuse. Once an individual’s drug abuse is can no longer be controlled, and they are using the drug to get through everyday life, it beomes an addiction. A person on drugs has an altered way of thinking, behaving, and perceiving. There are treatment facilities all over the world dedicated to help those suffering with drug addictions. All