Understanding Trauma in Substance Abuse Populations, by Pamela Montazer

Understanding Trauma in Substance Abuse Populations

Abstract Trauma frequently is comorbid with substance abuse disorders. Despite how common trauma is in substance abuse populations, there is a lack of training and education among addiction treatment professionals. This article examines current literature in the field of trauma treatment and serves to help educate addiction treatment professionals on trauma. The article reviews the etiology and course of trauma a well as potential treatment options for working with trauma in substance abuse populations. Keywords: Trauma; Addiction; PTSD; EMDR; Treatment

Introduction
Clinicians working in the substance abuse treatment industry
know how ubiquitous it is to encounter trauma when working
with addiction. Trauma can take on manifold forms, and is
typically understood to be the result of a major life-threatening
event such as rape, molestation, child abuse, domestic abuse and
combat. These types of trauma have come to be termed, “big T”
traumas and are traumas many addicts their addiction itself has
been a source of trauma and/or a way to relive other traumatic
life experiences that would typically qualify an individual for a
diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). On the other
hand, “little t” traumas are typically more common life events that
most people wouldn’t consider disturbing. However, these “little
t” traumas are causing high levels of distress similar to that of
someone who had experienced a life-threatening event. Trauma
is defined by an individual’s subjective emotional experience of
the traumatic event, not by the severity of the event itself. Most
people who experience life-threatening events never develop any
long lasting symptoms and many people who experience more
seemingly benign events may develop high levels of emotional
distress and pathology. The dictionary defines trauma as any
event that produces a lasting negative effect on that person.

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