Max Cohen BA (hons), Dip Psych Couns, MBACP

Healing heroes: addiction in veterans

Max Cohen has been practicing as a psychotherapist and counsellor for over 25 years and so far helped over 2,000 people. His charity work includes Veterans Aid supports men and women some of whom have been deployed on ‘special duties,’ many struggle with combat trauma, complex trauma from childhood, moral injury, resulting in addictions, mental health issues and parenting difficulties and Spitalfields Crypt Trust which provides residential treatment to street drinkers and people with addictions and co-occurring severe mental health problems.

Max is also international clinical consultant for Meadows Behavioral Health world renowned psychiatric and behavioural treatment facilities based in the US. 

He works with people experiencing chronic stress, anxiety, depression, complex trauma and PTSD, addictions and co-occurring disorders, codependency, relationship difficulties, as well as with the often ignored partners of addicts or alcoholics. He adopts a broadly integrative style of therapy which is an eclectic mix of psychodynamic and person centred models of therapy this includes elements of cognitive behavioural therapy, dialectical behavioural therapy, solution focused therapy and complimentary therapies and coaching. He holds an advanced qualification in EMDR and utilise EFT (tapping), mindfulness and relaxation tools in his practice.

Max supervises work of psychiatrists, therapists and counsellors and is founder and director of The Integrated Practice. For 10 years, he lectured, supervised and facilitated personal development groups for post graduate psychology students at a London university.

PRESENTATION

Healing heroes: addressing addiction in veterans and first responders

Max will start with statistics quantifing the rates of comorbid post-traumatic stress disorder and substance-use disorders among military veterans and first responders, alongside clinical presentations (addiction, co-occurring disorders, suicidality, etc) – and the first steps to address them. Why is this population different? Contrast the differences between veterans’ and first responders’ PTSD (typically rooted in adult-onset, high-intensity combat or operational trauma) with childhood PTSD (often complex trauma that disrupts early attachment and brain development) and the difference between PTSD and moral injury. Identify barriers to treatment. Compare emerging treatments such as Talking therapy, EMDR, EFT and Rewind. Max will teach an experiential diaphragmatic breathing technique to self-regulate and share case studies.

Learning objectives

At the end of this presentation, delegates will be able to:

  • Articulate the elevated prevalence of comorbid PTSD and substance-use disorders among military veterans and first responders, differentiate the clinical presentations and neurodevelopmental impacts of adult-onset operational trauma from childhood complex trauma, and distinguish PTSD from moral injury
  • Identify key barriers to treatment in this population and describe evidence-informed first steps for addressing addiction, co-occurring disorders, and suicidality in veterans and first responders
  • Compare the mechanisms and applications of emerging trauma treatments (including talking therapies, EMDR, EFT, and Rewind Technique) and demonstrate a practical diaphragmatic breathing technique for nervous system self-regulation.