What is Trauma? Here are Ten Possible Types

As humans, every one of us will go through some form of a traumatic experience at some point. These can range from mildly embarrassing moments to more serious issues like bullying, violence, or neglect.

Generalized events like natural disasters can also produce traumatic symptoms. The experience of trauma depends on one’s perception of the event. Being in a potentially life-threatening situation can produce symptoms of trauma even if nothing dangerous actually occurred (nearly getting into a car accident, for example).

What is Trauma? 10 Types Defined

Here are 10 types of trauma and their most common symptoms. If you’ve ever wondered, “What is trauma?” or you’ve been through an experience that has seemed traumatic, the following list might help you to identify it.

1. Sexual Assault or Abuse

The definition of this category is any sexual behavior toward another person that they don’t want, are too young to consent to, or are forced to participate in. Some examples of this type of behavior are fondling, genital contact, penetration, groping, forced kissing, and/or exposure to inappropriate sexual material or environments.

This includes behavior such as a father who walks around unclothed in front of adolescent children or being exposed to pornography without consent.

Unwanted sexual contact between minors, as well as online exploitation such as “revenge porn,” are both included in this category. This also includes any minor child being sexually exploited by an adult, including for child pornography or prostitution.

2. Physical Assault or Abuse

How do we define physical assault or abuse? This means any time pain is inflicted on another person. This can be in the form of beatings (with or without weapons), bruising, stabbing, shooting, burning, etc. It can range from adults abusing children to children abusing other children. Normal roughhousing is not included in this category.

3. Emotional Abuse

Emotional abuse is closely related to verbal abuse and includes behaviors such as insults, threats, bullying, terrorizing, or controlling behaviors. Other types of emotional abuse are making unreasonable demands, trying to make the victim feel crazy (this is known as gaslighting), and neglecting the victim emotionally (often by ignoring them or avoiding eye contact) in order to cause a fear of abandonment.

4. Neglect

Neglect is defined as withholding necessary care for the needs of someone else, including food, clothing, shelter, or medical care. Although children are most often the victims of neglect, this type of trauma can occur to someone of any age. If a caregiver has the ability to meet a need for someone’s health or welfare but chooses to withhold it, this is considered neglect.

5. Domestic Violence

Domestic violence takes place in the home among family members or other occupants. It includes threats of violence as well as the violence itself, which can be physical, emotional, and/or sexual in nature. Witnesses, especially children, who are helpless to stop the violence, are also considered to be victims.

6. Serious Accidents or Illness

Another source of trauma is events outside of our control, such as serious accidents (car accidents, fire, or injuries) or sickness. Distressing or painful medical procedures can also cause symptoms of trauma, especially for children.

7. War-Related Trauma

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a well-known phrase that describes the effects of wartime trauma on returning military personnel.

Others who experience war-related trauma include refugees and civilians in war zones. These people may have experienced or witnessed bombings, shootings, and being forced to leave their homes. Many families have to flee their houses, regions, or countries due to escalating violence and danger.

8. Natural or Manmade Disasters

These disasters often cause symptoms of trauma and include events such as wildfires, earthquakes, mudslides, floods, hurricanes, wildfires, etc.

9. School Violence

In today’s society, we are unfortunately well aware of the trauma of school shootings and the danger of people bringing weapons into schools to kill others.

10. Bullying and Workplace Mobbing

Bullying is generally perpetrated by a child or a group of children who assert power over the victim.

Workplace mobbing is a form of “bullying on steroids,” where a group of coworkers joins together to “collude in a relentless campaign of psychological terror against a hapless target” (refer to Bullying at Work: Workplace Mobbing is on the Rise by Sophie Henshaw). Most targets of workplace mobbing are female and tend to be well-educated and competent.

Christian Counseling for Trauma Recovery

These ten examples of traumatic experiences demonstrate that multiple situations can lead to post-traumatic stress symptoms. If you’ve experienced one or more of these situations, know that there is hope.

Professional therapy offers several techniques to process trauma and see an improvement in symptoms. One of the most promising techniques is EDMR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), which can help victims work through any of these types of trauma.

Please reach out for help if you’re experiencing post-traumatic symptoms. Experienced Christian counselors have seen many types of trauma and have been able to use EDMR therapy to help victims process their pain. They have seen firsthand the helpful and hopeful results therapy can give. Don’t hesitate to call today.