Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder & Addiction Treatment in San Diego, CA
Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is a common mental health condition that can arise out of exposure to trauma. Those who experience chronic symptoms of PTSD may also be struggling with a substance use disorder. Studies have shown that people with PTSD are more than 10 times likely to be diagnosed with PTSD. Whether rooted in childhood based trauma or created by the traumas resulting from addiction, the perpetual injury and reinjury caused by trauma and addiction requires specialized dual-diagnosis treatment to get under control.
What is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?
What Is PTSD?
PTSD is a mental illness that can develop by having either experienced trauma oneself or by witnessing a traumatic event. Examples of traumatic events include physical assault, sexual violence, domestic violence, or traumatic accidents.
PTSD is a highly individualized disorder. Some people with PTSD will develop the condition after having experiences of trauma, while some will not. Similarly, the onset of PTSD symptoms may occur directly following exposure to trauma or may not develop until months or years after exposure.
Symptoms Of PTSD
Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms are many and varied. Those who develop PTSD may experience:
- Intense emotional reactions
- Disturbing thoughts
- Nightmares
- Guilt or shame
- Flashbacks
Along with the symptoms above, those who have developed this condition may also be struggling with drug abuse and addiction disorders.
Co-Occurring PTSD and Addiction
Many exposed to severe trauma who don’t receive professional substance abuse treatment or trauma therapy for PTSD may engage in drug and alcohol use in order to relieve distressing thought patterns or forget a traumatic past. Alcoholism and depression, anxiety disorders, and personality disorders also commonly co-occur.
When one has been diagnosed with a drug or alcohol addiction, along with PTSD or one or more mental health disorders, this is called a dual disorder, co-occurring addiction, or dual diagnosis. These drug use and health conditions must be addressed in a PTSD and addiction treatment program for a successful recovery process.
Integrated Treatment for PTSD, Mental Illness, and Substance Abuse
Experiencing abusive trauma like sexual assault or another sexual act or participating in military combat can have a significant and lasting effect on mental health. Divine House offers PTSD and addiction treatment.
Our skilled and experienced trauma therapists administer several types of therapy for dual diagnosis treatment for PTSD and addiction, which include cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR).
Those who participate in our outpatient program, partial hospitalization, or inpatient post-traumatic stress disorder treatment in San Diego learn how to recognize signs of intoxication, addiction triggers, and the connections between PTSD and addiction.
Participants learn life skills as part of their PTSD treatment plan to help them manage triggers for substance abuse and mental health disorder symptoms.
If you are or someone you love is engaging in drug abuse and has experienced a traumatic event, they may have a co-occurring disorder. Effective treatment is available at Divine House. To learn more about co-occurring conditions and our inpatient treatment programs, contact us today.
Treating OCD Beyond Addiction & Dual Diagnosis
Introducing the Divine Life Mental Health Outpatient Program
Although the overwhelming majority of patients suffering from addiction (substance use disorder or SUD) also suffer from some form of mental health issue such as anxiety (dual diagnosis); not all patients suffering from mental health issues also suffer from addiction (primary mental health). This distinction between dual diagnosis and primary mental health is critical in providing the best and most appropriate care for our patients. For some dual diagnosis patients, their battle with anxiety continues to persist well after their active addiction is in remission. Equally, there are many patients who suffer from anxiety with very little to no addiction component. It is for these patients that the Divine Life primary mental health outpatient program in San Diego was created.
The Divine Life mental health outpatient program offers focused and highly effective mental health treatment provided by the same expert team of psychiatric doctors, therapists and mental healthcare professionals offered by Divine House. Conveniently located in the city hills just minutes away from the Divine House inpatient treatment facility, Divine Life’s beautifully remodeled 3-office outpatient facility offers clients the flexible access and amenities they need to successfully treat their mental health conditions.
It is this comprehensive offering of both dual diagnosis substance abuse and primary mental health that sets Divine House and Divine Life above and beyond the majority of treatment options available in Southern California.