HG rewind technique effective in addiction treatment

The refined human givens version of the rewind detraumatisation treatment has been shown effective in a residential addiction centre in Ireland, where trauma was found to affect a third of residents. This percentage is in line with established epidemiological findings, yet trauma in addiction treatment centres is not routinely addressed.

The small study of 13 residents at the Cuan Mhuire addiction centre in Athy has shown a significant reduction in PTSD symptoms in 12 of the participants. All had completed the detoxification programme and met established criteria for PTSD, based on standard assessment. The rewind technique was delivered by a team of five trained therapists and was embedded within the human givens  RIGAAR framework for therapy (which works through rapport, information gathering, goals, accessing resources, agreeing strategies and rehearsal), with up to five sessions offered, according to need.

The authors, HG practitioner Martin Dunne and colleague Tom Moran, acknowledge that the sample size was small and that there was no control group: “Nevertheless, the study contributes preliminary practice-based evidence that imagery-based trauma interventions can be delivered within residential addiction services when supported by appropriate containment and supervision structures. This is clinically relevant in settings where trauma is prevalent but access to specialist trauma-focused treatment may be limited. Importantly, the findings suggest that trauma-focused work need not be routinely deferred.”

Since publication of the study, the authors have already been contacted by other rehabilitation centres from different regions in Ireland. showing interest in the treatment and how it might work for them. “I hope this will provide a wider platform to extend the HG ideas and practices,” commented Martin.