Often, as symptoms increase, so does substance use. Over time, relying on alcohol and drugs to compensate for trauma can turn into dependence and that can morph into addiction. The number of people seeking addiction treatment who also have a trauma disorder is staggering.
Full Answer
How does trauma affect substance use disorders?
Seventy-five percent of men and women receiving addiction treatment have a history of abuse and trauma. Thirty-three percent of people exposed to trauma develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). An estimated 60% to 80% of veterans receiving treatment for PTSD also need treatment for a substance use disorder.
How does trauma therapy help with addiction recovery?
At Gateway, our trauma therapy program offers individualized treatment to give you the tools you need to break addiction’s hold. By treating trauma and addiction at the same time, we offer you the best chance of recovery. Don’t let trauma and addiction impact one more moment of your life.
What is trauma-informed Substance Use Treatment?
The ability to treat both the SUD as well as any underlying trauma that could be contributing to the disorder has shown positive effects in client treatment. This has been detailed in one individual’s experience with receiving trauma-informed substance use treatment.
How common is trauma in substance abuse treatment?
More than 70 percent of adolescents in substance abuse treatment today have a history of trauma exposure. About 3 in every 4 substance-addicted women have experienced sexual abuse in their lifetime. The list goes on.
How does trauma affect drug use?
Early traumatic experience may increase risk of substance use disorders (SUDs) because of attempts to self-medicate or to dampen mood symptoms associated with a dysregulated biological stress response.
How are trauma and substance abuse related?
Substance abuse is often prompted by trauma or trauma-related mental health disorders, such as PTSD. Flooded by feelings of fear or guilt, many people who are scarred by a traumatic event will turn to drugs or the bottle to cope. This is called self-medication.
How does childhood trauma affect drug use?
Those who had experienced such things during childhood have shown an increased tendency to become dependent on alcohol and drugs. They may also develop behavioral addictions such as compulsive eating and compulsive sexual behavior.
How does PTSD lead to substance abuse?
People with PTSD are more prone to violent outbursts and panic attacks, which can be difficult for family and friends to witness. Feelings of guilt over these outbursts can drive those with PTSD to self-medicate with drugs and alcohol. Continued use of alcohol or other drugs in this way can lead to an addiction.
How does stress influence drug abuse?
Stress can cause changes in the brain like those caused by addictive drugs. This suggests that some people who experience stress may be more vulnerable to drug addiction or drug relapse. Those who become addicted to drugs may already be hypersensitive to stress.
Does traumatic brain injury increase risk for substance abuse?
Those with a mild TBI were 2.6 times more likely to be discharged for alcoholism or drug use, while those with a moderate TBI were 5.4 times more likely (Ommaya et al., 1996). Severe TBI subjects, however, did not have increased incidence for a substance-abuse-related discharge.
What is trauma abstinence?
Traumatic Abstinence, also known as Extreme Deprivation, is when the victim swings into extreme control over the trauma they experienced.
What is the most important thing about trauma?
What is most important is that shared decision making, person-centered treatment, and a collaborative approach that includes trauma-specific and substance use-specific expertise is utilized. Additionally, the importance of having a trauma-informed framework for organizations that treat substance use disorder cannot be overstated.
What is trauma informed care?
Implementing elements of the trauma-informed care framework can only help to benefit those who are struggling with substance use. Most importantly, it is critical for clinicians and organizations to remember that individuals who have experienced trauma (as well as those struggling with substance use disorders) can, and do, recover.
How many people have substance use disorder?
Millions of Americans struggle with substance use disorder (SUD). A 2018 national survey found that approximately 20.3 million people aged 12 or older had a substance use disorder within the past year. While this number is startling, what is even more prevalent among Americans is the experience of psychological trauma — 70% of adults in the U.S., or 223.4 million people, have experienced some type of traumatic experience at least once in their lives.
How many people have experienced trauma?
While this number is startling, what is even more prevalent among Americans is the experience of psychological trauma — 70% of adults in the U.S., or 223.4 million people, have experienced some type of traumatic experience at least once in their lives. Trauma is a risk factor in nearly all substance use disorders.
Is trauma a risk factor for substance use?
Trauma is a risk factor in nearly all substance use disorders. Decades of research have found a strong link between exposure to traumatic events and SUD. Conversely, individuals with substance use disorders are also more likely to experience traumatic events, leaving millions of people in a perpetual cycle of traumatic experiences ...
Do veterans have substance use disorders?
Men and women who have experienced sexual abuse have higher overall rates of alcohol and other substance use disorders. Most veterans have met criteria for a substance use and PTSD diagnosis. The National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study, conducted in the 1980s, reported 74% of Vietnam Veterans with PTSD also had a substance use disorder.
Can PTSD cause substance use disorder?
It is important to note that it is not only individuals with a diagnosis of PTSD who experience substance use disorders. Simply the experience of a traumatic event (without meeting the diagnostic criterial for PTSD or another trauma-related disorder) can result in an increased risk for substance use disorder.
What are the effects of substance use on adolescents?
Research studies have shown that adolescents who engage in problematic substance use are more likely to experience traumatic events and develop PTSD, depression, violent behavior, suicide, and other mental health problems compared to those who do not use substances.
How does substance abuse affect a child?
Starting even before children are born, parental substance use increases children's risk for later mental health problems and victimization.
Is traumatic stress a substance abuse problem?
Trauma and Substance Abuse. There is a strong connection between traumatic stress and substance abuse that has implications for children and families, whether the user is an adolescent or a parent or caregiver. Research studies have shown that adolescents who engage in problematic substance use are more likely to experience traumatic events ...
What is the connection between childhood trauma and addiction?
The Connection Between Childhood Trauma and Addictions. The human brain is one of the most amazingly adaptive things on the planet. Thanks to a trait known as plasticity, your brain can respond and adapt to anything that you experience during your life.
What are the symptoms of traumatic experiences?
Some of the symptoms you can experience as a result of a traumatic experience include: Those who sustain a traumatic experience in their childhood are also at an extremely high risk of developing an addiction to drugs or alcohol.
Why does trauma cause stress?
Trauma causes high levels of stress because your mind and body see this event as physically or emotionally harmful or life-threatening. Stress triggers the release of hormones like cortisol and adrenaline — the same hormones that handle your body’s fight-or-flight response.
Why is there a connection between drug abuse and child abuse?
This connection between child abuse and drugs occurs due to the fact that childhood trauma and maltreatment may be the cause behind abnormalities in the brain structure. These abnormalities can cause various problems with cognition and behavior.
How to treat dual diagnosis PTSD?
To treat a dual diagnosis PTSD, a treatment facility must be able to address both the addictive cycle and the underlying trauma that caused the addiction, which could include an analysis of all trauma-related triggers.
What are the symptoms of drug and alcohol abuse?
Depression . Social withdrawal. Insomnia. Depending on the symptom, the patient may decide to try and “cure” themselves through drug and alcohol abuse. This method doesn’t work and, eventually, they’ll develop a tolerance to their drug of choice, often leaving them worse off than they were before.
What are the different types of trauma?
There are many types of trauma, with the most common being: 1 Physical assault 2 Sexual assault 3 Rape 4 Domestic violence 5 Emotional or verbal abuse 6 Parental neglect 7 Bullying or ongoing harassment 8 Accidents, like car crashes or fire 9 Natural disasters 10 Terminal illness
How does trauma affect cognition?
Traumatic experiences can affect and alter cognitions. From the outset, trauma challenges the just-world or core life assumptions that help individuals navigate daily life ( Janoff-Bulman, 1992 ). For example, it would be difficult to leave the house in the morning if you believed that the world was not safe, that all people are dangerous, or that life holds no promise. Belief that one’s efforts and intentions can protect oneself from bad things makes it less likely for an individual to perceive personal vulnerability. However, traumatic events—particularly if they are unexpected—can challenge such beliefs.
What are the immediate reactions of a trauma survivor?
Survivors’ immediate reactions in the aftermath of trauma are quite complicated and are affected by their own experiences, the accessibility of natural supports and healers, their coping and life skills and those of immediate family, and the responses of the larger community in which they live. Although reactions range in severity, even the most acute responses are natural responses to manage trauma— they are not a sign of psychopathology. Coping styles vary from action oriented to reflective and from emotionally expressive to reticent. Clinically, a response style is less important than the degree to which coping efforts successfully allow one to continue necessary activities, regulate emotions, sustain self-esteem, and maintain and enjoy interpersonal contacts. Indeed, a past error in traumatic stress psychology, particularly regarding group or mass traumas, was the assumption that all survivors need to express emotions associated with trauma and talk about the trauma; more recent research indicates that survivors who choose not to process their trauma are just as psychologically healthy as those who do. The most recent psychological debriefing approaches emphasize respecting the individual’s style of coping and not valuing one type over another.
What is the most common trauma related disorder?
The trauma-related disorder that receives the greatest attention is PTSD ; it is the most commonly diagnosed trauma-related disorder, and its symptoms can be quite debilitating over time. Nonetheless, it is important to remember that PTSD symptoms are represented in a number of other mental illnesses, including major depressive disorder (MDD), anxiety disorders, and psychotic disorders ( Foa et al., 2006 ). The DSM-5 ( APA, 2013a) identifies four symptom clusters for PTSD : presence of intrusion symptoms, persistent avoidance of stimuli, negative alterations in cognitions and mood, and marked alterations in arousal and reactivity. Individuals must have been exposed to actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence, and the symptoms must produce significant distress and impairment for more than 4 weeks ( Exhibit 1.3-4 ).
What are the emotions that come from trauma?
Beyond the initial emotional reactions during the event, those most likely to surface include anger, fear, sadness, and shame. However, individuals may encounter difficulty in identifying any of these feelings for various reasons. They might lack experience with or prior exposure to emotional expression in their family or community. They may associate strong feelings with the past trauma, thus believing that emotional expression is too dangerous or will lead to feeling out of control (e.g., a sense of “losing it” or going crazy). Still others might deny that they have any feelings associated with their traumatic experiences and define their reactions as numbness or lack of emotions.
What are the delayed reactions to trauma?
Delayed responses to trauma can include persistent fatigue, sleep disorders, nightmares, fear of recurrence, anxiety focused on flashbacks, depression, and avoidance of emotions, sensations, or activities that are associated with the trauma, even remotely. Exhibit 1.3-1 outlines some common reactions.
Do trauma survivors feel ashamed?
Often, trauma survivors feel ashamed of their stress reactions, which further hampers their ability to use their support systems and resources adequately. Many survivors of childhood abuse and interpersonal violence have experienced a significant sense of betrayal.
Is PTSD a physical condition?
Diagnostic criteria for PTSD place considerable emphasis on psycholog ical symptoms, but some people who have experienced traumatic stress may present initially with physical symptoms. Thus, primary care may be the first and only door through which these individuals seek assistance for trauma-related symptoms. Moreover, there is a significant connection between trauma, including adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and chronic health conditions. Common physical disorders and symptoms include somatic complaints; sleep disturbances; gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, neurological, musculoskeletal, respiratory, and dermatological disorders; urological problems; and substance use disorders.
