Substance Abuse Treatment: New Study on PTSD Treatment and Substance Abuse Treatment
Substance abuse treatment combined with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) treatment helps to improve the symptoms of PTSD according to a new study. Most accepted treatment plans for PTSD do not include treatment for substance abuse because there is a fear that treatment for PTSD will increase the drug and alcohol abuse. However, a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association has shown that combining PTSD treatment with substance abuse treatment will improved PTSD symptoms without increasing the drug or alcohol abuse.
PTSD can occur after someone has a traumatic experience. Experiencing a war, an attack, or a natural disaster can all trigger PTSD. Although most commonly associated with veterans, anyone who has experienced a traumatic event can develop PTSD. Symptoms of PTSD include sleeplessness, flashbacks to the event, and increased anxiety. In addition, many people who suffer from PTSD suffer from substance abuse as well. One study showed that as many as 51.9% of men with PTSD also reported having issues with alcohol abuse. The fact that so many people who suffer from PTSD also suffer from drug or alcohol abuse means that it is important to understand the best treatment options to deal with both.
Substance Abuse Treatment and PTSD
The current standard for treating PTSD is called prolonged exposure therapy. During therapy sessions, patients will relive the traumatic events by explaining the event or events to the therapist. The hope is that this will eventually lead to the trauma seeming less severe. Some therapists do not use this therapy on people who also suffer from drug or alcohol addiction, because they fear that reliving the negative events will cause the drug or alcohol abuse to get worse. However, a study at the University of New South Wales has challenged this belief. Study researchers worked with 103 patients who suffer from both PTSD and substance abuse to examine if PTSD treatment would increase drug or alcohol abuse in patients who are already suffering from such abuse. They randomly selected some of the patients to receive prolonged exposure treatment and substance abuse treatment, while the other patients only received one type of treatment. After nine months, both groups of patients had seen decreases in their PTSD symptoms. The group that was receiving both prolonged exposure therapy and treatment for their drug or alcohol abuse showed no increase in their substance abuse, which is contrary to current popular beliefs in therapy.
The fact that the group receiving prolonged exposure therapy and substance abuse therapy did not suffer from increased drug or alcohol abuse will perhaps change the way PTSD and drug and alcohol abuse are treated. This is great news for people looking for help in dealing with both of these issues.
Ben Brafman, LMHC, CAP is the President and CEO of Destination Hope, a licensed dual diagnosis substance abuse treatment center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Ben has more than 20 years of experience in the addiction and mental health fields, which led him to develop a combination of innovative treatment protocols at Destination Hope. He has been published on various topics including dual diagnosis and chemical dependency, and gives back to the community by educating other addiction counselors at his Academy for Addiction Professionals.
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