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Addiction Recovery

Rapid Resolution Therapy for Trauma-Driven Addiction

Clear Trauma Fast, Without Reliving the Pain

Heal From Trauma Quickly

Traditional therapy typically involves revisiting memories of trauma in order to lessen their strength over time through continual exposure. But what if there was a quicker method to get rid of emotional issues without having to relive each detail of your trauma?

Rapid Resolution Therapy (RRT) at Agape Treatment Center provides a groundbreaking therapeutic method to assist you in moving beyond your traumatic experiences faster without the sometimes long-lasting effects of traditional trauma therapy.

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What is Rapid Resolution Therapy?

Rapid Resolution Therapy is a form of psychotherapy developed by Dr. Jon Connelly that allows people to resolve mental health issues like trauma, addiction, anxiety, or phobias quickly.[1] Traditional talk therapy may take many months or years but RRT accomplishes lasting change in a far shorter period (one to three sessions is typical for an isolated trauma).
Most RRT sessions last between 60-90 minutes and are delivered by mental health professionals specifically trained to deliver this effective therapeutic method. RRT is incorporated into a well-rounded treatment plan at Agape Treatment Center for those experiencing trauma and addiction, with the understanding that the addiction itself is often a result of unresolved trauma.[2]

How Does Rapid Resolution Therapy Work?

RRT works with the subconscious part of the brain where the emotions and memories of trauma are stored. Instead of having to discuss or relive traumatic events over and over, the RRT method employs guided imagery, reframing techniques, and visualization processes to assist the brain in processing and releasing trauma. The goal is to eliminate the emotional charge of the traumatic experience from your body, allowing the traumatic memories to no longer create distress for you in daily living.

The Science Behind RRT

RRT uses guided imagery and visualization techniques to help the subconscious mind of the individual learn how to view the trauma or traumatic event differently than it did prior. This shift is created at a level much deeper than just conscious thought and so the changes created using RRT are much quicker and will result in your achieving positive outcomes in much less time when compared to the changes created using traditional talk therapy.
RRT uses storytelling, metaphors, and multi-level communication to directly address the subconscious mind of the individual. With RRT, you will always be fully awake and in complete control; however, the therapist will help you focus your attention in ways that allow your subconscious mind to process and release trauma at a more efficient pace than what occurs during traditional talk therapy.

RRT and Addiction Recovery

For people struggling with substance use, RRT addresses the root causes of addiction—often unresolved trauma driving self-medication.[3] Instead of spending months gradually working through painful memories, RRT can clear the emotional pain quickly, removing a primary trigger for substance use. When trauma is properly resolved, cravings often diminish significantly because the emotional distress driving addiction is gone.

Healing together

Efficacy of Rapid Resolution Therapy

While RRT is fairly new, it is quickly gaining support as an effective therapy for trauma like EMDR or cognitive-behavioral therapy.
Some key findings include:

Fast and effective treatment

Fast and effective treatment: Those who have PTSD and are recovering from addiction can find relief from the flashbacks, nightmares, hypervigilance, and avoidance behaviors associated with trauma using RRT. Several combat veterans report substantial reductions in many of these symptoms.[4]

Addresses addiction triggers

RRT clears the emotional pain that triggers addiction and helps reduce cravings and addiction-related compulsions in the first few sessions.[5]
Works for complex issues: RRT can help with other issues besides trauma, including phobias, panic attacks, grief, relationship difficulties, etc. Many individuals may have these types of additional issues while in recovery.[6]

Works for complex issues

RRT can help with other issues besides trauma, including phobias, panic attacks, grief, relationship difficulties, etc. Many individuals may have these types of additional issues while in recovery.[6]

Minimal retraumatization

While helpful, exposure therapy can be risky because it forces people to face their worst memories. If that experience becomes too overwhelming, it can end up re-traumatizing them instead of helping them heal.[7] RRT prohibits this retraumatization by not requiring the reliving of painful parts of a traumatic experience.[8]

What to Expect from Rapid Resolution Therapy

If you have not had the experience of RRT, you may wonder how such relief can be had in this short of time. RRT provides the opportunity to clear trauma in a gentle but powerful way and typically has a much shorter duration than traditional talk therapy.

A typical RRT session includes:

01

Assessment and focus

The therapist will assess your issue, whether it’s one single traumatic incident, perpetual anxiety, triggers, or painful emotions.

02

Guided processing

The therapist will guide you through several visualization and guided imagery exercises designed to allow your subconscious mind to reprocess the experience, instead of making you describe the traumatic event in detail.

03

Reframing and clearing

The therapist will assist your mind in reframing the way you think about the trauma, clearing the emotional charge of the experience, while not changing the memory.

04

Integration

The therapist will assist you in recognizing these newfound feelings associated with the experience and help you see that they do not cause emotional distress any longer.

05

Future focus

Looking ahead as you move forward in life without the burden of past trauma.

Agape Wide Range of Treatment

Rapid Resolution Therapy at Agape Treatment Center

Agape Treatment Center provides professional RRT as one part of our complete program designed to treat drug or alcohol addiction along with co-occurring mental health conditions. All of the therapists at Agape are trained in the methodology of RRT and understand how to integrate this approach with other evidence-based therapies to maximize the benefit of treatment.

Our Approach to Rapid Resolution Therapy

Our RRT program recognizes that unresolved trauma is often the hidden driver of addiction and other mental health issues. We integrate RRT with other therapeutic approaches to create comprehensive healing experiences.

Our approach includes:

01

Trauma assessment

We review your trauma history with care, and based on that assessment, determine whether RRT is appropriate for you now and at your stage of recovery.

02

Addiction treatment integration

RRT will be coordinated with your individual and group therapy and other interventions to maximize the effectiveness of your entire treatment.

03

Flexible application of RRT

RRT can be used to address specific traumatic events, chronic anxiety of phobias, grief or any other trauma-related issues.

04

Combined modalities

We will combine RRT with cognitive-behavioral therapy, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) and/or other evidence-based approaches when appropriate, to address multiple or complex trauma-related issues.

05

Ongoing support

Although RRT provides rapid results, we will continue to provide you with support as you integrate those changes, helping you to build a recovery that is no longer affected by the trauma you experienced.

Reclaim Your Life

Clearing Trauma, Reclaiming Your Life

At Agape, we firmly believe you should not have to spend years in therapy talking about traumatic memories to heal from the trauma. This is especially true for individuals who have engaged in substance use.
RRT provides a quicker, less painful means of healing from trauma that values your time, minimizes your suffering, and provides you with lasting benefits. If you are free of the control of trauma over your feelings and behavior, you will not only recover from substance use, but also be able to maintain that recovery.
Trauma doesn't have to take years to heal. Sometimes the fastest path forward is also the gentlest.

Create Your Way to Freedom

You’ve spent enough time keeping your pain locked inside. It’s time to express it, release it, and transform it into something beautiful.

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FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions about Rapid Resolution Therapy

How can RRT work so quickly when other therapies take months or years?

RRT operates on the subconscious level of the mind, where traumatic memories are stored, and uses specific techniques to clear emotional pain from the mind efficiently. Instead of processing trauma slowly over time through repeated exposure and re-creation, RRT directly targets the manner with which the subconscious mind processes and identifies traumatic experiences. By using the correct key to open the lock quicker, it takes less time to complete the task

Is RRT the same as hypnosis?

No. Although RRT utilizes guided imagery as well as the subconscious mind, you will always remain conscious during RRT and have full control over your responses. There is no hypnosis involved or “spirituality” associated with RRT. RRT is a structured psychotherapy developed by Dr. Jon Connelly based on how the mind processes and identifies traumatic experiences; therefore, it is based on psychological understanding of trauma and memory.

Will I have to describe my trauma in graphic detail?

No. One of the greatest benefits of RRT is that you will not need to re-experience or describe your trauma in detail. Your therapist will need to know what you are working with, but the therapy does not require you to discuss your traumatic experiences in great detail. RRT is considerably more tolerable for most people than are exposure-type therapies.

Does RRT work for complex trauma or only single incidents?

RRT is effective in treating both single-incident and complex-trauma like childhood sexual abuse, combat, domestic violence, or chronic neglect. Single-incident traumas can generally be resolved in three or fewer sessions, while more complex-trauma may take longer to treat in order to garner the full benefits; however, it is typically much quicker than traditional methods of psychotherapy.

Can RRT help with my addiction even if I'm not sure I have trauma?

Yes. Many people don’t consider themselves to have experienced a “trauma,” yet still have buried emotions or other reasons for feeling “unworthy” and using substances. Even though many of these people may never have received a diagnosis of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), they may still benefit from the potential/existing emotional pain that underlies or prevents the continuation of substance use.

Sources

[1] [4] [6] [8] Hames, J. M. (2010, August 27). Rapid resolution therapy. United States Army. https://www.army.mil/article/44335/rapid_resolution_therapy

[2] [3] [7] Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2014). Trauma-informed care in behavioral health services (Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) Series 57). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://store.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/d7/priv/sma14-4816.pdf

[5] Rapid Resolution Therapy Institute. (n.d.). Relapse prevention. https://rapidresolutiontherapy.com/relapse-prevention