Exotrauma is a catch-all for traumatic experiences that did not occur in this universe/life, but still affect a person negatively. It was coined by the Glitter System, an OSDD system of trauma survivors. The word is a combination of the prefix exo- (meaning external) and the word trauma.
Examples of people who may use the word exotrauma to describe their experiences include:
- Fictives
- Soulbonds
- Otherkin (not necessarily system related, but may use the term)
- Factives
- Walk-ins
- Exotraumagenic systems
Controversy
The concept of exotrauma has gained a somewhat controversial reputation within the Tumblr multiplicity community due to some members of traumagenic systems believing that it trivializes the experiences of people who have experienced trauma in this life.[1]
On the other hand, those who defend exotrauma say that people who have had this experience are making a space of their own to define their experiences, and there is no reason to say that it is inappropriate for this term to exist and be used.