Trauma-Specific and Behavioral Health Services

Highlights of Trauma-Informed Care Services

Trauma is defined as the “experience of an event or enduring conditions in which the individual's ability to integrate his/her emotional experience is overwhelmed and the individual experiences (either objectively or subjectively) a threat to his/her life, bodily integrity, or that of a caregiver or family.” This can include developmental and relational trauma, as well as trauma following a terrifying experience, such as witnessing a fatality or surviving a life-threatening accident.

Relational trauma is caused by stress from repeated violations of boundaries or psychological/emotional entrapment. Developmental trauma refers to traumatic event(s) from childhood/adolescence that affect a person's development. Developmental and relational trauma include experiences of being bullied, stalked, or harassed, as well as rape, and physical, sexual, and/or emotional verbal abuse. Witnessing these events repeatedly over a prolonged period of time can also cause trauma. Separation, unresolved grief, and neglect may also cause trauma that impacts a person’s ability to function. Other experiences that involve a lack of control, feelings of helplessness, betrayal, rejection, and/or repeated violations of boundaries can also result in trauma.

Part of trauma’s complexity is that people experience it differently. For some, the trauma response is short-lived, while for others it is long-term. People also process traumatic events in very different ways. While one person can return to a healthy life after a traumatic event, another person will not be able to carry on routine daily activities. People who experience chronic, long-term developmental, or relational traumas are more likely to dismiss it. When trauma is left untreated over time, it can become debilitating to mental health and often may result in substance use.

If it’s not dealt with in a healthy manner, the negative effects of trauma can be long-lasting. Some examples are post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), disrupted relationships, difficulty feeling emotionally stable, and changes in how the traumatized person sees themselves or others. Addiction can derail the natural process of healing.

How to recover from the impact of trauma

There are numerous modalities to help people recover from trauma, both clinical and holistic. Clinical treatments may include neuroaffective relational, prolonged exposure, dialectical behavioral, or neurofeedback therapies. Holistic modalities (some self-help-oriented) may include mindfulness meditation, yoga, breathwork, or a range of physical activities or exercises.

Symptoms of Trauma

People who have experienced trauma may feel:

Treating Developmental Trauma and Addiction and How to Avoid Re-Traumatization

At Caron, we want to help you overcome addiction and trauma symptoms so that you can live your best life. Our trauma-informed care varies by location, and we currently focus on developmental and relational trauma treatment at our Florida facilities.

Every Caron treatment program begins with a comprehensive assessment and psychiatric evaluation. Based on the assessment and the patient’s readiness, the multidisciplinary team determines a specific treatment plan with therapies to meet their needs, including trauma treatment if indicated.

Caron Renaissance

The modalities used at Caron Renaissance to treat trauma include:

Depending on a patient’s needs, the treatment team may also recommend complementary, holistic therapies such as:

Caron Ocean Drive

The starting point for treatment at Caron Ocean Drive is a thorough assessment and psychiatric evaluation, which are reviewed by our experienced team to develop a treatment plan for each patient’s specific needs, including therapies for trauma as indicated. Our trauma-informed practices include:

Caron Ocean Drive’s complementary trauma-informed holistic therapy services also are used to help patients who have experienced trauma to reduce its harmful symptoms. Along with mindful meditation, yoga, and breathwork, Caron Ocean Drive offers:

Treating Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Addiction

Caron Pennsylvania

Our Pennsylvania facility focuses on how traumatic events or situations, such as PTSD, are affecting your journey to recovery from substance abuse. In the context of a substance use disorder (or addiction), identifying trauma is the first step in treating it. We use measures such as PCL-5, a symptom checklist for PTSD, and the Trauma Symptoms Inventory (TSI), to identify a trauma response or PTSD. If a trauma response or PTSD is identified, our trauma team, which includes on-site, full-time psychologists, works closely with you and your primary treatment team to incorporate trauma therapies into your treatment plan.

The therapies used will depend on your symptoms and needs. Those therapies may include:

The trauma informed programming that we offer on our Pennsylvania campus is divided into two phases. Depending on your needs and the determination of the clinical team, they may happen concurrently or sequentially.

The Safety and Stabilization Phase

In this phase, the treatment team works with you to develop a foundation of safety and provide coping skills you can use. Psycho-educational groups address trauma and focus on:

In addition, you learn coping skills that help you manage trauma and build trust in your environment. Caron’s staff has extensive experience in teaching patients the skills they need to successfully do the therapeutic work that leads to recovery.

The Trauma Processing Phase

During trauma processing, you work with a clinical psychologist or a trained behavioral health therapist who may use cognitive processing therapy (CPT) or eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), or both, depending on your needs, to treat PTSD symptoms with attention to your substance use disorder symptoms.

CPT works quickly, often within 12 sessions, to significantly reduce or eliminate acute symptoms of PTSD—including flashbacks, intrusive memories, feelings of shame or guilt, and avoidance of trauma reminders. Reducing the symptoms not only provides relief for you but can also reduce the risk of relapse. Most patients who receive CPT treatment experience a reduction in symptoms to the point where they no longer meet the criteria for a PTSD diagnosis within six to eight weeks.

Also effective in treating trauma, EMDR focuses on the traumatic memories themselves. It is an approach that addresses the physiological storage of memory and how it informs experience. The eight phases of EMDR will vary in the amount of sessions needed based on the individual’s experiences, meaning they may only need a few sessions, or they may benefit from continuing beyond their stay at Caron. The purpose of therapy is to help liberate the client from the past into a healthy and productive present.