As Celebrities Like Prince Harry Share Their Stories of Trauma, Substance Abuse and Healing, Addiction Treatment Centers Like The Source in Fort Lauderdale are Able to Help More People in Need

Fort Lauderdale, FL – Although England’s Royal family is notoriously private, Prince Harry has recently become very vocal about his decision to take steps to maintain a healthier mental state. Since stepping away as a senior member of the British royal family, Prince Harry has opened up about the trauma that he sustained as a child when his mother, Princess Diana, suddenly and tragically passed away when he was just 12 years old. Taking the step to share the details of his story and the trauma therapy he received to help him learn to cope helps others in need find treatment for their struggles with traumatic stress, substance abuse, and other mental health issues.

Prince Harry shared that there was a time when he turned to binge drinking and drug use as a way to self-medicate. During this time, he would lash out and revert to childish reactions when he was triggered, and he was unable to recognize when he was doing it. According to Harry, it was his then-future wife, Meghan Markle that helped him realize he needed to make a change. In an argument, she said, “you just reverted to twelve-year-old Harry.” She let him know that she saw him struggling and believed that he would benefit from talking to someone.

Prince Harry has been especially open about his experience with one particular form of trauma therapy called Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, EMDR for short. During an EMDR session, a trained therapist helps a client work through memories of a traumatic event by guiding their eye movements. As time goes by and a client participates in more EMDR sessions, they learn to lessen their physical response to difficult memories of traumatic events. Negative emotions associated with that event become less triggering and have less of an impact on their overall quality of life.

The Source is an Addiction Treatment Center in Fort Lauderdale, FL that specializes in trauma-informed care. They understand that the vast majority of people struggling with substance use and addiction have experienced trauma which has had lasting impacts on their lives. The staff knows from their own personal experiences with addiction and recovery that to truly heal fundamentally, trauma and other underlying causes of addiction must be processed and resolved. The Source relies on EMDR and a range of other trauma therapies to help clients transform their lives. “Among the many useful techniques for identifying and minimizing the effects of trauma, EMDR is considered to be fast, effective, and useful as a component of a comprehensive plan of recovery,” said Joanna Painton-Hathaway, The Source’s Chief Clinician.

For anyone struggling with addiction, mental health issues, or both, The Source is available to help. By working through the traumas that may have contributed to mental illness and addiction, clients of The Source can go on to live happier, healthier, more fulfilling lives. To learn more call (800) 204-0418 or visit www.thesourcetreatment.com.