The Body as an Ally Vs an Enemy

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4 F types

What are the 4F types?

Complex PTSD expert and psychotherapist Pete Walker coined the term F types. These terms describe the different trauma responses that the body will use as an adaptation to survive when under severe amounts of threat or continual stress triggers.

Looking at humans as mammals, they have natural responses to threat, which will usually manifest as the instinct to run from or fight the threat. However, given social conditioning, often we aren’t able to complete the reflexive response in our body.

There is a charge of energy built up in the body that is bio-chemical due to the urgency to flee or fight. Often we are unable to do either. For example it’s not realistic to run from your boss or fight your taxes. The modern man will accumulate stress in the fascia, affecting the nervous system, digestive system, and overall mental state.

You can look at these responses, as reflexive action that your nervous system is equipped with to protect you in moments of high stress. When the threat or stress has been repeated overtime this results in accumulation of tension in the body as there is no way to dispel the energy socially appropriated.

It can also occur in conditions where we have a little to no knowledge or resources of how to manage such stress.

What is interesting is an event or circumstance that is stressful to one person may not be to another given the tools or support they received in their formative years, as well durning the stressful event. Trauma happens in isolation.

Complex PTSD differs from PTSD as it is a result of repeated trauma over years. Where as PTSD is categorised as a singular event.

Wether you have a diagnosis of Complex Post Traumatic Stress or not, our modern world often doesn’t leave much room for dispelling negative emotion.

Many of these stress responses are not problematic in and of themselves until they become a direct and default state in which we operate.

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