Exposure Therapy for Substance Abusers with PTSD

Epidemiological research indicates that there is substantial comorbidity between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance use disorder (SUD). Moreover, there is growing evidence that having a comorbid PTSD diagnosis is associated with greater substance use problem severity and poorer outcomes from SUD treatment. In an attempt to improve the treatment outcome for individuals with PTSD-SUD, recently developed treatments combine exposure therapy for PTSD with an empirically supported treatment for SUD. This article describes one of the treatments and discusses treatment modifications that have been incorporated when translating this research-based therapy to practice in an inner-city community mental health center.