Treating Women Drug Abusers Who Were Victims of Childhood Sexual Abuse

Clinicians are becoming increasingly aware that many if not most drug dependent women were also childhood victims of incestuous abuse. This fact requires substance abuse therapists and those specializing in the treatment of adult incest survivors to understand more fully the interaction between incest and drug abuse. This chapter explores the development of incest using the vulnerability to incest framework, and proposes a treatment program based on the Multiple Systems Model. A case study exemplifying the program and some specific interventions are also offered.