What is My Trauma Type?

POSITIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE FOUR FS

Fight

Flight

Freeze

Fawn

Assertiveness

Disengagement

Acute Awareness

Love & Service

Boundaries

Healthy Retreat

Mindfulness

Compromise

Courage

Industriousness

Poised Readiness

Listening

Moxie

Know-How

Peace

Fairness

Leadership

Perserverance

Presence

Peacemaking

Those who are repetitively traumatized often learn to survive by over-using one or two of the
4F responses (Fight, Flight, Freeze, and Fawn). The following chart compares the harmful
behaviors of each of the 4Fs. Real or imagined danger (anxiety states) typically triggers us
into these roles and behaviors - by developing your own awareness of your preferred 4F type
- you can begin to understand why anxiety compels you to act in certain ways and make
conscious efforts to change these behaviors, recognizing that they are not indicative of
something being wrong with you.
DETRIMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE 4F DEFENSES
Fight

Flight

Freeze

Fawn

Narcissistic

Obsessive/Compulsive

Dissociative

Codependent

Explosive

Panicky

Contracting

Obsequious

Controlling

Rushing or Worrying

Hiding

Servitude

Entitlement

Driven-ness

Isolation

Loss of Self

Type - A

Adrenaline Junkie

Couch Potato

People-pleaser

Bully

Busyholic

Space case

Doormat

Autocrat

Micromanager

Hermit

Slave

Demands Perfection

Compelled to
Perfectionism

Achievment-Phobic

Social Perfectionism

Conduct Disorder

ADHD

ADD

Parentified Child

Reference: Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving. Pete Walker. 2013