Many people who are suffering from the disease of addiction have had some sort of trauma in their life. Trauma can affect you in a variety of ways and cause different issues with your mental health, and in order to cope, you may have turned to drugs or alcohol. As you’ve already learned, the drugs or alcohol only make your problems even worse, but you can recover. Going to a long-term treatment program can help you overcome your addiction as well as your symptoms of PTSD.
PTSD is a serious mental health issue that affects many people, and if it’s resulted in you turning to drugs or alcohol, you’re not alone. A long-term treatment center that specializes in dual diagnosis treatment is going to be able to help you with your PTSD as well as your addiction. Through individual therapy, you’re going to be able to talk through your trauma and begin healing. You’ll also see how beneficial the support of others can be for your recovery, which can help you maintain long-term sobriety.
How PTSD Leads to Addiction
While many people who struggle with PTSD are veterans of war or first responders like police officers, EMTs, and others, you can develop PTSD for other reasons as well. If you’ve been the victim of verbal, physical or emotional abuse, this can be extremely traumatizing as well. Trauma is different for everyone, and some people develop the symptoms of PTSD after a life-threatening accident or the loss of a loved one. If you’re struggling with the symptoms of PTSD, you may experience the following:
- Severe anxiety
- Flashbacks
- Intense fear
- Insomnia or nightmares
- Emotional detachment or unwanted thoughts
All of these symptoms as well as more can also lead to symptoms of depression and cause you to isolate. Unfortunately, due to the symptoms, you may have trained your brain to turn to alcohol or drugs as a way to cope with these issues. The problem is that drugs and alcohol only make your PTSD, depression, and anxiety much worse. This is why you need to go to a long-term recovery program in order to learn a better way of living.
Individual Therapy for PTSD
Trauma can happen at any age, and it causes the brain to change in a variety of ways. The limbic system in your brain is constantly trying to keep you safe, and when you experience a traumatic event, your limbic system goes on high alert. The way the brain tries to protect you is by giving you a variety of triggers to try and keep you safe, but this can cause your life to become unmanageable. In order to recover, you’ll need to go through therapy to work through your trauma.
In many cases, your trauma still has such power over you because you’ve never been able to process what’s happened to you. Revisiting your traumatic experience can be scary, but you won’t be doing it alone. When you’re working with a therapist, they’ll be right there with you to process your trauma and help you begin the healing process. As you talk through your trauma, your brain begins to start healing, and your traumatic experience begins to lose its power over you, which is going to help you with your sobriety.
Group Support for Trauma Survivors
If you’re a survivor of trauma and are struggling with an addiction to drugs or alcohol, you’re not alone. When you’re struggling with addiction and trauma, you might feel extremely alone and as if nobody understands, but you’ll see that this isn’t true when you’re in long-term inpatient rehab. You’re going to meet others who have experienced trauma and are also trying to overcome their addiction. The people you meet in treatment will be there to relate to your experience and provide you with the support you need. Some of the relationships you build in treatment are going to last you for years to come after your discharge as you continue to support one another in your recovery.
If you’re ready to overcome your addiction and trauma, we’re a dual diagnosis treatment program located in South Beach, Florida. We proudly serve the people of South Beach as well as many other clients who come in from places like New Jersey, Maryland and other places in the Northeast. We have a team of addiction and trauma specialists who can help you begin on the path of sobriety, so give us a call today at 844-903-2111.
