Many people who suffer from untreated mental health conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, or anxiety often use drugs or alcohol to cope. PTSD is a debilitating mental health condition that leads to major depression, intense anxiety, and intrusive memories or flashbacks that make a severe impact on a person’s life. Many people develop PTSD from childhood abuse, military combat, natural disasters, or sexual assault. First responders are at high risk of developing PTSD due to on-scene tragedies, deaths, accidents, and crimes.
For many people, PTSD and addiction often go hand-in-hand, and a recovery program should include both addiction treatment and mental health treatment. At Fort Behavioral Health in Fort Worth, Texas, we believe that an effective rehab program should include a trauma therapy program.
What Is Dual Diagnosis?
People with PTSD often turn to drugs or alcohol to suppress their incapacitating emotional pain. When both PTSD and addiction are present, both conditions need to be treated simultaneously as a dual diagnosis for the best success in recovery. As a person uses more substances and more frequently to cope, he or she increases the risk of developing a drug or alcohol problem.
A person with a dual diagnosis needs to get treatment immediately for his or her mental condition and addiction at the same time. This is because drug and alcohol use can worsen symptoms of mental health, and mental health conditions make the person use more drugs or alcohol. Some drugs and alcohol can worsen symptoms of PTSD and cause physical impairment, overdose, or death.
PTSD can lead to:
- Angry outbursts
- Feelings of helplessness
- Aggressive behavior
- Restlessness
People living with PTSD often relive traumatic events, have nightmares, and can become socially withdrawn. Sadly, the fear of the stigma surrounding PTSD and addiction can make a person reluctant to seek help. Our Fort Behavioral Health team wants to remove this unnecessary stigma. We provide treatment for both PTSD and addiction with our trauma therapy program.
What Is a Trauma Therapy Program?
A trauma therapy program at Fort Behavioral Health gets the root cause of an addiction, which is usually a traumatic event from the past. Our therapists will work with you to address and then heal the trauma, so that alcohol or drug use will not need to be used to numb emotional pain. Also, we will teach you coping skills that act as healthy outlets when you are confronted with painful triggers.
What Are Other Treatment Methods for PTSD and Addiction?
At Fort Behavioral Health in Fort Worth, Texas, a trauma therapy program is one of the primary therapeutic approaches that we use during mental health treatment. Our team also uses other methods of mental health treatment as an aspect of a recovery program, including:
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy
- Dialectical behavior therapy
- Eye movement
- Group therapy
- Desensitization and reprocessing therapy (EMDR)
- Somatic experiencing
- Motivational interviewing
Get Treatment for Both PTSD and Addiction at Fort Behavioral Health
If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction and a mental health disorder simultaneously, learn more about a recovery program at Fort Behavioral Health in Fort Worth, Texas, today. Addiction is isolating, but you are not alone. Do not be afraid to ask for help.
Fort Behavioral Health specializes in treating dual diagnosis as it relates to mental health conditions and addiction treatments combined with a focus on healing for the mind, body, and spirit. You are worthy of a fulfilling, meaningful, and healthy life in sobriety.
“One of the hardest things was learning that I was worth recovery.” ~ Demi Lovato
The Fort Worth Recovery umbrella covers medically supervised detox, as well as residential programs for men and women alike. Our programs are abstinence-based and combine a 12-step approach with a strong mental health component, integrating cutting-edge techniques such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR), Somatic Experiencing, and Motivational Interviewing. For more information or to start your healing journey, please fill out a contact request form or call 844.332.1807, and one of our recovery experts will connect with you shortly.
