The many honorable veterans that have served our country in the military face unique challenges in life following their service. Men and women who have served in the military often struggle with mental health or addiction issues. These individuals should be aware of the many benefits of veterans addiction treatment.
The Benefits of Veterans Addiction Treatment
There are countless hurdles veterans can potentially face in their civilian lives upon completion of service that many cannot relate to or even comprehend. The hardships veterans face are seemingly brushed under the rug by society, leading veterans to feel like they should move on if they want their life to go back to normal or get ahead. Veterans are away from everyday life for extended periods and often feel out of place when they attempt to assimilate back into the life they left behind. Maintaining relationships, finding housing, and employment become new challenges for veterans after their military service. When symptoms related to trauma experiences appear, many men and women seek comfort by self-medicating with substances.
A veterans addiction treatment center can be the key to getting unhealthy addictions under control. Veteran’s addiction centers often specialize in dual-diagnosis treatment and trauma therapy because they recognize the prevalence of these issues in the veteran population. These centers are knowledgeable about the particular issues veterans face and tailor treatment accordingly.
One of the benefits of veterans addiction treatment is that individuals can bond with fellow veterans, speaking on matters of specific importance to veterans. In an organized group therapy setting, discussing with people your unique, shared experience is healing. While in treatment at a veterans addiction treatment center, the staff there specializes in veterans’ issues and is better equipped to help with questions, problems, or issues you’re experiencing. In addition to a compassionate and knowledgeable staff, more veteran-specific resources are available to you at a veterans addiction treatment center. You will likely have valuable resources related to housing and employment made available to you, making your transition into recovery in civilian life as smooth as possible.
What Is a Dual Diagnosis Treatment Center?
A reliable veterans addiction treatment center will treat not only an addiction but the other issues behind it. Treating addiction and mental health issues concurrently is called dual diagnosis treatment.
Most veterans addiction treatment centers also act as dual diagnosis treatment centers. This makes sense because of the statistics surrounding veteran’s health. Many veterans are struggling with other mental health issues in addition to addiction. The rate of mental health issues and drug abuse among veterans is staggering. The average U.S. military veteran is five times more likely to experience depression and 15 times more likely to have PTSD than the rest of the population.
A dual diagnosis treatment center focuses on treating both aspects of mental health with equal care and concern. The staff at a dual diagnosis treatment center knows how important it is to get each issue under control and knows the healing of one condition is dependent upon the other. Dual diagnosis treatment centers focus on the whole person, and the staff doesn’t neglect to treat one condition in favor of focusing on another.
Many Veterans Need a Trauma Therapy Program
The trauma experienced in military combat is a factor in many veteran’s issues, and the staff keeps that in mind at all times at a veterans addiction treatment facility. An adequate veterans addiction treatment center places greater emphasis on a trauma therapy program. It is necessary to work on resolving trauma before a patient can move on in their life. Patients can become addicted to substances to heal their painful trauma, but substance use is just a way of avoiding pain. Avoiding pain won’t cure it, and the longer the trauma goes unaddressed, the more damage it can do throughout every aspect of a person’s life. One prominent example of this fact is the vast number of homeless veterans in our country.
When left untreated, trauma has led to many addictions. These addictions often negatively impact a veteran’s life by causing financial and relationship problems and health and safety issues. There is still hope. A veterans addiction treatment center offers to heal those who deserve happiness and freedom from suffering after everything they have given to their country.
