Trauma issues are often part of clients’ histories at Red Oak Recovery, an innovative addiction treatment program for young adults struggling with substance use and co-occurring mental health issues. For this reason, the entire clinical team and other key staff at Red Oak Recovery recently underwent intensive trauma training with established trauma expert Judy Crane, LMHC, CAP, ICADC, CSAT-R.
Crane is the founder and former President of one of the leading trauma and addiction treatment centers. She later founded Spirit2Spirit to teach clinicians how to work with trauma survivors. After completing her module-based course, clinicians earn the distinction of Certified Trauma Therapist (CTT).
“One hundred percent of the female clients who undergo treatment at Red Oak have experienced trauma in their past, as do the majority of our male clients,” said President of Red Oak Recovery. “Additionally, when our clients have multiple relapses and multiple treatment experiences, that is often due to unresolved trauma.”
Red Oak Recovery is unique in its clinical approach, employing master’s level clinicians with dual credentials, licensed in both mental health and clinical addiction. The program addresses underlying emotional and traumatic issues with co-occurring issues of substance use through evidence-based, research-supported clinical interventions.
In their recent training, the Red Oak clinical team learned practical assessments, up-to-date approaches to treatment, and essential intervention techniques for treating clients with trauma issues. The training went beyond typical lectures by including group sessions and hands-on experiential training to truly prepare the clinical staff for addressing clients’ deep psychological wounds.
“We experience trauma when we cannot effectively process what happens to us, whether on an emotional, mental, spiritual, or physical level,” explains Heather Schnoebelen, MA, LPC, LCAS, CCS-I, Executive Clinical Director of Red Oak. “All too often, drugs and alcohol are used to numb the hurt and confusion young adults carry with them, and for recovery to be successful, they have to be able to address the traumas that fueled their addiction and not just the substance use itself.”
“When trauma work is effectively integrated into treatment, as this training has reinforced for us, it allows people to get at the roots of their behavior and lets them walk more freely toward a life no longer dominated by destructive habits,” she said.
Red Oak Recovery is located in the pristine Blue Ridge Mountains, just north of Asheville, NC, and is the result of extensive experience and research for developing highly effective programming to create a foundation of long-term recovery for young adults. The program uniquely blends quality clinical care, adventure therapy, experiential therapy, 12-step work and social skills development to create positive, lasting change. For more information, visit Red Oak Recovery.
