The Alliance or the Addiction? Integrative Harm Reduction Psychotherapy (IHRP) in the Treatment of Trauma and Problematic Substance Use

This workshop will provide the clinical and theoretical rationale for why it is often essential to engage addicted people in therapy while they are actively engaging in addictive behaviors. Participants will learn basic engagement skills for creating alliance with actively using people and how to explore into the addictive process for the possibility of trauma and symptoms of trauma that may be driving the addictive process.  

After attending this session, clinicians will be able to teach their clients Urge Surfing to interrupt the addictive process and support their clients in exploring into the addictive urge by Unwrapping the Urge to discover dissociated aspects of self that are related to trauma and find expression in the urge. 

The harm reduction therapeutic frame begins wherever the client is ready to begin their healing journey and facilitates a strong alliance between client and clinician as a therapeutic team whether or not the client is committed to abstinence. Since substances are often used to cope with trauma symptoms and vital to one’s functioning, the traditional abstinence requirement has been a barrier to getting help for these people who are not ready to give them up. This approach enables you to open your practices to this large group of people who have been denied vital, life-saving therapy.