The Connection Between Trauma and Addiction: Addressing Underlying Issues

Trauma and addiction aren’t directly tied together, but there is a strong possible connection between the two. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, traumatic events are associated with physical health conditions, substance use, or traumatic events during childhood. People who suffer from trauma sometimes resort to abusing drugs or alcohol to numb the emotional pain. Alcohol and other drugs can affect how someone feels in the short term by causing sensations of pleasure. Abusing drugs can also desensitize the anxiety that might come with trauma because some drugs are directly linked to slowing down the central nervous system. People with a history of trauma might be more likely to develop an addiction to a substance by trying to regulate their mood and decrease the loud, intrusive thoughts. 

You might be completely unaware that you even possess trauma. It could have happened in your early childhood or maybe was even more current. Some telltale signs pointing to someone suffering from trauma include mood shifts, erratic behavior, inappropriate emotional displays, ongoing fear, irritability, lacking confidence, eating disorders, and continually reliving the traumatic event. Trauma can sometimes turn into a long-term mental health condition and someone might self-medicate with alcohol or drugs. This will temporarily numb the trauma but it’s only a fleeting solution to the underlying issues someone is experiencing. That’s why the connection between trauma and addiction shouldn’t be overlooked.

Types of Trauma

Traumatic experiences can be categorized into specific types of trauma. It’s important to figure out the type of trauma someone has experienced to find the best mental health treatment for it. The three types of trauma are: 

• Acute Trauma: This is when distressing events have happened once and are limited time-wise. Examples of acute trauma are rape, physical assault, and terrorist attacks. 
• Complex Trauma: This refers to repeated traumatic experiences, such as repeated partner violence, sex trafficking, and being bullied. 
• Secondary Trauma: This is when someone hears about a traumatic event or sees it happen but it doesn’t directly happen to them. Some examples of this include seeing a loved one getting abused, watching news about a hate crime or violence, or working with someone who discusses their traumatic experience with you. 

How Trauma Affects the Brain

Although trauma can happen in adulthood, many people experience it in childhood, which has long-lasting effects on the brain. According to the National Library of Medicine, the brain areas that can be affected by traumatic stress are the amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex. The amygdala’s function is to send signals of fear, and this is enhanced even more when someone has suffered a traumatic experience. The hippocampus is responsible for memory, learning, and emotion, so someone with trauma will have an enhancement by replaying a traumatic memory and having a flood of emotions. The prefrontal cortex controls inhibition and emotion, which gets affected when someone has trauma. 

The lower part of the brain functionality is a survival signal, and when that’s activated and prolonged in early childhood, it can reduce connections between other parts of the brain. This can impact learning, forming memories, regulating emotions, and staying calm. A developing brain going through such trauma and abusive experiences can trigger a survival response even when there’s no present danger to the person. The survival response can show as flight, fight, or freezing on the spot in reaction to responses and beahvior. People with trauma might also develop an addiction to cope with the painful memories. Trauma and addiction can go hand in hand. 

Dual Diagnosis Treatment for Trauma and Addiction

When someone is diagnosed with trauma and addiction, they need to seek dual diagnosis treatment at a rehab. According to MedlinePlus, dual diagnosis is when mental health disorders and addiction occur at the same time. In this case, trauma can be triggered through substance abuse, or addiction can lead the way to trauma. Resurgence Behavioral Health offers dual diagnosis treatment for patients who have trauma and a substance use disorder. This specialized treatment benefits people with trauma and addiction by offering the following: 

• Specialized therapy to help someone stop using drugs or alcohol and manage the trauma. 
• Increased education about how co-occurring conditions are related and can affect each other. 
• Identifying triggers and exploring the roots of trauma and addiction. 
• Learning how to develop healthier coping methods for managing both addiction and trauma. 
• Figuring out and developing a relapse prevention plan that includes addiction treatment aftercare resources and trauma maintenance. 

Dual diagnosis treatment is the best plan of action for someone who has co-occurring mental health disorders, as is the case with trauma and addiction. If you don’t treat both conditions, lasting recovery and a better future will be difficult to achieve. At Resurgence Behavioral Health, patients start with an assessment to determine if they have a co-occurring mental health disorder like trauma and treatment plans are developed to tackle both conditions at the same time.

Get Treatment for Trauma and Addiction from Resurgence Behavioral Health

Trauma and addiction can and should be treated together whenever possible. Resurgence Behavioral Health offers a variety of treatment options for trauma and addiction, including inpatient drug and alcohol rehab, outpatient addiction treatment, medically assisted treatment, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and rational emotive behavioral therapy. We take a personalized approach to treating patients because everyone has unique needs and struggles. Learn more about how we can help by calling us at 855-458-0050.

External Sources 

• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration — Trauma
• National Library of Medicine — Traumatic Stress Effects on Brain
• MedlinePlus — Dual Diagnosis Treatment

Josh Chandler
After growing up in Chicago and North Carolina, Josh chose to get help with substance use disorder and mental health in California because of the state's reputation for top-tier treatment. There, he found the treatment he needed to achieve more than five years of recovery. He's been in the drug and alcohol addiction rehab industry for four years and now serves as the Director of Admissions for Resurgence Behavioral Health. Josh remains passionate about the field because he understands that one phone call can alter the course of a person's life.

Research | Editorial