Sexual trauma encompasses a range of experiences that can have profound and lasting effects on an individual's mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Here are some examples of sexual trauma:

1. Childhood Sexual Abuse: Any sexual activity with a child, including fondling, penetration, and exposing a child to sexual acts or materials. This can be perpetrated by family members, caregivers, or strangers.

2. Rape: Non-consensual sexual intercourse, which can occur through physical force, threats, or manipulation. This can happen to anyone regardless of age, gender, or relationship to the perpetrator.

3. Sexual Assault: Any non-consensual sexual act, including groping, fondling, or unwanted touching. This can happen in various settings, such as at home, work, or social gatherings.

4. Intimate Partner Sexual Violence: Sexual acts committed by a partner without consent, often occurring in the context of an abusive relationship. This can include marital rape and coercion.

5. Sexual Harassment: Unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature. This can happen in the workplace, schools, or other social settings.

6. Sex Trafficking: The exploitation of individuals through force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of commercial sex acts. Victims can be trafficked by strangers or people they know.

7. Revenge Porn and Non-consensual Pornography: The distribution of explicit images or videos without the consent of the person depicted, often as a form of harassment or retaliation.

8. Sexual Exploitation: Taking advantage of a person for sexual purposes, often involving a power differential, such as a teacher and student, employer and employee, or therapist and client.

10. Sexual Coercion: Persuading or pressuring someone to engage in sexual activities against their will, using emotional manipulation, threats, or blackmail.

Understanding these examples helps to shed light on the diverse and pervasive nature of sexual trauma. Each type of trauma can lead to a range of emotional, psychological, and physical symptoms, requiring compassionate and specialized care.

Our therapists are trained in ART (Accelerated Resolution Therapy) which is an empirically supported trauma approach for sexual trauma

What is sexual trauma?