How Residential Trauma Treatment Programs Help Adults Heal PTSD and Complex Trauma

Dr. Eric Chaghouri, MD

Medical Director

Dr. Eric Chaghouri is a 2007 graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles, where he earned his B. A. in Biology with Summa Cum Laude honors. While at UCLA, he helped the men’s varsity volleyball team earn a National Championship in 2006. He was named the UCLA Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2007.

He earned his medical degree from the Keck School of Medicine in 2011. He completed his internship training in 2008 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the remaining three years of residency in general adult psychiatry at the Los Angeles County and University of Southern California Medical Center. He served as the Chief Resident in psychiatric emergency services during his fourth year of residency. He also served as Resident Clinical Instructor and Volunteer Faculty in the Department of Psychiatry at the Keck School of Medicine.

After completing residency, Dr. Chaghouri accepted a fellowship position in forensic psychiatry at the prestigious USC Institute of Psychiatry and Law. His scholarly activities included publishing in Legal Digest and presenting research findings at the Keck School of Medicine annual conference.

Since completing his forensic psychiatry fellowship, he has established a successful and thriving practice in Southern California, focusing on treatment of co-occurring psychiatric and addictive disorders. He has developed a strong clinical team of practitioners who share similar goals and philosophies regarding psychiatric treatment, including providing cutting-edge interventional treatments for psychiatric conditions. He works in an array of capacities with attorneys, courts, and other parties in actual or potential litigation. He also has extensive experience consulting and providing opinions on psychiatric issues for major television networks. Dr. Chaghouri’s interests include addiction medicine, substance use disorders, forensic psychiatry, medical ethics, psychological autopsy, gender wellness, and evidence-based treatment of psychiatric conditions.

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How Residential Trauma Treatment Programs Help Adults Heal PTSD and Complex Trauma

Discover how residential trauma treatment helps adults heal from PTSD and complex trauma (C-PTSD) with evidence-based therapies at Serenity Now.

Dr. Eric Chaghouri, MD

June 30, 2026

We accept insurance plans

Living with PTSD or complex trauma can make everyday life feel exhausting. Nightmares, hypervigilance, emotional numbness, panic, and difficulty trusting others can make it hard to work, maintain relationships, or even feel safe. For many people, residential trauma treatment provides the structure and support needed to begin healing.

Care for mental health disorders comes in many forms, but for people at the beginning of their recovery journey, treatment programs for residential trauma are a good option. People in these programs stay overnight at a facility while they receive treatment, as they aren’t yet stable enough to live independently.

Residential treatment is a common choice for people suffering from posttraumatic stress (PTSD) and complex trauma (C-PTSD). In the US, around 5 in every 100 people experience PTSD in a given year [1], while in the veteran community alone, C-PTSD rates reach up to 13% [2].

Having a safe space to heal can be transformative. Let’s see how residential trauma treatment programs are specifically designed for PTSD and C-PTSD.

What Is PTSD?

PTSD is a mental health condition that can happen in response to a single or limited traumatic event, such as a car crash, assault, or natural disaster. People with PTSD tend to have flashbacks, intrusive thoughts, and recurring nightmares. Not every person who experiences a traumatic event will develop PTSD.

Symptoms of PTSD can arise immediately after the traumatic event or sometimes months or years later. They include:

Avoiding locations and people associated with the traumatic event
Difficulty remembering the event
Problems in relationships and with communication
Dissociating
Mood changes
Problems regulating emotions
Insomnia
Hypervigilance

People who are more likely to experience PTSD are [3]:

Women
People with a history of mental health disorders
People with a low level of education

Treatment for PTSD is widely offered and highly effective [4]. The majority of people complete trauma care programs, too: one study reported that 85% of people finished clinical programs for trauma [5].

What Is Complex Trauma (C-PTSD)?

C-PTSD is a mental health condition that comes from prolonged or repeated exposure to traumatic events. Childhood physical or sexual abuse, human trafficking, and living in active conflict are all common causes of C-PTSD.

C-PTSD symptoms overlap with many PTSD symptoms. However, the core difference between PTSD and C-PTSD is that C-PTSD features ‘disturbances in self-organization’ (DSO) [6]. These are: severe emotion dysregulation, a negative sense of self, and serious disturbances in relationships.

Other symptoms of complex trauma include:

Nightmares, flashbacks, and intrusive thoughts
Avoidance of people and places associated with the trauma
Feeling permanently damaged, guilty, or ashamed about what happened
Emotional outbursts or emotional numbness
Withdrawal from close relationships
Dissociating

C-PTSD is treatable. Similarly to PTSD, treatment is oriented around making the person feel safe and stable before processing trauma. A phase-based approach has been shown to particularly help address the disturbances in self-organization that appear in C-PTSD [7].

How Does Residential Trauma Treatment Work?

How Residential Trauma Treatment Is Structured

Residential treatment removes many of the daily stressors and environmental triggers that interfere with recovery. With 24-hour support, structured therapy, medication management when appropriate, and a consistent routine, patients can focus entirely on healing without the pressures of work, unstable housing, or unsafe relationships.

All residential programs involve staying at a clinical location while undergoing intensive care. However, residential trauma treatment can be delivered in a range of settings, at different intensities. These are:

Acute inpatient hospitalization. The most intensive level, focused on stabilization. Typically lasts between 3-14 days and includes 24-hour medical and psychiatric supervision.
Sub-acute/crisis stabilization units. These don’t require a full hospital admission but still provide intense treatment. Programs typically run 3-14 days.
Non-hospital residential treatment centers. Structured daily therapy without 24-hour medical staff, but with overnight staff for observation. Care is concentrated on skillbuilding and lasts around 30-90 days.
Long-term supported housing or psychiatric rehabilitation. Focused on functional recovery and sometimes social integration. Stays can last many months.

Therapeutic Approaches in Residential Trauma Treatment

Evidence-based therapeutic approaches are an important approach in residential trauma treatment. They help people process trauma, emotionally regulate, lower stress, and form healthy relationships. Commonly-used therapies in residential trauma treatment are:

Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT). Talk therapy to identify and reframe negative thought patterns, and to gradually process traumatic memories.
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). Guided eye movements to process memories around trauma and reduce emotional distress.
Skills Training in Affective and Interpersonal Regulation (STAIR). Practical skills focused on the DSO clusters to manage intense emotions and navigate relationships effectively.
Somatic therapies. Body-based approaches, such as Somatic Experiencing or Dance & Movement Therapy (DMT) to explore how trauma is stored in the nervous system.

Outcomes of Residential Trauma Treatment

Trauma does not have to define the rest of your life. Recovery is possible, and with the right support, many people rediscover safety, confidence, and hope. If PTSD or complex trauma is preventing you from living the life you deserve, residential treatment can be the first step toward lasting healing.

Residential treatment has repeatedly been proven to support people with PTSD and C-PTSD in working toward healthy, confident lives.

Research shows that residential treatment reduces trauma symptoms [8]. It also highlights that psychotherapies such as TF-CBT and EMDR significantly relieve PTSD, depression, anxiety, and dissociation [9]. And a study on STAIR treatment found that only 18% of patients retained symptoms consistent with C-PTSD [10]. Elsewhere, up to 90% of single-trauma victims no longer had PTSD after three 90-minute EMDR sessions [11].

Trauma-Informed Care at Serenity Now, Davis, CA

We offer residential treatment for trauma, including PTSD and C-PTSD. Our center in Davis is a calm environment to heal and reconnect with the healthiest version of yourself. We have a team of licensed medical professionals who guide you through the program, tailoring care at every turn to ensure that you are safe and comfortable.

All our care is trauma-informed. We offer Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, as well as a range of holistic activities that complement treatment and improve your mental and physical health. We supervise you 24/7 while giving you the tools and motivation to develop independence and more positive self-perception.

You deserve serenity. Start your path there today. Contact our admissions team.