Beachcomber expands addiction care with trauma therapy

By AI, Created 6:35 PM UTC, May 19, 2026, /AGP/ – Beachcomber Rehabilitation added trauma therapist Eric Bricker, LMHC, to its clinical team and now offers trauma therapy across its residential and intensive outpatient programs in Delray Beach, Boynton Beach and Fort Lauderdale. The move is meant to address grief and trauma alongside substance use, which Beachcomber says can help reduce relapse risk.

Why it matters: - Beachcomber is tying trauma treatment directly to addiction care, not saving grief work for later. - The change affects clients across the full continuum of care, from residential treatment in Delray Beach to intensive outpatient programs in Boynton Beach and Fort Lauderdale. - Beachcomber is positioning the expanded service as a response to relapse drivers that often persist after detox or early sobriety.

What happened: - Beachcomber Rehabilitation added Eric Bricker, LMHC, CAP, EMDR, as its new trauma therapist. - Trauma therapy is now available at all three Beachcomber locations: Beachcomber Rehabilitation in Delray Beach, Beachcomber IOP in Boynton Beach and Beachcomber IOP in Fort Lauderdale. - The service is integrated into Beachcomber’s addiction treatment programs. - Beachcomber said the goal is to help clients address grief, loss and trauma that can keep recovery stalled.

The details: - Beachcomber says unresolved trauma, prolonged grief and unaddressed loss are major relapse drivers. - The organization said unresolved grief and trauma have long complicated recovery, especially during the first year. - Beachcomber pointed to the American Psychiatric Association’s addition of Prolonged Grief Disorder to the DSM-5-TR in March 2022 as part of the broader shift in how clinicians view grief treatment. - Eric Bricker will lead grief and trauma process groups that give clients a structured, paced setting to work through grief history. - Those groups cover grief tied to the loss of loved ones, lost dreams and the loss of the addictive lifestyle itself. - Beachcomber said concurrent treatment of substance misuse and prolonged grief is a meaningful predictor of sustained recovery.

Between the lines: - The addition reflects a wider treatment model that treats trauma as a core clinical issue rather than a separate aftercare topic. - Beachcomber is also signaling that its outpatient and residential programs are meant to work together, so clients can keep trauma treatment consistent as care intensity changes. - Jim Bryan, executive director of Beachcomber Rehabilitation, said too many clients get sober and then cycle back because grief, loss and trauma were never processed. - Bryan said bringing in a dedicated trauma specialty and Bricker’s experience gives clients a chance to address what sits beneath addiction.

What’s next: - Beachcomber clients can now access dedicated trauma therapy while enrolled in residential or outpatient care. - The organization is likely to use the expanded offering as part of its broader trauma-informed treatment approach across its recovery continuum. - Beachcomber directs prospective clients to schedule an assessment.

The bottom line: - Beachcomber is broadening addiction treatment to include trauma and prolonged grief as active parts of recovery, not side issues.