June is National PTSD Awareness Month. The last Sunday of the month – June 27, 2021 – is also PTSD Awareness Day. At this time, it’s important to reduce the stigma when it comes to talking about PTSD and to raise public awareness of the disorder.
In the U.S., we’ve been celebrating National PTSD Awareness Month since 2014. In 2010, Senator Kent Conrad put forward the idea of a PTSD Awareness Day – as a tribute to a North Dakota National Guard member with PTSD, Staff Sergeant Joe Biel, who in 2007 took his life after two tours in Iraq. June 27 is Biel’s birthday. In 2014, the Senate took things further and named June the National PTSD Awareness Month.
Should you or anyone you care about be having a difficult time managing PTSD and addiction, reach out today to the Maumee-based Midwest Detox Center online or call us at 833.647.0392 today.
What Is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?
PTSD is an anxiety disorder that can develop after witnessing or living through an event that can cause serious harm or death. In the early 1900s, the term “shell shock” was used to describe the psychological conditions experienced by World War I veterans. However, throughout the rest of the 20th century, descriptions and terms involving PTSD evolved. In 1980, PTSD became a recognized medical diagnosis.
People with PTSD can have problems with anger, irritability, and sleep. They may have recurrent dreams that take them back to the time of the trauma and may have intense reactions to anything reminding them of the traumatic event. Some people with PTSD may recover in just a few months after the event, but for others, it may take years. Some people may not even experience PTSD until long after the traumatic event.
What Is the Link Between PTSD and Addiction?
Trauma in itself is a risk factor in developing a substance use disorder. After experiencing a traumatic event, many people will respond with helplessness, fear, or even horror. Some will develop acute stress disorder, which lasts up to three weeks. Others will develop chronic or delayed-onset PTSD.
PTSD can cause disturbances in people’s relationships, such as emotional neglect and attachment issues. It can also lead to isolation and depression. And because mental health and addiction are often intertwined, PTSD and addiction can also be a dual diagnoses for some people.
When someone lives with PTSD, they also live with the problems it creates. Those problems can drive people to develop a substance use disorder, too. It is not uncommon for someone with PTSD to use alcohol or drugs to cope with their symptoms. However, addiction can worsen mental health and lead to worse symptoms of PTSD.
People with PTSD are estimated to engage in treatment for addiction and other substance use disorders at a rate that’s five times higher than the general population.
Rehab for Dual Diagnosis at Midwest Detox Center
Midwest Detox Center specializes in trauma-focused treatment with co-occurring disorder therapy. As an inpatient addiction treatment facility, we offer this to people with PTSD and substance abuse issues. Our efforts are meant to resolve the trauma that’s the underlying cause of a client’s problems with mental health and addictions. Here’s what clients can expect from their stay at Midwest Detox Center:
- A welcoming and supportive environment: We provide a healing environment that’s not a “lock-up” center or hospital-setting facility. With us, clients can focus on recovery in comfort, away from triggers and stresses.
- An understanding and skilled staff: Our certified counselors, therapists, techs, and other staff members take the time to get to know each client. Many of our staff are also in recovery and understand the path our clients are starting on.
- Comfort and common spaces: Midwest Detox Center provides chef-prepared meals, private rooms, and common spaces for clients to relax and exercise.
- Components of trauma-focused treatment: These include coping skill development, exposure or desensitization work, grief or loss counseling, individual or group talk therapy, peer support groups, and pharmacotherapy. We also incorporate holistic practices, such as acupuncture, meditation, and yoga.
- Unique addiction treatment plans: Midwest Detox Center understands that every person with an addiction is unique, which means that their treatment plan should be similarly distinctive in its design.
Learn More at Midwest Detox Center
Overcoming PTSD and addiction alone can be challenging. If you or someone you care about has PTSD and is experiencing addiction, self-destructive urges, or suicidal feelings, get help immediately. Contact Midwest Detox Center, located in Maumee, OH, by reaching out to us online or calling us at 833.647.0392 to learn more.
