PTSD Trauma and Addiction Treatment Center in Maryland

What Is the Connection Between Trauma and Addiction?

When a person lives through traumatic experiences, the experiences leave an imprint that can be felt for the rest of that person’s life. The way the body reacts to trauma, a fight-or-flight response, is supposed to help protect us from experiencing any future traumatic experiences.

However, this natural reaction can cause feelings of fear, anxiety, hopelessness, shame, self-loathing, and self-hatred. Such reactions also make it difficult to live a normal life. When faced with these negative feelings, many feel that the only way to get better is to self-medicate with drugs and alcohol.

Self-medicating does not cure the symptoms of trauma; it only masks them. Eventually, as the self-medicating and substance abuse continues, an addiction will form. When diagnosed with trauma/PTSD and addiction, an individual will need proper dual diagnosis treatment to make a full recovery.

Understanding the Trauma and Alcohol Connection

Maryland Recovery Addiction and Trauma Treatment Center

Maryland Recovery is a national treatment center for trauma-based disorders and substance abuse. Our addiction and trauma treatment program is one of the top dual diagnosis treatment programs in the country.

Our dual diagnosis program offers help for those suffering from substance abuse and addiction brought on by, or worsened by:

Trauma
Traumatic experiences
Adverse childhood experiences (ACE)
PTSD
Traumatic grief

Our trauma treatment counselors practice trauma-informed therapy, our program is discreet, and we offer a safe and comfortable environment in which we will alleviate the devastating effects of trauma and addiction.

Offering ongoing family support and a focus on long-term recovery, we invite your family to contact us to help a loved one who is in urgent need of trauma and addiction treatment.

Addiction and Trauma Statistics and FAQs

Learn more about trauma and the importance of addressing it within an addiction treatment program by reading through our answers to several frequently asked questions:

What Is Trauma?

Trauma is an emotional response (with physical, mental and emotional symptoms) to a shocking event. Examples of trauma-inducing events include:

Accidents
Sexual and physical assaults
Natural or manmade disasters
Terrorist attacks
Shootings
Any experience that causes a detrimental effect to the health and well-being of a person.

What Are the Symptoms of Trauma?

Trauma can cause a range of physical, emotional and mental symptoms, which can either be short- or long-term in their manifestations. These symptoms tend to work in a cycle of intensity – often called attacks or episodes.

Short-Term Symptoms of Trauma

Shock and disbelief
Denial
Confusion
Inability to think clearly or make decisions
Freezing up, inability to move, temporary paralysis

Long-Term Symptoms of Trauma

Insomnia, difficulty sleeping, sleep paralysis or nightmares
Fatigue and lack of energy
Feeling on edge or easily startled
Agitation, anger, irritability and mood swings
Guilt, shame, self-blame
Withdrawing from others, social anxiety, feeling uncomfortable in groups
Depression, feeling sad, feelings of hopelessness

What Is PTSD?

PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) is a mental health problem that can have physical, mental and emotional manifestations of symptoms that develop after a person experiences a traumatic or shocking event. The disorder can affect anyone without warning, although risk factors increase with previous trauma exposure and the existence of other co-occurring disorders, such as depression.

What Are the Symptoms of PTSD?

PTSD itself is characterized by four main symptoms, though other symptoms can be present. A co-occurring disorder of PTSD and another mental health disorder can exacerbate or cause additional symptoms.

The four main symptoms of PTSD are:

Re-experiencing – a past traumatic event. The traumatic event is often “relived” with PTSD, in that the thoughts and emotions that occurred during the event resurface. Also referred to as “flashbacks,” these re-experiences can occur while sleeping – in the form of nightmares – or while awake. The feelings can be of fear, distress, shame or hopelessness. These feelings can also be accompanied by panic and anxiety attacks, which are physical symptoms of the emotional and mental disorder.
Avoidance – of people, places, situations, social engagements or events that remind a sufferer of the traumatic event, or will cause memories and feelings about the event to surface.
Hyperarousal – Entering a state of elevated awareness in defense of a perceived attack. This hyperarousal leaves a person “keyed up” or on edge with feelings of anxiety or panic, and is a defense mechanism of the body to protect itself from what it perceives may be another traumatic experience. This can happen even when the person is in a safe environment with no real threat of further traumatic experiences.
Negative thoughts and beliefs – about your situation or your life. Feeling hopelessness, depression and sadness, inability to feel happy, or feeling like you are going to die characterize the negative thoughts of PTSD. You may also feel like you no longer fit into society or your life, or may feel paranoia about others’ actions or feelings about you.

Additional symptoms that can occur with PTSD, but are not indicative of PTSD, include:

Panic and anxiety attacks
Increased heartbeat (racing heart)
Paranoia, delusions, psychosis
Headaches
Muscle aches and spasms
Chronic pain
Anhedonia (inability to feel pleasure, happiness or contentment)
Sleep disturbances (insomnia, inability to fall asleep or stay asleep, night terrors)
Recurrent thoughts of death or suicide
Suicidal thoughts and feelings
Personality changes and mood swings

What Is the Difference Between Trauma and PTSD?

Trauma and PTSD are very similar in that they are both conditions caused by experiencing traumatic events. In the past, the two terms were used interchangeably, and the term “trauma” was originally adopted from the medical term “shell shock.”

In 2013, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) officially added PTSD as a sub-category of trauma and stressor-related disorders. This means that PTSD is officially a form of trauma in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). The criteria for diagnosing PTSD is based on 8 criterion questions (Criterion A-G).

What Are Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE)?

Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) – also called childhood trauma – are experiences as a child that contribute to the negative health and well-being of that person later in life. These experiences cause profound psychological, physiological and social changes in the person, increasing his or her risk for other negative behaviors, thoughts, actions and feelings.

Examples of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) and Childhood Trauma

Physical abuse (by parents, caregivers, peers or students, teachers or statutory persons)
Sexual abuse
Emotional abuse
Neglect (physical and emotional)
Exposure to domestic violence
Exposure to substance abuse (alcoholism and/or drug use in the family)
Exposure to mental illness (seeing the effects of mental illness in family members)
Separation from family/parents (via divorce, separation or incarceration)

Fact About Psychological Trauma Maryland Recovery

What Is the Best Treatment for PTSD and Trauma?

The best treatment for PTSD and trauma comes from professionals that utilize a trauma-informed approach. Trauma-informed care for PTSD and PTSD dual diagnosis cases sets an organization’s structure for treatment that focuses on recognizing, understanding and responding to trauma symptoms and effects during treatment.

An emphasis on the safety of the patient (psychological, physical and emotional) is used and aims to build empowerment of the individual during treatment. This helps individual slowly accept and take control of their responses to past trauma, and helps them begin to heal.

Are There Any Trauma and Addiction Statistics I Should Be Aware Of?

Trauma goes undiagnosed all too often in America and around the world. Only recently has a greater attention been placed on trauma, traumatic experiences and the negative effects that these experiences can have on a person’s health and well-being.

Here are some alarming stats and PTSD facts to make note of:

25 percent of children in the U.S. have experienced at least one potentially traumatic event in their lives before reaching the age of 16.
In addition to this early exposure to traumatic experiences, many children in the U.S. have experimented with drugs and alcohol, leaving them at a much higher risk of developing substance use disorders and a dual diagnosis of trauma and addiction.
Up to 59 percent of those under the age of 18 with PTSD develop a substance use disorder.
According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, in those under the age of 18 with substance use disorders, anywhere from 25 to 76 percent of those adolescents were exposed to some sort of trauma before the substance abuse. Also, 25 to 59 percent of those adolescents had experiences that met the criteria for PTSD.
Between 25 and 75 percent of people who survive abuse and trauma develop an alcohol use disorder or drug use disorder.
Women are not only more likely to be diagnosed with PTSD after traumatic experiences, but are also at an increased risk for alcohol use disorders – including alcoholism, binge drinking, chronic alcohol abuse and problem drinking.
The amygdala is the center of the brain that acts as your threat-detection center. In cases of trauma and PTSD, the amygdala becomes hyperactive, constantly searching for threats and promoting aggressive behavior.
According to SAMHSA (via a study by RAND), 18.5 percent of military veterans returning from overseas reported symptoms of either PTSD and/or depression.
Lifetime history of sexual abuse in female Americans ranges from 15 to 25 percent. A history of sexual abuse meets the criteria for trauma, and could lead to PTSD.
8 percent of Americans are diagnosed with PTSD, though the true number including undiagnosed cases is thought to be upwards of 20 percent.
According to the Co-Occurring Collaborative Serving Maine, more than 2 out of 3 people seeking treatment for substance abuse report having lived through one or more traumatic experiences or life events.

Rates of Lifetime Substance Abuse in those with PTSD:

Marijuana: 44.8%
Alcohol: 39%
Cocaine: 34.1%
Heroin/Opioids: 6.2%

These numbers come from a 2010 study of nearly 600 participants in the Atlanta area.

Get Help for a Loved One Struggling with Trauma, PTSD and Addiction

Trauma, PTSD and the changes they can cause in a loved one can be frightening to family members, and families often don’t know where to turn for help. When substance abuse and addiction issues are added to one’s trauma and PTSD, it creates a even more serious situation that needs to not only be treated, but should be treated safely and correctly.

At Maryland Recovery, our dual diagnosis treatment programs for PTSD survivors are renowned for helping individuals suffering from trauma find peace. We utilize trauma-informed therapies and treatment in a safe and comfortable environment. We focus on long-term care and offer a full continuum of ongoing treatment, including our family support programs help the whole family heal.

My Loved One Needs Trauma & Addiction Treatment

Or call us today at (877) 762-3766, we are here for you.

"Maryland Recovery gave me the tools and counseling to accept my past and forge a new future for myself. Life today has a hope and brightness to it that had not experienced before. I got a job and an apartment with the help of Maryland Recovery. I am able to be part of my family’s life again."
— Robert M
"I am certain that this program helped save my life. I was provided with an opportunity to learn how to live a sober life. I learned to be responsible and accountable for my behavior. When practicing the principles of the program and remaining willing to grow on this journey, I experience a freedom I never knew, but always wanted."
— Morgan S
"The only things that I knew when I arrived at Maryland Recovery (MR) was that I was broken: spiritually, emotionally, and physically broken and that my way of doing things had gotten me there. The people at MR understood who I was better than I did. They assured me that I was not alone, with that came a glimpse of hope and some relief."
— Hubbard

Get Help Now!

Contact us immediately if you or a loved one is in desperate need of a life reset. Our admissions counselors are available to answer all your questions. Call Us (877) 762-3766 or fill out the form below. 100% private and confidential.

Trauma and Addiction Treatment Center in Maryland