How Art Therapy Can Help Free You from Trauma-Induced Addiction

For years, experts have noted the connection between trauma and addiction, and recent research continues to solidify this link. One review highlights evidence that people with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and addiction are both over-responsive to environmental cues that trigger specific memories. In the case of those with PTSD, this memory causes them to relive their traumatic event, and for addicts, it can also trigger a craving for the substance of abuse. Ultimately, individuals with trauma are more susceptible to addiction due to underlying brain pathology that makes them more likely to experience cravings for drugs, and addicts are more likely to develop a trauma disorder for the same reason. Through this toxic relationship, individuals can easily find themselves falling into a pattern of drug use not only to escape trauma but also because their brains are hardwired to do so.

Another study found a strong connection between substance use and the degree of childhood sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, as well as current PTSD symptoms. The results from both papers highlight the possibility that those who have undergone trauma possess altered brain activity that not only increases their likelihood of falling down the path of addiction, but it also compounds the intensity of current emotions and feelings linked to the traumatic event. The similar brain chemistry between these two disorders highlights the importance of concurrent treatment, as leaving one untreated can cause symptoms of the other to resurface and undermine your progress.

Living your life in the clutches of addiction might numb you to your traumatic memories, but it’s a dark path that doesn’t ever lead to an examination of the root of your problem. In order to break free of addiction caused by trauma, you must confront the root cause of the addiction: the traumatic event in your life. Much like Eye Movement Desensitization Therapy (EMDR) allows clients to access traumatic memories and gain a more healthy awareness of them, art therapy can help you deal with the traumatic memories and emotions that spill into your everyday life and cause you to turn to substances to ease the pain.

“The art provides a different dimension that most of us don’t know how to say,” said Nancy Gerber, who heads the PhD Program in Creative Arts Therapies at Drexel University. “A picture can tell a story about our internal life that isn’t accessible in words.”

Research suggests that the process of creating art involves the same regions of the brain that are used to access memories and process emotions. Since trauma stems from a dysfunction of emotion and memory, researchers are exploring the benefits of art therapy for expressing traumatic memories. Data also suggest that when memories are accessed through art, they activate the brain’s hemispheres and recall the trauma in a different way than verbal forms of expression. For example, in some cases, an event marked by such terror might not be able to be expressed verbally. In these situations, talk therapy might be unable to properly deal with certain forms of trauma, which is why art therapy is such a crucial and powerful tool for the healing process.

Art therapy has also been shown to help in the process of dealing with shame, an issue that is widely regarded to be at the root of all addictions and one that is addressed in any kind of treatment program. Reducing shame is a crucial part of the recovery process, and art therapy can provide a means for addicts to express and process feelings of shame, making it easier for them to come to terms with the difficulties of addiction and move forward through treatment.