Seeking Safety Therapy: A Path to Healing Trauma and Addiction

Did you know, nearly 70% of people experience a potentially traumatic event at least once in their lifetime? While very common, trauma can be a life-changing experience; your brain is telling you that something grave happened to you, and you cannot trust the world anymore. So, it is natural for you not to feel safe after such an experience. However, unresolved trauma can lead to other challenges like anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and substance abuse, among others.

This is why seeking safety therapy becomes so important. A relatively modern treatment, it enables you to find a sense of safety in your thinking, emotional, behavioral, and relationship patterns as you move forward in life.

What is Seeking Safety Therapy?

Seeking safety therapy was developed in 1992 by Lisa Najavits. It is a trauma-focused, evidence-based practice mainly used to treat trauma and other co-occurring conditions, like substance use disorders (SUDs).

Seeking safety therapy does not require a formal diagnosis of trauma, PTSD, or any other condition and is delivered in both individual and group settings. You and your therapist will identify unsafe behaviors and learn healthy coping mechanisms. In group sessions, you will get a safe environment where you get to share experiences, learn from other’s experiences, and encourage one another toward healing.

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What are the Key Topics Covered in Seeking Safety Sessions?

The seeking safety model is based on 25 topics, which explore the cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and relationship patterns in your life:

I. Introduction:

Here, your therapist introduces you to seeking safety therapy. They will also get to know you and discuss your case management details.

II. Safety:

Safety is the aim and focus of the seeking safety model. It is the first stage of healing from trauma and other resulting struggles.

III. Taking Back Power:

Your therapist will provide psychoeducation, which makes you aware of trauma and how it can lead to the other challenges you may be facing in your life.

IV. Grounding:

You and your therapist will work on detaching yourself from the emotional pain of trauma, albeit in a healthy manner. You learn how to use physical, mental, and other soothing exercises.

V. When Substance Use Takes Control:

You are provided with eight handouts, which are meant to educate you on how substances can take control of your life. This can be provided during therapy and even outside of it.

VI. Help-Seeking Behavior:

In the case of trauma and substance use, you need to have a strong social support system to rely on. The seeking safety model promotes help-seeking behavior as an important factor in life, not as something that makes you weak.

VII. Self-Care:

Your therapist will understand how you take care of yourself, as self-care is crucial to healing. If any aspects of self-care are missing, you and your therapist will work toward incorporating them into your life.

VIII. Self-Compassion:

Trauma can make you become frustrated with yourself. So, seeking safety therapy allows you to approach yourself with empathy and kindness.

IX. Red and Green Flags:

Red and green flags refer to the signs of danger and safety. You and your therapist work on identifying and dealing with the red flags while building on the green flags.

X. Honesty:

You have to be honest with yourself regarding your trauma and other struggles. You can achieve this with role-playing exercises.

XI. Recovery Thinking:

Recovery thinking takes a more optimistic view toward trauma and other struggles - in terms of making informed decisions, incorporating healthy habits, and more. You and your therapist seek to replace your negative thinking patterns with recovery thinking.

XII. Integrating the Split Self:

Splitting is a defence mechanism common with trauma. Your therapist will work with you to identify the split nature of your self - that side of yourself that either denies or is ambivalent toward trauma. Then, you will learn to integrate the split self to overcome trauma and other challenges.

XIII. Commitment:

Your therapist will instill the importance of keeping the promises you have made to yourself and to others. You will also learn other strategies to increase your commitment levels.

XIV. Creating Meaning:

Your meaning of trauma and other struggles is uncovered. Then, negative meanings are contrasted with meanings of healing and recovery.

XV. Community Resources:

You will learn to foster a sense of community in your healing journey. You will be provided with information regarding community resources like self-help groups and advocacy organizations.

XVI. Setting Boundaries:

You will learn and establish healthy boundaries in your relationships. This is especially important in the cases of abuse and interpersonal violence.

XVII. Discovery:

In the case of trauma, a rigid mindset can develop. You will use discovery as a tool to combat this rigidity and become open to new information and experiences.

XVIII. Developing Social Support:

Your loved ones are crucial to your recovery. You will be encouraged to identify those in your life who are supportive of, neutral, or negative toward your recovery. Based on this, you will cultivate relationships that encourage you, and you can also have them attend therapy sessions with you.

You will also promote the understanding of trauma and other struggles like anxiety, depression, and substance abuse in your social circles to find support and encourage others toward recovery.

XIX. Coping With Triggers:

Your triggers are categorized into who, what, and where. By changing who you are with, what you do, and where you are, you can cope with your triggers.

XX. Respecting Time:

Your therapist will encourage you to understand the time you have lost till now and how you can make the best of your time going forward.

XXI. Healthy Relationships:

As trauma can lead to unhealthy relationships, you will develop the skills to foster positive relationships in your life.

XXII. Self-Nurturing:

As you begin your recovery from trauma, you learn to nurture yourself. However, there are safe and unsafe self-nurturing methods. So, you and your therapist identify the unsafe self-nurturing methods (like substance abuse), and build on the safe ones.

XXIII. Healing From Anger:

Anger can be both helpful and helpful, so you will learn how to best work with your anger to heal.

XXIV. Life Choices:

This is like a game and sets the stage for termination, which will come after. You are given some unsettling circumstances, and you are required to respond to how you are going to cope with them. The goal is to reinforce the coping skills you learned.

XXV. Termination:

You identify what you liked and disliked about seeking safety therapy. Then, you and your therapist will create a personalized aftercare plan for your lasting recovery.

The aim of the seeking safety model is to instill hope and safety on your way to recovery. To this end, it seeks to address the cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and relationship patterns in your life. This is what makes it a comprehensive therapy for trauma and other co-occurring conditions like substance abuse.

What are the Benefits of Seeking Safety Therapy?

Seeking safety therapy is listed on the National Registry of Evidence-Based Practices and Programs (NREPP) as one of the strongly supported therapies for trauma, PTSD, and substance abuse disorders. Its offers a wide range of benefits, such as:

• The therapy addresses co-occurring conditions of trauma, or vicarious trauma, or PTSD, and other mental health challenges.
• You will develop the skills to feel safe and cope in high-risk conditions that can otherwise be detrimental or dangerous.
• You learn to make informed, healthy life choices, build strong interpersonal relationships, and practice self-compassion.
• The therapy promotes a growth-oriented mindset as you move toward a more optimistic and fulfilling tomorrow.

Who Can Benefit from Seeking Safety Therapy?

Seeking safety therapy is a trauma-focused therapy. Studies have shown that it is highly effective for those experiencing co-occurring conditions like trauma/PTSD and substance abuse.

Seeking safety therapy equips you with the coping skills you need to break away from self-destructive cycles associated with trauma, PTSD, substance use, and other mental health challenges. With time and effort, you can move toward lasting recovery.

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How Seeking Safety Helps People with Trauma and Addiction?

The seeking safety model recognizes that trauma (even vicarious trauma) and substance use disorders are not distinct but challenges that often occur together. Typically, one can turn to substance use to numb the pain and suffering that comes with trauma.

Seeking safety therapy uses 25 tried and tested coping skills to instill hope and safety for lasting recovery. It addresses a wide range of factors like honesty, empathy, self-compassion, strengthening relationships, drawing personal boundaries, and moving toward recovery thinking, among others. It also incorporates other healthy living practices like meditation, mindfulness, and more for lasting healing.

The aim is to put an end to rumination behaviors that can dig up the past again and again and stop you from thinking negatively about your future. Instead, you will learn to embrace the future with hope and optimism.

What to Expect in a Seeking Safety Therapy Session?

If you are here, you may be considering seeking safety therapy for yourself or a loved one. The first step toward this is to find a licensed mental health practitioner who has advanced training in seeking safety therapy. This can be tricky, so at the NuView Treatment Center, we understand your background, challenges, needs, strengths, and goals and connect you with a therapist who is best aligned with your journey.

As you begin your therapeutic journey, every session will delve into your mind and unsafe cognitive, emotional, behavioral, or relationship patterns you may have developed. Then, the therapist will move on to the 25 topics, and each session will cover one topic.