Young Adult PTSD Support at STRiV Forward
With individualized attention, caring mentors, and a welcoming community, we don’t just help students heal and grow. We promote the courage, independence, and skill-building needed to improve overall well-being for every student at STRiV Forward. This includes helping students who are living with the effects of trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which we address with sensitivity and respect.
Why Families and Young Adults Choose STRiV Forward
Safe Space for Growth: We understand how challenging it can be to transition into adulthood. Our program offers a supportive environment where students can learn from failure and try again without the pressure of perfection, fostering resilience and confidence.
Personalized Support: Each student receives tailored mental health care designed to promote community, growth, and accountability. Our small, boutique setting ensures individualized attention with a 1:4 mentor-to-student ratio, enabling meaningful connections and personalized guidance.
Community, Not Just Treatment: Students are integrated into a supportive community rather than feeling like just a participant in a treatment program. We respect their independence through a freedom-first approach that includes no strict curfews and permission to use technology.
Freedom to Pursue Passions: We encourage students to engage in hobbies and activities they love. Our flexible environment promotes self-discovery and confidence, helping students develop independence through meaningful experiences.
Long-Term Relationships: Our dedicated staff has an exceptionally low turnover rate, allowing mentors to build lasting, trust-based relationships with students. This stability supports ongoing growth and personalized mentoring.
Structured Opportunities for Reflection and Growth: Within our safe and supportive environment, students are encouraged to reflect, learn from their experiences, and grow at their own pace. The combination of peer and professional support creates a nurturing space for meaningful development.
Three Simple Steps to Starting Your Recovery
Getting Started is Easy!
Step One
Call Today!
Step Two
Verify Insurance
Step Three
Schedule Admissions
Our Approach to PTSD Treatment for Young Adults
A Therapeutic Transitional Living Program
Part of mental health recovery is overcoming the learned helplessness and hopelessness that PTSD can impose. STRiV seeks to foster autonomy and individuality in our students through community events, therapeutic modalities, and exciting recreational adventures that make the most of what Utah has to offer.
Students seamlessly blend therapeutic modalities with everyday activities and social events for a healing, peaceful experience.
Individualized, Trauma-Informed Care
Evidence-Based Therapies Used to Treat PTSD
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
Individual Therapy and Talk Therapy
Psychotherapies are used to help students work through their trauma as well as develop healthy coping strategies for recovery. Each therapy session is overseen by a mental health professional who is licensed and certified to provide trauma-informed care.
EMDR and Trauma-Specific Interventions
EMDR is a psychotherapy technique designed to help individuals process and heal from traumatic memories. Therapists guide clients into recalling distressing memories while engaging in specific eye movements or other forms of bilateral stimulation, which encourages emotional healing.
Prolonged exposure therapy is a type of psychotherapy that helps individuals confront and process traumatic memories. It works by using imaginal exposure, in which individuals recount their trauma, and vivo exposure, in which they gradually face reminders of the trauma in real life.
Group Therapy and Community Support
Trauma-Informed Group Therapy
Process Group and Social Skills Development
The Art of Social Connection group operates similarly, but involves members of the local community who have faced similar challenges to our students. Here, students participate in exercises, activities, and conversations that help build social skills.
These groups help students see that they aren’t alone, facilitating healing and the reforging of social connections. Social withdrawal is a serious symptom of PTSD, and these programs directly address and resolve it.
Medication Support and Psychiatry Collaboration
Medication Management for PTSD
The most common of these medications include selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which block the reabsorption of serotonin in the brain. This improves mood and can alleviate symptoms of depression, which may enhance the experience of positive emotions.
Part of medication management is helping students recognize and mitigate common side effects associated with antidepressants and other medications. Students are monitored carefully while under our care, and medication adjustments will be made as needed.
Integrated Mental Health Care
PTSD and Co-Occurring Mental Health Conditions
Mental Health Conditions We Commonly Support
- Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- Anxiety disorder
- Depression
- Mild past substance use
- Social struggles
- Gender identity issues
- Process addictions (e.g., compulsive screen/electronics use, which is often a coping mechanism for trauma)
Trauma and Substance Use
Our Program Benefits
Trauma-Informed Without Being Institutional
Structure That Supports Independence
Mentorship and Low Student-to-Staff Ratio
Collaboration With Families and Providers
When to Seek PTSD Support for a Young Adult
Signs It May Be Time to Reach Out
- Being easily startled or frightened
- Seems to be hyperaware of danger
- Self-destructive behavior, such as engaging in uncharacteristic substance abuse, risk-taking, or self-harming
- Trouble sleeping or concentrating
- Irritability, angry outbursts, or aggressive behavior.
- Physical reactions, such as sweating, rapid breathing, a fast heartbeat, or shaking when reminded of the traumatic event
- Experiencing flashbacks and/or panic attacks
- Withdrawing from or avoiding normal interactions
- Expressing thoughts of suicide
Early Support Makes a Difference
PTSD is a treatable condition with professional support. STRiV is here to help young adults not just recover from PTSD, but to find their place in the world as healthy and independent adults.
Frequently Asked Questions About Young Adult PTSD Treatment
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition caused by an individual witnessing or being involved in a traumatic event. Traumatic events can be extremely stressful, terrifying, and life-threatening. Anyone at any age, including children and adolescents, can develop PTSD after such events.
Many people who go through or witness traumatic events can experience a period of time in which they have symptoms such as nightmares or anxiety. However, with time and good self-care, they can recover and return to normalcy. When these symptoms persist and worsen to the point that they affect daily functioning, and have yet to go away months or years after the traumatic event has occurred, it’s officially classified as post-traumatic stress disorder.
There are many traumatic experiences a young adult may witness or undergo throughout their life. These events happen beyond an individual’s control, and can complicate treatment due to inherent feelings of shame or embarrassment. It’s important to remember that these experiences are not the fault of the individual who experienced or witnessed them.
Trauma is typically broken down into three categories, which are acute, complex, and secondary trauma.
- Acute trauma is a distressing event that happens once and is time-limited, such as natural disasters, the death of a loved one, violent crimes, and sexual assault.
- Complex trauma is a series of traumatic events that can have a lasting impact, such as domestic violence, childhood trauma, and sexual abuse.
- Secondary trauma, also known as witness trauma, occurs when a person witnesses a traumatic event.
The above is only a small example of the trauma a young adult may experience or witness that can lead to PTSD.
A young person struggling with PTSD may have a multitude of emotional and psychological symptoms. They may be in a persistent state of shock, denial, anxiety, or numbness and experience feelings of guilt or shame. It’s common for individuals who were victims of crimes or assault to have difficulty trusting others and have persistent negative thoughts about themselves or the world. Uncontrollable thoughts about the traumatic event are also common, as well as flashbacks and nightmares.
PTSD can lead to several behavioral changes that can make it challenging to live a normal life. Individuals may have a severe emotional or physical reaction to things that remind them of the traumatic event, which can lead to avoidance behaviors. Avoidance can include not talking about the traumatic event and/or staying away from places, activities, or people that remind you of that event.
Individuals may also become more anxious and withdraw from others to feel safe and protected. They may struggle with irritability and fear, which can damage existing relationships and make it difficult to work, go to school, or fulfill obligations at home.
A trauma-related experience refers to an event that can cause severe emotional, psychological, or physical distress. These experiences often pose a threat to the safety of oneself or others. Some examples can include:
- Medical trauma
- Sexual trauma
- Family trauma
- Traumatic grief
- Intimate partner violence
- Natural disaster trauma
- Childhood neglect
These experiences can lead to symptoms like flashbacks, nightmares, and severe anxiety, which can severely impact daily functioning.
Talk therapies are used the most in treating PTSD, which include trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy (TF-CBT) and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). These therapies help individuals process their trauma and create healthy coping strategies to manage their symptoms.
Yes, families and loved ones are involved in the therapeutic living process at STRiV. We offer family therapy as needed, collaborate with families in goal-setting and planning, and communicate regular updates.
On average, students stay at STRiV for 12 months. This gives students plenty of time to receive treatment, make personal improvements, and prepare for independence. However, some students may need shorter or longer stays, and that is normal. We encourage students to heal at their own pace and not rush recovery.
Medication is not always required for PTSD treatment, but it can help manage severe and persistent symptoms. When needed, medication is used as short-term assistance until symptoms can subside through talk therapy and the utilization of coping strategies.