Addiction recovery often involves more than changing substance use alone. For some people, treatment also means learning how to respond differently to stress, difficult emotions, painful memories, grief or experiences that may have become connected with substance use over time.
However, this doesn’t mean that trauma is behind every addiction. People develop substance use disorders for many different and often overlapping reasons, but when trauma or significant emotional distress is relevant to someone’s history, addressing those experiences may become one part of a broader recovery plan.
Brainspotting is one therapeutic approach that some clinicians may incorporate into trauma-informed behavioral health care. During Brainspotting addiction recovery, the goal isn’t to use Brainspotting as a standalone treatment for substance use, but rather to complement counseling, behavioral therapies, relapse-prevention work and other services when a clinician determines that trauma or emotional distress is relevant to a person’s recovery. For patients exploring addiction treatment in Sacramento, understanding where Brainspotting can fit makes it easier to see the therapy as one piece of a much larger treatment puzzle.
Quick Answer Summary
Brainspotting is a therapeutic approach that may be incorporated into addiction treatment when trauma or significant emotional distress is relevant to a person’s recovery. During Brainspotting, a therapist helps the individual maintain visual focus while attending to emotions, memories, thoughts or physical sensations associated with a concern. Brainspotting does not replace comprehensive addiction treatment, and research into the approach is still developing. At Monarch Recovery Centers, it may be incorporated into an individualized treatment plan alongside counseling, behavioral therapies, relapse-prevention work and other services when clinically appropriate.¹²³
Key Takeaways
- Trauma can be relevant to addiction recovery without being the cause of every substance use disorder. Trauma-informed treatment considers an individual’s experiences and needs rather than assuming that addiction has a single underlying cause.¹²⁴
- Brainspotting uses focused visual attention while a person notices internal experiences such as emotions, memories, thoughts and physical sensations associated with an emotionally meaningful concern.³
- The neurological mechanisms proposed for Brainspotting remain hypotheses. Research into the therapy is still developing, and its evidence base is considerably smaller than that of established behavioral and trauma-focused treatments.³
- Brainspotting should complement—not replace—comprehensive addiction treatment. When appropriate, it can be used alongside individual and group counseling, CBT, DBT, ACT and relapse-prevention work.
- Timing and individualization matter. Trauma-focused work may not be appropriate at every stage of recovery, so treatment should account for a person’s stability, history, goals, preferences and clinical needs.²
- Within an IOP, Brainspotting can become one component of a broader recovery plan while patients continue developing coping skills, recognizing triggers and practicing recovery in everyday life.
Why Trauma May Be Addressed During Addiction Treatment
Trauma can affect people in many different ways. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) defines trauma as resulting from an event, series of events or circumstances experienced as physically or emotionally harmful or threatening that can have lasting effects on a person’s functioning and wellbeing.1
These effects can include emotional, physical, cognitive, behavioral and social responses. SAMHSA’s guidance for behavioral health clinicians also recognizes that some people may use substances in an effort to cope with trauma-related distress or its effects.⁴ This does not mean substance use is always rooted in trauma, but it helps explain why trauma may become relevant
This is why trauma-informed substance abuse treatment in Sacramento should begin with the individual rather than an assumption about what caused their addiction. SAMHSA describes trauma-informed care as recognizing the possible impact of trauma, responding with that knowledge in treatment practices and working to avoid retraumatization.2 It emphasizes principles such as safety, trust, collaboration and empowerment. Within addiction recovery, this can mean creating the space to address trauma when it’s clinically relevant without making trauma the explanation for every recovery challenge.
What is Brainspotting?
Brainspotting is a relatively newer therapeutic approach that was developed in the early 2000s. During a session, a therapist typically asks the client to focus on an emotionally meaningful concern while noticing thoughts, memories, emotions, images or physical sensations that arise. The therapist then helps the person identify a particular location within their visual field and maintain attention around that point while continuing to observe their internal experience.
Compared with therapies centered heavily on conversation or analyzing thoughts, Brainspotting may involve longer periods of focused internal attention. The developers of Brainspotting have proposed neurological explanations for why visual position might be associated with emotional processing. However, published papers describing these mechanisms characterize them as hypotheses.3 The precise neurological mechanisms have not yet been firmly established.
Research into Brainspotting is also still developing. Its evidence base is substantially smaller than those of established psychotherapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and several other trauma-focused treatments. Brainspotting should, therefore, be presented as a therapeutic option that may be incorporated into individualized care, not as a proven shortcut to resolving trauma or addiction.
How Can Brainspotting Relate to Addiction Recovery?
The connection becomes clear when Brainspotting is viewed in terms of the person’s overall treatment goals. Imagine that someone repeatedly uses substances when feelings connected with a difficult past experience become overwhelming. Addiction treatment may help that person identify the pattern, understand triggers, develop alternative coping strategies and make plans for responding differently when distress appears.
Brainspotting and addiction recovery may intersect at that point. During Brainspotting, the individual may explore emotions, memories or physical responses associated with difficult experiences while working within a supportive therapeutic relationship. This work can happen alongside other parts of treatment that more directly address substance use and recovery behaviors. This distinction matters: Brainspotting is not treating every component of addiction simply because trauma is being explored.
Brainspotting Does Not Replace Addiction Treatment
Substance use disorders can involve behavioral, psychological, social and physical factors. Depending on the substance and the severity of the disorder, treatment needs may also include medical evaluation, withdrawal management, medication or specialized care. No single psychotherapy addresses every one of these needs.
This is why Brainspotting should not replace comprehensive Sacramento addiction treatment. Someone might use Brainspotting to work on trauma-related distress while using cognitive behavioral strategies to recognize patterns connected with substance use. Group therapy may provide opportunities to learn from others and practice communication, and individual counseling can address personal goals and challenges. Additionally, relapse-prevention work can help identify high-risk situations and develop plans for responding to them. When appropriate, these services can function together rather than competing for the role of ‘the’ treatment that makes recovery happen.
How Brainspotting Can Fit Within an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP)
An intensive outpatient program in Sacramento can provide a broader framework for this type of individualized care. IOP treatment typically provides more structure than standard outpatient counseling while allowing appropriate patients to continue living in the community. This can give someone opportunities to participate in therapy and recovery programming while continuing to navigate work, family relationships, responsibilities and everyday triggers.
At Monarch Recovery Centers’ Intensive Outpatient Program, treatment can include individual and group counseling, treatment planning, relapse-prevention work and behavioral approaches such as CBT, DBT and ACT. Brainspotting may be incorporated alongside these services when deemed clinically appropriate. For example, a person might use group treatment to build coping and communication skills, individual counseling to work through specific recovery challenges and Brainspotting to explore relevant emotional or trauma-related experiences. This creates a much different treatment model than relying on Brainspotting alone.
Why Timing and Individualization Matter
Even when someone has experienced trauma, it doesn’t necessarily follow that Brainspotting should begin immediately. People enter recovery with different needs and levels of stability. Someone may initially need to focus on stopping substance use, managing withdrawal safely, establishing a stable living environment or developing basic coping strategies. Another person may be at a stage where exploring trauma-related experiences is clinically appropriate.
Trauma-informed care emphasizes collaboration and responsiveness rather than pushing people through a predetermined process.2 A treatment provider can consider someone’s history, symptoms, current stability, treatment goals, preferences and response to other interventions when deciding whether trauma-focused work should become a part of care.
The same principle applies to Brainspotting specifically. A person should not be made to feel that they must uncover a traumatic memory or experience a dramatic emotional reaction for addiction treatment to succeed.
Brainspotting Is One Part of a Broader Recovery Plan
Recovery often requires people to build skills that extend well beyond any individual therapy session. Someone participating in an intensive outpatient program in Sacramento may be learning how to recognize triggers, tolerate uncomfortable emotions, communicate more effectively, rebuild relationships, establish routines and make decisions that support continued recovery.
If trauma or difficult emotional experiences are affecting that process, Brainspotting may provide an additional therapeutic avenue to explore, but its role should remain proportional. Research into Brainspotting is still emerging, and the approach does not yet have the same evidence base as many established behavioral and trauma-focused therapies. It also shouldn’t be used to make promises about relapse prevention, long-term sobriety or specific treatment outcomes. Instead, Brainspotting therapy can be considered within the context of what an individual needs from treatment and how different services can support one another.
Finding the Right Role for Brainspotting in Addiction Recovery
Effective addiction treatment doesn’t require reducing a person to either their substance use or their past experiences. For some people, recovery primarily involves behavioral changes, coping skills, relationships, routines and recovery support. For others, trauma or emotional distress may also need attention. Oftentimes, several needs will exist at the same time. Brainspotting offers one possible way to address this emotional component when a qualified clinician determines that it is appropriate.
At Monarch Recovery Centers, Brainspotting can be incorporated into substance abuse treatment in Sacramento alongside counseling, behavioral therapies, relapse prevention and other services within an individualized treatment plan. If you are exploring Brainspotting addiction recovery or looking for an intensive outpatient program in Sacramento, contact us today. We’ll be happy to share more about our available services and whether trauma-informed care may have a place within your unique treatment plan.
Citations
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Interagency Task Force on Trauma-Informed Care. Updated February 9, 2026. https://www.samhsa.gov/mental-health/trauma-violence/trauma-informed-care
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Trauma-Informed Approaches and Programs. https://www.samhsa.gov/mental-health/trauma-violence/trauma-informed-approaches-programs
- Corrigan F, Grand D. Brainspotting: Recruiting the midbrain for accessing and healing sensorimotor memories of traumatic activation. Medical Hypotheses. 2013;80(6):759–766. doi:10.1016/j.mehy.2013.03.005. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23570648/
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. TIP 57: Trauma-Informed Care in Behavioral Health Services. https://www.samhsa.gov/resource/dbhis/tip-57-trauma-informed-care-behavioral-health-services
