We work with attachment disorders and struggles, but not everyone knows that kids with attachment disorders often struggle with addiction.
Addiction can be seen as a self-regulation disorder where individuals struggle with emotions, self-care, self-esteem, and relationships. Philip Flores’ book, “Addiction as an Attachment Disorder”, explores addiction as a self-regulation disorder with a particular focus on its nature as an attachment disorder. He explains why individuals with substance use disorders (SUDs) are vulnerable to seeking chemical solutions over human connections and highlights the importance of addressing interpersonal relationships.
While Uinta is not an addiction recovery program, our stages of change model aligns very well with addiction work. Our clinical approach and family-systems model are well-suited to supporting students who have used substances as a coping mechanism or as thrill-seeking behavior.
Uinta employs various supportive modalities in treating addiction and attachment issues. These include the Transtheoretical Stages of Change Model, weekly addiction recovery support groups, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), brainspotting, equine therapy, and equine-assisted EMDR. These techniques provide a comprehensive approach to recovery that looks at mental and behavioral health issues from many different perspectives.
For students who have struggled specifically with addiction, we include a 12-step approach. During the latter stages of change from the Transtheoretical treatment model, we integrate students in into a community-based AA and support family and friends engaging in their own al-anon group. This whole-family approach builds a more robust support system and a healthier transition as students step back into their homes or move on to independent living.
At Uinta, we help students develop healthy coping mechanisms and build strong, secure attachments with others. By addressing attachment issues and underlying emotional struggles, we can help our students overcome addictive patterns and find healthier ways to regulate their emotions and relationships.
Lanae is the Admissions and Outreach Director at Uinta Academy. She has worked in Residential Treatment Center’s for over 10 years in a variety of roles including primary therapist, program director, program development and implementation, admissions, transition coach and aftercare specialist.