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Can a 5-Session writing exercise ease PTSD in addiction recovery?

NCT ID NCT07782268

Symptom relief Sponsor: Potomac Health Foundations Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting This study
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Aug 24, 2026 · Last updated Aug 25, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This trial tests whether a brief therapy called Written Exposure in Substance Treatment (WEST) can reduce PTSD symptoms in people staying at a residential substance use program. Participants with PTSD are randomly assigned to receive WEST plus usual care or usual care alone. The study measures changes in PTSD symptoms, substance use, and mental health outcomes before and after the intervention.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
Written Exposure Therapy (WEST), a brief 5-session behavioral therapy involving guided writing exercises to reduce PTSD symptoms
What this could lead to
If effective, this brief therapy could become a practical tool to reduce PTSD symptoms and improve substance use outcomes in residential treatment programs.
What could go wrong
The therapy is being tested in a specific residential setting, and results may not generalize. It is an early-stage adaptation, and benefits over usual care are not yet established.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 400 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Expected to start

Sep 2026

An estimate. Start dates often move.

Expected to finish

May 2030

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

18 years and older

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * be enrolled in residential SUD treatment at MTC * meet criteria for PTSD based on the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5 * be 18 years of age or older * have sufficient memory of the index trauma to write about it * be sufficiently able to speak, read, and write in the English language to complete WEST therapy and study assessments. Exclusion Criteria: * Inability to give informed consent for any reason (e.g., cognitive impairment) * Presence of acute psychosis that would interfere with study participation * Suicide attempt within the past 3 months * History of psychiatric hospitalization within the past month * Presence of any other psychiatric instability or suicidality that would interfere with study participation * Planning to leave residential treatment before WEST could realistically be completed as determined by the investigator * Lack of access to a mobile phone after treatment discharge

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

post-traumatic stress disorder substance-related disorder

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Substance use disorder (SUD)

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

  1. The places running it

    1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. The official record

    ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

    Open the record ↗

  3. A doctor treating you

    A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Maryland Treatment Centers

    Baltimore, Maryland, 21229, United States

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