--- title: "PTSD & Trauma Treatment in Colorado | The Redpoint Center" description: "PTSD and trauma treatment in Colorado. Trauma-informed EMDR and CBT at six offices and online, with substance use treated alongside. Call (303) 219-0973." canonical: https://www.theredpointcenter.com/colorado-addiction-treatment/ptsd-trauma source: https://www.theredpointcenter.com/colorado-addiction-treatment/ptsd-trauma mirror_of: www.theredpointcenter.com content_hash: sha256:368981aec8ff92dd8e9b6438e64945025e6bdcb282f5fe153460f864c0e81a98 generated_at: 2026-10-28T23:45:58.347Z robots: noindex, follow --- (image: A woman in a cream waffle-knit sweater standing at the open gate of a weathered split-rail fence, one hand on the post, looking out across a mown Colorado pasture toward low foothills.) Conditions We Treat # PTSD and trauma treatment in Colorado, for a nervous system that never got the all clear. Trauma-informed outpatient care for post-traumatic stress and the substance use that so often grows around it, at six Colorado offices and online. The first conversation is free, confidential, and commits you to nothing. [Verify your coverage](/about-redpoint-colorado-drug-rehab-center/insurance-verification) [Call (303) 219-0973](tel:+13032190973) (image: Clasped hands resting on the arm of a sofa beside a potted fern, a lit ceramic diffuser, a small clock and an hourglass, with a second person soft-focus behind.) Understanding Trauma ## The danger ended. Your body is still working from the old information. Trauma is not measured by what happened. It is measured by what stayed. Most people who live through something terrible do not develop post-traumatic stress disorder, and the ones who do are not the ones who handled it badly. The National Institute of Mental Health puts it plainly: people who have PTSD [may continue to feel stressed or frightened, even though they are not in danger](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd). The threat ended. The alarm did not get the message. The events behind it are ordinary in the worst sense of the word. Childhood trauma, sexual assault, physical or verbal threats, serious illness, a car wreck, a natural disaster, the sudden loss of someone. NIMH also notes that [exposure to previous traumatic experiences, particularly during childhood](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd), raises the risk, along with getting hurt or seeing people hurt, feeling horror or helplessness, having little support afterward, and a personal or family history of mental illness or substance use. It is more common than the silence around it suggests. NIMH estimates that [3.6 percent of U.S. adults had PTSD in the past year, with a lifetime prevalence of 6.8 percent](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd), higher among women (5.2 percent) than men (1.8 percent), and among those with past-year PTSD an estimated 36.6 percent had serious impairment. That last figure is the one worth sitting with. This is not a mild condition that a third of people are quietly carrying. What makes it treatable is that PTSD is not a permanent rewiring. It is a memory the brain never finished filing, which is why it keeps arriving in the present tense instead of the past. That is a specific problem with specific treatments, and it responds to them. Signs And Symptoms ## What post-traumatic stress looks like from the inside. NIMH sorts these into four groups, and diagnosis in an adult requires all four to be present for at least 1 month: at least one re-experiencing symptom, at least one avoidance symptom, at least two arousal and reactivity symptoms, and at least two cognition and mood symptoms. Symptoms usually begin within three months of the event, but they can surface years later. ### It arrives in the present tense Re-experiencing: flashbacks that come with the physical symptoms too, a racing heart or sweating, plus recurring memories, dreams, and distressing thoughts you did not go looking for. ### The map of places you no longer go Avoidance: staying away from places, events, or objects that are reminders, and steering clear of the thoughts and feelings attached to what happened. It works, briefly, and it shrinks the map every year. ### Never quite off duty Arousal and reactivity: easily startled, tense or on guard, trouble concentrating, and difficulty falling or staying asleep. Rest requires believing you are safe, which is the exact thing in question. ### A shorter fuse than you used to have Also arousal and reactivity: irritability, angry or aggressive outbursts, and risky, reckless, or destructive behavior. This is the cluster that usually costs people relationships before anyone names the cause. ### A story that turned against you Cognition and mood: trouble remembering key features of the event, negative thoughts about yourself or the world, exaggerated blame aimed at yourself or others, and ongoing fear, anger, guilt, or shame. ### Feeling less of everything Also cognition and mood: loss of interest in things you used to care about, feelings of social isolation, and real difficulty feeling positive emotions. Numbness is a symptom, not a personality change. Co-occurring Substance Use ## Which do we treat first, the trauma or the drinking? It is the most common question at intake, and the premise of it is the problem. There is a reason this page sits inside our addiction treatment section rather than off in a separate mental health corner. Alcohol works. So does everything else people reach for. It quiets the hypervigilance, it shuts down the intrusive replay, and for a few hours it delivers the off switch that treatment takes months to build. Nobody should feel stupid for having found it. The National Institute on Drug Abuse describes the pattern without moralizing: [physically or emotionally traumatized people are at much higher risk for drug use and substance use disorders](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK571451/), and people with PTSD may use substances in an attempt to reduce their anxiety and to avoid dealing with trauma and its consequences. NIDA also reports that roughly 1 in 5 veterans with PTSD has a co-occurring substance use disorder, and notes that when the two conditions travel together, treatment outcomes are worse. Which brings up the question almost everyone asks at intake: which one do we deal with first. The honest answer is that the sequential version tends to fail in both directions. Take the substance away and you have removed the only thing that was holding the trauma symptoms down, without putting anything in its place, which is a well-worn route back to using. Work on the trauma while the drinking or using continues and the processing gets chemically erased between sessions. So we build one plan, with one clinical team, that holds both. Stabilization comes first, because trauma work needs a floor to stand on, but stabilization is the beginning of the trauma work rather than a waiting room outside it. Our [dual diagnosis](/colorado-addiction-treatment/dual-diagnosis) page covers how that runs week to week, and [alcohol addiction](/colorado-addiction-treatment/alcohol-addiction) covers the pairing we see most often. In Their Words > Redpoint has always felt like a safe and comfortable place. K Redpoint client (image: An empty consult room: a black sofa with rust pillows beneath a framed orange rhino painting, two rust armchairs facing it across a low table with a tissue box and a small plant.) How We Treat It ## Stabilize first, then process. In that order, on purpose. Redpoint has described its treatment teams as trauma informed for years, and it is worth saying what that actually means rather than leaving it as a phrase. It means the program assumes trauma is in the room. Nobody is required to disclose their history to a group in order to be allowed in. Nobody is pushed into a detailed account of what happened before they have the skills to leave the room intact afterward. Control over pace stays with you, because taking it away is the thing the trauma already did. The clinical work runs in a sequence that trauma treatment has largely converged on. First, stabilization: sleep, safety, substance use, the grounding and regulation skills that make the rest survivable. Our EMDR clinicians call this phase resourcing and preparation, and skipping it is the single most common way trauma treatment goes wrong. Then the processing itself, aimed at the memory rather than at managing around it forever. For that second phase, the American Psychological Association's clinical practice guideline strongly recommends [cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive processing therapy and prolonged exposure](https://www.apa.org/ptsd-guideline/treatments), and conditionally recommends EMDR, cognitive therapy and narrative exposure therapy. Two of those are ours: cognitive behavioral therapy, and EMDR delivered by clinicians trained in the practice. Where a different protocol is the better fit for you, we will say so at assessment and help you find it rather than sell you the one we happen to run. Care here is medically informed, led by a board-certified psychiatrist, so if medication belongs in your plan it can be evaluated and managed alongside the therapy. It is never a condition of starting. Post-traumatic stress rarely arrives on its own, so the assessment looks at the whole picture rather than the one condition you called about. See [depression](/colorado-addiction-treatment/depression), [anxiety](/colorado-addiction-treatment/anxiety), or the broader [mental health](/colorado-addiction-treatment/mental-health) page. - Trauma-informed groups - Individual therapy - EMDR with trained clinicians - Grounding and regulation skills - Medication support when it fits [Verify your coverage](/about-redpoint-colorado-drug-rehab-center/insurance-verification) [Start with an assessment](/contact) Levels Of Care ## How much structure this needs to start. What decides this is how much of your week the symptoms are currently taking, not how severe you think your history has to be before you are allowed to ask. Most people move between these rather than picking one and staying there. [ (image: A woman in a rust-colored cardigan seated in a softly lit room.) PHP ### Partial Hospitalization (PHP) Our most structured outpatient level, several hours a day, for early recovery or when more support is needed. Learn more ](/php-partial-hospitalization-programs) [ (image: A man in a blue cardigan seated in a softly lit room.) IOP ### Intensive Outpatient (IOP) Structured group and individual therapy several times a week, built to fit around work and family. Learn more ](/iop-intensive-outpatient-programs) [ (image: A man with a grey beard in a cream sweater seated in a bright room.) OP ### Outpatient (OP) Lighter-touch weekly therapy for step-down and continuing care as you return to your routine. Learn more ](/outpatient-treatment-program) [ (image: A woman with a laptop seated beside a large window, open country visible outside.) Virtual ### Virtual IOP The full IOP structure delivered by telehealth, with the same clinical rigor, anywhere in Colorado. Learn more ](/virtual-iop) [ (image: A woman in a grey sweater resting her chin on her hand.) Housing ### Sober Living Supportive, structured housing that reinforces recovery skills as you step back into daily life. Learn more ](/mental-health-rehab-information/sober-living) ## Find out what your plan covers before you decide anything. Trauma treatment is a covered behavioral health benefit under most plans, but deductibles and levels of care change the number a lot. We check your benefits at no charge and tell you what we find, including the parts your plan will not pay for. [Verify Your Insurance](/about-redpoint-colorado-drug-rehab-center/insurance-verification) [(303) 219-0973](tel:3032190973) [Insurance & Payment Details](/about-redpoint-colorado-drug-rehab-center/insurance-verification) Accepted insurance Employer and EAP partners Don’t see your plan? Call us and we will check it, including out-of-network benefits. Clinical Approaches ## Which therapy does what, for this. [ ### EMDR for the memory itself Our trauma modality: bilateral stimulation while you hold the memory, so the brain can finish filing it. The APA guideline conditionally recommends it, and our clinicians run it in phases, preparation before processing. ](/colorado-addiction-treatment/emdr-therapy) [ ### CBT for what the trauma taught you Strongly recommended for PTSD by the APA. It works on the beliefs the event installed, the blame and the "I should have," and on the avoidance that keeps them from ever being tested. ](/mental-health-rehab-information/cognitive-behavioral-therapy) [ ### DBT for the twenty minutes that feel unsurvivable Distress tolerance and emotion regulation skills for a flashback, a spike of rage, or a night with no sleep in it, so there is something to do besides use, leave, or wait it out alone. ](/mental-health-rehab-information/dialectical-behavioral-therapy) [ ### ACT for the fight with your own head Some trauma thinking does not yield to argument. Acceptance and commitment therapy works on your relationship to the thought instead of its content, and on moving toward what you actually value. ](/mental-health-rehab-information/acceptance-and-commitment-therapy-act) [ ### Experiential therapy, back into the body Post-traumatic stress shows up physically, in a racing heart and a startle you cannot talk yourself out of, so talking is not the only route in. Movement and activity outdoors in Colorado are part of the treatment here, not a break from it. ](/mental-health-rehab-information/experiential-therapies) [ ### Medication support, if it fits Care here is medically informed, led by a board-certified psychiatrist. Whether medication belongs in your plan is a conversation with that team, and never a requirement for starting. ](/mental-health-rehab-information/medical-model) Where We Treat It ## Six Colorado offices, and online for everywhere else. Trauma is treated at every Redpoint location, and every office runs an evening group so treatment does not have to cost you a job. If the nearest one does not run the level you need, we will tell you plainly and point you at the one that does. [All locations](/locations) [ HQ ### Fort Collins Our Larimer County home office, running PHP and IOP with both daytime and evening groups. Learn more](/locations/fort-collins-mental-health) [ ### Boulder PHP and IOP on Canyon Boulevard, daytime or evening, minutes from downtown. Learn more](/locations/boulder-mental-health) [ ### Longmont PHP and IOP, daytime or evening, plus our sober living house. Learn more](/locations/longmont-mental-health) [ ### Thornton Evening IOP for the north Denver metro, so treatment does not cost you the working day. Learn more](/locations/thornton-mental-health) [ ### Greeley Evening IOP for Weld County, on 67th Avenue in west Greeley. Learn more](/locations/greeley-mental-health) [ ### Glenwood Springs Evening IOP on the Western Slope, serving the Roaring Fork Valley. Learn more](/locations/glenwood-springs-mental-health) Common Questions ## PTSD and trauma treatment questions, answered. ### What if what happened to me was not "bad enough"? This is the most common reason people wait, and it rests on a comparison that does not hold. PTSD is not awarded by severity of event; it develops when symptoms persist and start interfering with daily life. NIMH lists the things that actually raise the risk, including [previous traumatic experiences particularly during childhood, feeling horror or helplessness, having little or no social support after the event, and dealing with further stressors afterward](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd). None of those are about how dramatic the event would look to a stranger. If it is still shaping how you sleep, who you avoid, and what you drink, it qualifies for a conversation. ### How do I know if this is PTSD or just a hard memory? There is a clinical threshold, and it is more specific than most people expect. NIMH states that to be diagnosed with PTSD, an adult must have all of the following for [at least 1 month: at least one re-experiencing symptom, at least one avoidance symptom, at least two arousal and reactivity symptoms, and at least two cognition and mood symptoms](https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd). Symptoms usually begin within three months of the event, though they can appear later. A hard memory hurts when you go to it. Post-traumatic stress comes to you, and reorganizes the week around not being ambushed. An assessment will tell you which one you are dealing with, and it is free. ### Will I have to talk about what happened in a group? No. Redpoint teams are trauma informed, and one of the practical meanings of that is that disclosure is never the price of admission. Groups here work on skills, patterns, and daily life; a detailed account of your trauma belongs in individual work, at a pace you set, and only after the stabilization phase has given you something to land on afterward. Rushing that step is the most common way trauma treatment goes wrong, which is why our EMDR clinicians treat resourcing and preparation as a phase in its own right rather than a warm-up. ### Should I get sober first and deal with the trauma later? That plan fails often enough that we build against it. The National Institute on Drug Abuse notes that [physically or emotionally traumatized people are at much higher risk for drug use and substance use disorders](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK571451/), that people with PTSD may use substances in an attempt to reduce their anxiety and to avoid dealing with trauma, and that co-occurrence is associated with worse treatment outcomes. Remove the substance without treating what it was managing and the symptoms come back at full volume with nothing to meet them. We put both in one plan with one team. Stabilization still comes first, because trauma processing needs a stable floor, but it is the first phase of the trauma work rather than a delay before it. See [dual diagnosis](/colorado-addiction-treatment/dual-diagnosis) for how that runs. ### Do you offer EMDR? Yes. EMDR is The Redpoint Center’s named trauma modality, delivered by clinicians trained in the practice, and it runs in phases: planning, then resourcing and preparation, then the processing itself. The APA clinical practice guideline conditionally recommends [EMDR](https://www.apa.org/ptsd-guideline/treatments), describing it as a structured therapy that has the patient briefly focus on the trauma memory while experiencing bilateral stimulation. Our [EMDR therapy](/colorado-addiction-treatment/emdr-therapy) page explains the phases and what a session is actually like. ### Is medication part of PTSD treatment? It can be, and it is a conversation rather than a condition of admission. The APA guideline conditionally recommends [fluoxetine, paroxetine, sertraline and venlafaxine](https://www.apa.org/ptsd-guideline/treatments), and notes that only sertraline and paroxetine are FDA-approved specifically for PTSD. Redpoint is medically informed with a board-certified psychiatrist as medical director, so what is appropriate for you is decided by clinicians who can see the whole picture, including any substance use history, rather than by a website. Plenty of people treat PTSD with therapy alone. Our [medical model](/mental-health-rehab-information/medical-model) page explains how that side of care works. ### Does insurance cover trauma treatment in Colorado? Usually some of it, and the specifics vary more than any treatment website can honestly tell you. What you pay depends on your plan, your deductible, and the level of care, so a number quoted before a benefits check is guesswork. We verify your coverage at no cost and tell you what we find, including what your plan will not pay for. [Start a benefits check](/about-redpoint-colorado-drug-rehab-center/insurance-verification) and you will know where you stand before committing to anything. ### What if I am in crisis right now? Call or text 988 to reach [988 Colorado](https://bha.colorado.gov/988), free and confidential, 24 hours a day, or call 911 if someone is in immediate danger. Redpoint is an outpatient program and is not a crisis line or an emergency service, so please use 988 first if this is right now. When you are safe, call us at (303) 219-0973 and we will pick the conversation up from there. Not sure whether what happened to you counts? [Talk to our team](/contact) ## Tell us what has been going on. One conversation, free and confidential, with a clinician who has heard this before. Nothing you say obligates you to start treatment, and there is no version of your history that we will decide is too much. [(303) 219-0973](tel:3032190973) [Text Us](sms:+19704758646) We accept most major insurance plans and our team will help verify your coverage at no cost. [Insurance & Payment Details](/about-redpoint-colorado-drug-rehab-center/insurance-verification)