Trauma is the emotional response/distress caused by a traumatic event or events that a person has experienced in their lifetime and is marked by a ‘sense of horror, helplessness, serious injury, or threat of injury or death’ (according to the CDC). We all know there is trauma out there, we all know that most of us have experienced some type of trauma or traumatic experience in our lifetimes. But what exactly are the types of trauma and how do I tell the difference? There are three types, or categories, of trauma and they are acute, chronic, and complex. We are going to break each of these down below and show examples and appropriate therapies for each.
Acute trauma comes from a one-time, single incident, non-recurring traumatic event and is known as Acute Stress Disorder in the ICD (International Classification of Diseases). Examples of this type of trauma include sexual assault, car accident, injury, natural disasters, witness to a violent event, and death of a loved one. These are events that do not continually recur in one’s life and the response/distress caused by these types of events are short lived (lasting approximately one month). Some of the types of therapy that can help with acute trauma are psychotherapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), trauma-focused CBT, Critical Incident Stress Debriefing/Management (CISD/CISM) and group psychotherapy.
Chronic trauma comes from repeated or prolonged traumatic events (usually abuse, happening over and over) and is known as PTSD or chronic PTSD in the ICD. Examples of this type of trauma include bullying, intimate partner violence/abuse (physical/sexual/emotional), and poverty. These are events that have occurred for a lengthy amount of time and the response/distress caused by these types of events are longer lived than acute trauma and last anywhere from 3 months to more than 50 years. Some of the types of therapy that can help with chronic trauma are Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Cognitive Therapy, Prolonged Exposure, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Hypnotherapy, Stress Inoculation Training (SIT), Internal Family Systems (IFS)
Complex trauma comes from exposure to multiple, chronic, or prolonged traumatic events over time that are invasive and interpersonal in nature affecting future relationships and is known as C-PTSD in the ICD. Examples of this type of trauma include childhood abuse, neglect, or abandonment, domestic violence, being in cults, lack of secure attachments, sexual assault, extreme financial instability (poverty), homelessness, war-related experiences, foster care, substance use, and repeated/ongoing medical emergencies. These are events that have occurred in childhood or over long periods of time in adulthood and the response/distress caused by these types of events can last a lifetime due to the developmental changes to the brain and personality. Some of the types of therapy that can help with complex trauma are Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Cognitive Therapy, Prolonged Exposure, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Hypnotherapy, Stress Inoculation Training (SIT), Internal Family Systems (IFS)