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The definition and understanding of trauma has expanded over time.

Calling every hardship traumatic dilutes the meaning of the term.

Normal, manageable adversity can foster resilience, strengthen relationships, and build coping skills.

Painful experiences don't need a clinical label to be real, valid, and worthy of empathy and support.

Is a child being excluded from a group of friends during a sleepover traumatic? Is getting fired from a job, tripping on the stairs at a conference, being broken up with by a long-term partner, being put on the spot during a meeting, or a parent being late to school pickup traumatic?

Some people will say yes, some will say no, some will argue they need more information, and many will say that they don’t even know what the word “traumatic” means anymore.

The clinical definition of “trauma” has evolved over time, and it now coexists (or perhaps competes) with an increasingly expansive colloquial usage. As a result, we risk overusing this term and thus diminishing its meaning and power.

The definition of “trauma” isn’t as straightforward as one might think. In the DSM-5-TR, a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) requires exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence. This includes directly experiencing an event, witnessing it, or certain forms of indirect exposure, such as learning that a close family member died violently. It’s a necessary criterion that must be met for someone to be diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

However, “trauma” is also used more broadly in psychology to mean an........

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