Dr. Sudie Back - Prolonged Exposure for Substance Use Disorder and PTSD
From The Addiction Psychologist by Samuel Acuff and Noah Emery
July 14, 2025 · 1h 17m
About this episode
Dr. Sudie Back discusses the importance of treating co-occurring PTSD and substance use disorder simultaneously and the prolonged exposure treatment she developed.
In many clinical contexts, substance use disorder is oftentreated separately from posttraumatic stress disorder. Yet, these conditions commonly co-occur and are reciprocally determinant, meaning that the outcomes of a course of treatment for either condition might depend upon treating theother. On this episode, Dr. Sudie Back talks about the importance of treating co-occurring PTSD and substance use disorder simultaneously, and the prolonged exposure treatment, COPE, she developed with her colleagues to manage both disorders. Dr. Sudie Back is a professor, and the director of the NIH-sponsored DART research training program, in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina. She is also a psychologist at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Hospital.
People in this episode
Hosts: Samuel Acuff, Noah Emery
Guest: Dr. Sudie Back
Topics covered
- substance use disorder
- posttraumatic stress disorder
- co-occurring disorders
- prolonged exposure treatment
- mental health treatment
Keywords
- substance use disorder
- PTSD
- prolonged exposure
- COPE
- mental health
- treatment
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Medical University of South Carolina, Ralph H. Johnson VA Hospital, NIH, DART research training program
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