Tennessee Mental Health Treatment for PTSD

Living with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be challenging and unpredictable. Imagine living your life trapped by the confines of fear and anxiety to the point where daily tasks feel impossible.

TRUE Addiction and Behavioral Health’s Tennessee Mental Health Treatment Center for PTSD can successfully treat this mental health disorder. We offer several treatment options and programs. They are all tailored to each individual’s source of trauma.

PTSD develops after individuals experience or witness a traumatic event or series of events. A traumatic event could be combat, a car accident, rape, or a natural disaster. A series of events can include repeated domestic violence, sexual assault or abuse spanning an extended period, or consistent bullying.

People with PTSD may experience flashbacks, nightmares, or mood changes. Individuals with PTSD avoid social activities and settings that trigger their PTSD. Mental illness can be a debilitating condition impacting a person’s quality of life. Mental health treatment allows our clients to stand up in the face of PTSD. The coping skills learned will allow the walls of PTSD to crumble.

PTSD is a public health concern in Tennessee. No one should be forced to relive painful experiences internally.

Fact about How is PTSD Impacting Tennesseans

A study by the University of Tennessee Health Science Center states that diagnosis and treatment for PTSD among minorities in Tennessee is underserved. Approximately 20% of veterans who served in the war in Iraq and Afghanistan have been diagnosed with PTSD.

Tennesseans are experiencing a rate of PTSD of 2.4% above the national average. To serve as many people as possible, the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services initiated a 24/7 crisis line for those suffering from PTSD. This service also provides information on support groups and ways to access treatment.

PTSD isn’t selective. Anyone who has experienced a traumatic event is subject to it. But with the proper treatment and support, it doesn’t have to continue to be this way.

TRUE’s Tennessee Mental health Treatment Approach to Quality Care

When treating PTSD and other traumas, you want a team of mental health professionals who are experienced in the field. Our team provides just that. We use evidence-based treatment models. They are backed by scientific research and are effective for our clients. Also, evidence-based models allow our clinicians to develop individualized treatment plans.

Our modalities include EMDR, cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, holistic treatment, and more. When you enter our doors, you will feel the Tennessee spirit. You will feel at home, from our locally sourced furniture to the serene ambiance in the mountains.

Our rooms are designed for privacy or a roommate, depending on your preference. The kitchens are well-stocked with healthy choices that promote wellness. We also offer quiet spaces for therapy sessions, taking time for personal reflection, and practicing the skills you gain from treatment.

Our Tennessee Mental Health Treatment Programs for PTSD

Just as the retail market knows one-size-fits-all isn’t practical, neither is it when treating PTSD and trauma. Instead, we offer various treatment services customized to each client’s needs. Our programs are flexible and individualized. We aim to treat everyone who needs it and meet them where they are.

TRUE offers partial hospitalization, intensive outpoints, and sober living homes. These are all viable programs for children, adolescents, and adults. The level of care our clients receive correlates directly to their specific mental health conditions.

Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP)

Some individuals require a more comprehensive approach to treatment than others. Trauma doesn’t have one face. That’s where our partial hospitalization program (PHP) comes in. PHP is ideal for clients who do not require inpatient treatment. However, it still addresses individuals with acute trauma. Instead, they attend therapy during the day and return home in the evenings.

Our goal with PHP is to get our clients to a point of stability. This prevents relapse and improves their overall mental health functioning. PHP requires approximately 30 hours a week in our PTSD treatment program. It is the highest level of care we offer.

Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP)

A supportive home environment can make all the difference in recovery from trauma. We understand the importance of family in our clients’ lives. Because of that, we offer our intensive outpatient program (IOP).

This program suits our clients who have that support at home and do not need around-the-clock care. This option is also designed for our clients moving out of PHP. Most IOPs meet 3-4 days weekly for 3-5 hours.

Think of it this way: after breakfast, you come to treatment. By lunchtime, you are ready to return to your daily obligations.

Sober Living Homes

Living in or close to a fast-paced city like Nashville can include an active social life. Substances can play a role in fitting into some social settings. Some individuals can develop a substance abuse disorder alongside their mental health disorder. When this happens, a dual-diagnosis addiction treatment plan is necessary.

Our sober living homes are designed for our clients with this co-occurring disorder. Clients live on-site with others experiencing a similar journey. Together, they work to overcome the effects of traumatic experiences and substance abuse.

Sober living requires that clients practice sobriety and contribute to the house’s upkeep. This sense of community includes support groups, therapy, and continuing trauma treatment at our facility. We want the transition back to daily life post-recovery to be as smooth and successful as possible.

PTSD and Trauma Therapy Services at TRUE’s Tennessee Mental Health Treatment Center

TRUE offers several evidence-based approaches for treating PTSD and trauma. Therapy is a setting where our clients can learn coping skills for dealing with life’s challenges. This occurs in the presence of a licensed therapist who facilitates the sessions.

• Our clients work with therapists to address their PTSD and trauma during individual therapy. These private and confidential sessions allow our clients to openly explore their feelings, behaviors, and past experiences that caused the trauma.
• Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) helps individuals understand unhelpful thoughts that can lead to negative emotions or behaviors. REBT focuses on the moment and what a person is feeling. Our therapists help you form new ways of approaching challenges, thoughts, and circumstances. The root of the adverse emotions is addressed so that self-sabotaging behavior can taper off.
• Motivational interviewing involves a non-judgemental and empathetic conversation with a therapist to help increase our clients’ motivation to change their behaviors. By exploring each individual’s values, goals, and concerns, the approach identifies and reinforces self-determination to begin making more positive changes. With guidance, clients gain insights into their drug addiction patterns, develop coping strategies to reduce their use and work toward recovery.
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) identifies conflicting behaviors and how to change them. Our therapists help clients pinpoint negative thoughts and apply strategies to replace them with positive ones. We understand that thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are interconnected, but once those change, overall mental health improves.
• Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) is an evidence-based approach built on the idea that individuals who experience intense emotions contribute to negative behaviors and thoughts. DBT focuses on mindfulness, recognizing how you feel in the moment. This leads to emotion regulation and distress tolerance.
• Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing(EMDR) is a therapy used when clients have a difficult time coping with traumatic events that happened in their lives. EMDR works to stimulate the area of the brain containing the memories and target the memory. Once the memory is targeted, the therapist will have the client discuss it while coaching them through resolving the trauma.
• Holistic therapy is an alternative treatment service that focuses on the whole person, not just specific addiction-related symptoms. Our therapists consider our clients’ physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual well-being, allowing them to achieve balance and develop coping skills. Our holistic approaches include music therapy, art therapy, yoga, fitness, animal therapy, movement therapy, and acupuncture.

Co-Occurring PTSD and Substance Abuse

Mental illness and substance use disorders can be co-occurring. This means those experiencing the effects of trauma use substances to cope with the illness. This creates a cycle of unwanted behaviors, thoughts, and actions. Both must be treated simultaneously to break the loop that continues to play.

• More than 500,000 veterans live in Tennessee, and nearly 30,000 have PTSD.
• According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, trauma varies across demographic characteristics.
• A 2022 Journal of Social Work report found that 412 adults in Nashville, Tennessee, exposed to an EF-3 tornado after the COVID-19 pandemic, developed PTSD.
• The most common type of trauma involves car accidents and death. 37% of men and 15% of women note this as the root of the trauma.
• Up to 13 million people in the U.S. experience trauma at any given time.

Understanding the Types of PTSD

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) comes in a few different forms. Each one has its own set of characteristics and trauma-related causes.

• Acute trauma occurs due to a single event or a series of events that lead to acute emotional distress. Serious accidents, natural disasters, or violent crimes cause acute trauma. Individuals with acute trauma have constant flashbacks, anxiety, and depression and experience difficulty sleeping.
• Chronic trauma is a mental health issue that results from repeated and prolonged exposure to adverse events such as physical or emotional abuse, neglect, or dysfunction within the home. Chronic trauma impacts an individual’s physical, emotional, and mental well-being.  
• Complex trauma is long-term or repeated exposure to traumatic events. Individuals with complex trauma have a negative sense of self and safety and experience trouble holding lasting personal relationships. This type of drama is typically the result of physical or sexual abuse or neglect by caregivers. 

Symptoms of PTSD

The intensity and types of symptoms will vary for each person, but there are common signs to look for in individuals who might be experiencing PTSD. Those include behavioral, psychological, mood, and other personality changes. 

• Behavioral: Agitation, irritability, hostility, the constant need to be on guard, self-destructive behavior, or social isolation
• Psychological: Flashbacks, fear, severe anxiety, or mistrust in others
• Mood: Loss of interest or avoidance in activities, feelings of guilt or shame, intrusive thoughts, difficulty concentrating, or feelings of loneliness
• Sleep: Insomnia, nightmares, or other changes in sleep patterns

• Intrusive thoughts and memories: Recurring and distressing thoughts, memories, and nightmares related to past trauma
• Avoidance: Neglecting people, places, and social settings because they may serve as triggers
• Hyperarousal: Heightened anxiety, a constant state of alertness, anger, and easily startled

Do I Need a PTSD Treatment Center?

People with PTSD often have difficulty understanding the triggers and actions of people who have experienced such horrific trauma that it never leaves them.

The symptoms of PTSD are categorized into specific groups to help doctors better understand and identify each individual’s particular needs. Not all people experience trauma the same way.

People typically experience:

• Flashbacks, bad dreams, or frightening thoughts
• Avoidance of specific places or things that may trigger fear or panic
• Being easily startled
• Feeling tense or “on edge” constantly
• Having difficulty sleeping
• Having angry outbursts
• Difficulty remembering critical points of the trauma-inducing event
• Negative thoughts
• Feelings of guilt or blame
• Loss of interest in activities they once enjoyed
• Intense panic attacks
• Insomnia or depression
• Chronic pain

What Causes PTSD?

PTSD can happen to anyone at any age. It typically develops after a traumatic event or stress placed upon the individual. Research indicates that women are more likely to develop PTSD. Some genes may make a person more susceptible to developing anxiety and PTSD, but there is no one specific cause other than some traumatic or stressful event.

Some risk factors that may increase a person’s chance of developing PTSD are:

• Getting hurt or seeing another person get injured or die
• Childhood trauma
• Feeling horror, helplessness, or extreme fear
• Having little or no social support after the event
• Dealing with extra stress on top of the traumatic event
• Having a history of mental illness or substance abuse

What Does PTSD Feel Like?

Suffering from PTSD can be a distressing experience. One minute you are okay, and the next, you’re reliving the worst day of your life. Anything can trigger flashbacks and panic attacks, disabling a person right where they are with no warning and nowhere to escape.

Even at night, you’re plagued by nightmares that feel too real not to be. And you don’t want to keep experiencing that day or that situation, but the more you try to run from it, the more it makes you remember.

FAQ about PTSD and Trauma

Understanding PTSD and trauma can be as complex and nuanced. But there are questions that many people have about the disorder and its treatment.

What are the different types of trauma?
There are three main types of trauma—acute trauma results from a single incident. Chronic trauma, such as domestic violence or abuse, is repeated and happens over time. Lastly, complex trauma is exposure to a variety of traumatic events.

Is there a cure for PTSD?
Because trauma results from lived experiences, there isn’t a cure. However, with treatment, individuals with PTSD can live a better quality of life once they learn coping skills.

What are the signs of PTSD?
The most common signs of PTSD are vivid flashbacks of the trauma, intrusive thoughts, nightmares, and distress. Physical symptoms of triggering situations can include pain, sweating, nausea, or trembling.

What’s the difference between trauma and PTSD?
A traumatic event happens in real-time, while PTSD is a longer-term condition where individuals continue to relive the traumatic event.

Is PTSD a form of anxiety?
PTSD is in its class of mental health disorders called trauma. Anxiety is usually a symptom of PTSD.

Get Help Today at Our Tennessee Mental Health Treatment Center

We specialize in assisting clients with PTSD, trauma, and co-occurring substance abuse disorder. At TRUE Addiction and Behavioral Health, we help clients develop new ways to cope in a supportive environment, making it easier to focus on their recovery and regain control over their lives.

If you or someone you know needs support combatting trauma, we encourage you to call or visit us today to get started with the admissions process.