The 3 R's of working with trauma in addiction treatment: React, Respond, Resilience
The 3 R's of working with trauma in addiction treatment: React, Respond, Resilience
When it comes to addiction treatment, addressing trauma is a crucial element of the recovery process. Trauma can be defined as any experience that overwhelms our ability to cope and leaves us feeling helpless, powerless, and out of control. Trauma can be experienced in many different forms, including physical, emotional, and psychological abuse, neglect, accidents, and natural disasters.
As a result of trauma, people can experience a range of reactions including fight, flee, freeze, tend and befriend, or sleep. These reactions are a normal response to trauma, but if they persist, they can lead to problems such as anxiety, depression, and addiction.
Mindfulness is an essential component of working with trauma in addiction treatment. By being present and mindful, people can notice when they are triggered and reacting. By bringing awareness to these reactions, people can learn to respond in a healthier way, building resilience.
One way to address trauma and build resilience is through somatic experiencing. Somatic experiencing is a body-centred approach to healing trauma that focuses on the physical sensations that accompany traumatic experiences. By working with these sensations, people can release trapped energy and emotions, leading to a greater sense of resilience and well-being.
In addition to somatic experiencing, it is important to teach people to notice their emotions and unpack the stories that underlie them. By exploring the feelings of guilt and shame, anger, sadness, fear, and joy, people can start to work on their resilience and build a stronger sense of self.
It is essential to involve family members in the addiction treatment process, as they can provide important support and guidance to their loved ones. Family members can help people to build resilience by being present, attentive, and supportive during the recovery process.
Finally, it is important to recognize that the recovery process itself can be traumatic. People in recovery often experience a loss of identity and a sense of disconnection from themselves and others. It takes time to build resilience in recovery, but with the right support, it is possible to overcome trauma and achieve lasting sobriety.
In conclusion, working with trauma is an essential part of addiction treatment. By addressing trauma, building resilience, and involving family members in the recovery process, people can achieve lasting sobriety and a greater sense of well-being. The 3 R's of working with trauma in addiction treatment are React, Respond, and Resilience, and they form the foundation of a successful recovery journey.
ChatGPT Prompt - Feel free to copy and paste this prompt to see how you can work with trauma.
Write a blog post with the Tile " The 3 R's of working with trauma addiction treatment React, Respond, Resilience" on the importance of addressing Trauma within the SUD programme addressing reaction , response and resilience explain that when people triggered they react , we create an environment where they learn how to respond thus building resilience
Include the 5 reactions to trauma
1: Fight
2: Flee
3: Freeze
4: Tend and befriend
5: Sleep
Explain the importance of mindfulness , where people are taught to notice when they are triggered and reacting.
Explain the somatic reaction and then expand on the Hyperarousal or the Hypo arousal and how we teach resilience
Explain how teach people to notice 5 emotions " Guilt and shame, Anger, Sadness, Fear, Joy" Explore the feeling and unpack the "story" so that people can start to work on their resilience.
Quote and reference that the recovery process in its self is a traumatic process as the people really loose their sense of identity and it takes a while for resilience in recovery takes a while.