Trauma Informed Drug and Alcohol Rehab Programs

Specialized trauma treatment programs can offer effective ways to obtain the care that’s necessary for recovery. People struggling with trauma may misuse substances, which can lead to addiction, and as each condition can influence the other, people can experience potentially worse outcomes than those who just have one disorder.¹ Finding the right trauma drug rehab can help treat both conditions and potentially prevent them from getting worse.²

Keep reading to learn more about specialized treatment programs for trauma, what to expect in trauma rehab, trauma treatment approaches, what happens in trauma rehab aftercare, using insurance coverage for trauma rehab, and how to find a trauma informed addiction program near you.

What Is a Trauma Informed Addiction Treatment Program?

Trauma informed addiction treatment programs treat addiction, or substance use disorder (SUD) in addition to trauma. Trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) commonly co-occur with SUDs, and research shows that it is advisable to treat both disorders at the same time.³ However, the exact process can vary depending on the trauma rehab you attend.

Trauma refers to any experience that causes an intense physical or psychological stress reaction, is experienced by the person as harmful or life-threatening, and has persistent adverse effects on a person’s health and overall well-being.³

Various types of trauma that someone can experience include:³

• Sudden unexpected death of a close family member or friend.
• Personal assault or victimization.
• Serious accidents.
• Hearing about or witnessing a close friend or relative experiencing an assault, serious accident, or serious injury.
• Personal illness.
• Natural disaster.

Someone who has a trauma disorder like PTSD and an SUD is said to have a co-occurring disorder, or dual diagnosis.² A co-occurring disorder means that a person has one or more mental health conditions alongside one or more SUDs.² Co-occurring disorders can influence the course and prognosis of each other, which is why it’s advisable to receive integrated treatment that addresses both conditions at the same time.⁴

There are many reasons why trauma and addiction co-occur. One theory is that individuals with trauma use substances as a way of self-medicating their symptoms, but this is currently a source of debate among addiction professionals, and it’s not always the case.² Other possibilities for co-occurrence between these conditions include common risk factors and changes in brain structure and function due to substance use, which could contribute to the development of a trauma disorder as well as addiction.^1,5

What Happens During Trauma-Focused Addiction Treatment Programs?

The exact process of trauma rehab programs can vary by a person’s needs, the substance they use, and the rehab they go to. For many people, the treatment process involves detox followed by some form of rehab and aftercare.⁶

Trauma rehab for alcohol or drugs can involve different levels of care. Everyone has different needs and treatment should be individualized, which means that treatment can look different for everyone.² Before starting trauma rehab, a person will undergo a comprehensive evaluation with a team of addiction professionals, who will gather necessary information about a person’s health and needs to formulate a diagnosis and determine the right rehab placement.⁷

A person’s needs should be assessed continuously throughout treatment, which means that people can transition to different levels of care during various stages of recovery.⁶ The levels of care that can be a part of a specialized trauma drug rehab treatment track can include:

• Detox, which provides support, medical supervision and, in many cases, medication to help people safely undergo withdrawal.⁷
• Inpatient rehab, which involves living onsite at a safe and supportive rehab, where you’ll receive 24/7 care and attention and participate in different types of therapy.⁷
• Outpatient rehab, which means you’ll be able to live at home but you’ll need to attend treatment at a trauma rehab for drugs and alcohol on a regular schedule.⁷
• Intensive outpatient programs (IOPs), which are supportive outpatient programs for people with trauma and addiction, involving between 9-20 hours of treatment per week.⁷
• Partial hospitalization (PHPs), also known as high-intensity outpatient programs (HIOPs), which are highly supportive outpatient programs that offer 4-8 hours of treatment most days of the week.^7,8

Treatment Approaches in Trauma Informed Rehab Programs

The appropriate level of care for your needs will be determined with the help of a doctor and/or addiction specialist. They refer to the levels of care outlined by the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), which provides placement criteria for the levels of care to determine the proper treatment setting across a continuum of care.⁸

A person’s specific treatment process can vary depending on their needs, the substance they use, and the facility they attend. During treatment, people may receive medication to treat their trauma condition as well as the addiction, based on the substance they use.^2,9 People also commonly participate in a variety of behavioral therapies, some of which are used across all SUD treatment platforms, but many involve therapies that are specifically designed to treat the trauma and SUD concurrently.⁹

Therapies that may be used at trauma rehab facilities include:

• Seeking Safety, which is a 24-session manualized therapy that helps establish and maintain feelings of safety and includes a variety of topics such as detaching from emotional pain, asking for help, compassion, honesty, integrating the split self, community resources, setting boundaries in relationships, coping with triggers, self-nurturing, and recovery thinking.⁹
• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which helps people become aware of automatic ways of thinking or behaving, and change these patterns through self-questioning and education.¹⁰
• Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), which is a type of trauma processing therapy designed to help people become desensitized to their trauma experiences and integrate these experiences so they can obtain relief from their symptoms.³
• Concurrent Treatment of PTSD and Substance Use Disorders using Prolonged Exposure (COPE), which is a specific form of treatment that integrates exposure therapy (where people tolerate the distress caused by certain items, ideas, or imagined scenes in a safe environment) with CBT.⁹
• Transcend, which is a 12-session group therapy intervention that provides education and development of coping skills during the first phase of treatment, and then focuses on trauma processing in the second phase of treatment.⁹
• Beyond Trauma, an 11-session group treatment for women in recovery from PTSD, addiction, or both conditions.¹¹

What Happens After Completing Trauma-Focused Addiction Treatment?

People in recovery from trauma and SUD can benefit from continued support after they’ve completed treatment at a trauma-focused rehab.² Aftercare, also known as continuing care, can provide support, monitor a person’s conditions, and address a return to substance use or of trauma symptoms if they occur.²

Common types of aftercare include:

• Support groups, like 12-step groups including Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA), or Double Trouble in Recovery, a support group for people with co-occurring disorders, or non-12-step groups like SMART Recovery.^7,12
• Continued individual or group therapy.
• Alumni programs offered by your rehab.
• Sober living, which offers substance-free, supportive recovery housing to people who are beginning the transition back to their daily lives.⁷

Does Health Insurance Cover Trauma Informed Addiction Treatment Programs?

Health insurance plans should cover trauma-informed addiction treatment, at least in part. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) states that substance use and mental health treatment are essential health benefits (EHBs), and Marketplace insurance plans must provide some type of coverage for these services.¹³ Plans vary, so you should check your benefits with your provider, or call American Addiction Centers at to speak with a member of our team who can instantly verify your coverage.

It’s also possible to use other types of health insurance, such as Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Affairs (VA), and Cobra to help pay for addiction treatment.^14-17 However, it’s a good idea to check with your provider to determine how much they’ll pay and what services they will cover.

If you do not have insurance or your plan doesn’t fully cover the costs, you might consider attending government-funded rehab, using savings, asking relatives to help out with the costs, or asking rehabs if they offer payment assistance, scholarships, or grants based on financial hardship.¹⁸

Find a Trauma Informed Rehab Program Near You

Seeking treatment for co-occurring trauma and SUD can be a beneficial first step on the path to recovery to help you stop substance misuse, achieve and maintain abstinence, and treat your trauma symptoms.² American Addiction Centers (AAC) is a leading provider of treatment for co-occurring disorders, including PTSD, with rehab facilities located across the country.

AAC can help you:

• Learn more about rehab and using insurance for addiction rehab,
• Locate specialized trauma-focused treatment programs using the recovery.org directory, and
• Instantly check your health insurance benefits.

To speak with a compassionate admissions navigator about your treatment options, ask questions about rehab, or get started with the treatment process, call .