What are triggers and how do I know if I have one?

Triggers are something that immediately reminds you of a certain unpleasant memory or emotion. They could be anything like specific words, smells, songs or even objects. You can find out if you have a trigger by taking note of when you get your triggers, what you were around (as in hearing, smelling, feeling, tasting and seeing), what was happening during the time and why you possibly got them. Over some time(maybe a month or even a year, it’s different for everyone and it’s okay to take your time), you will see the patterns in the results. Then you can avoid getting triggered if you know what your triggers are and how you get them.

Thank you for the interesting question! Triggers can be characterized as memories, sensations or emotions that bring back a previous traumatic or frightening experience to someone. Exercising can be an example of a physiological sensation in which your heart starts pounding, hands getting sweaty and you become dizzy. This sensation might remind you of the time you were running away from an abusive partner which is an internal sensation. Everyone experiences triggers differently but those are just a few things that could happen when you do become triggered and I thank you for being open about this. EMDR therapy is one type of modality used to resolve unprocessed traumatic memories in the brain in those experiencing PTSD, depression or anxiety. You are welcome to speak to one of our listeners or therapists to explore your thoughts and feelings further. Mindfulness as well as self-help guides are available on our site too.

Emotional triggers are people, words, opinions, situations, or environmental situations that provoke an intense and excessive emotional reaction within us. Common emotions that we experience while being triggered include anger, rage, sadness, and fear. Virtually anything can trigger us, depending on our beliefs, values, and earlier life experiences such as a tone of voice, a type of person, a particular viewpoint, a single word – anything can be a trigger. Trembling Palpitations/racing heart Choking feeling or trouble breathing/swallowing Hot flushes Chills Dizziness or faintness Nausea Chest pain/discomfort Feeling of detachment/unreality (known as dissociation) Sweating and of course a few seconds afterward… Intense emotions, i.e. hatred, disgust, anger, fear, terror, grief resulting in self-protective behavior such as shouting, arguing, insulting, hiding, crying, or otherwise emotionally reacting.

Triggers are negative stimuli that affect a person's cognitive, emotive, behaviours and psychological well-being. They serve as antecedents to the situation the person finds themselves in and influences the consequences of their behaviour. To know if you have any triggers, notice if any stimuli in your environment affects the way to you perceive that stimuli and then notice how it changes your thoughts, emotions and behaviours in response to exposure to that stimuli. For example, a car honk can be a negative stimuli to someone who has had a previous bad experience with cars or car honks. So, when the person hears the car honk they might get anxious, start sweating or breath heavily, have racing thoughts.

If you have ever felt a strong, seemingly disproportionate, visceral, physical and/or emotional reaction to something that does not ordinarily cause that type of a response in most people, then you may have a trigger. The definition of a trigger depends on who you ask, but mostly there are three ways in which people refer to triggers. In terms of the medical diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, a trigger is something which recalls in the individual the original trauma suffered. This trigger often causes a reaction as if that person were physically back in the time and place that they originally experienced the trauma in, and they may react emotionally, or physically, as if that were true. However, the word "trigger" is also sometimes used for other medical diagnoses, such as anxiety or panic attacks, to mean a stimulus that causes an individual to experience symptoms of those diagnoses, i.e. to cause them to have anxiety or experience panic attacks. Colloquially, and in pop culture, people have caught on to references of "triggers" and now use the word "trigger" to mean a variety of things, ranging from its actual medical use (i.e. "the sound of fireworks has been identified as a trigger for her because it triggers her symptoms, since it is reminiscent of the sound of the explosions that occurred in her hometown") to anything than makes someone slightly uncomfortable (i.e. "that outfit is so last season, I feel triggered"). It is important to use the words "trigger" and "triggered" judiciously and compassionately, as they have different meanings in different contexts, and using these words lightly may make people who suffer with medical and/or mental health conditions exacerbated by triggers feel invalidated, alienated, minimized, or marginalized.

A trigger can be one of many things such as an action, sound, smell or any number of other things. It generally is thought of as bad/negative and that is what is talked about most of the time. It can be almost anything that brings up strong memories or feelings. In the case of bad or negative triggers, it can bring back negative thoughts or emotions such as fear, anxiety, anger, sadness. When a person is presented with the trigger it can seem like they are back almost reliving that negative experience. Often it can be hard to know about a trigger until a person comes in contact with it. They may also knowingly or unknowingly avoid the trigger to not experience it. The best way I could think to know is when you read the description above did anything come to mind that would bring up those kinds of strong emotions.

Triggers are experiences/fears that come up whenever you are in certain situations. These fears usually have underlying insecurities surrounding them. For example, when someone compliments you and you think they are lying. This is because you have an underlying experience where you felt not important, unworthy, and the like, so it becomes difficult to think otherwise in the future. You can tell that you have one when your reaction to an event is not based on facts but based on memories which to you might feel like facts. For example, if a friend tells you they are busy but what you interpret is that they don't value you. This could be a trigger.

Triggers are past wounds that we haven't healed, sometimes when in situations that remind us of the unhealed wound it can trigger a response within us such as; Fight, Flight or Freeze. You may notice that you have a trigger if you find yourself experiencing one of those responses to something you've seen, heard or experiencing. Triggers can bring up feelings from that past wound and be difficult to manage, it is important to work through our triggers in order to heal from past events. If you are experiencing this, it may be helpful to connect to a Listener here at 7 Cups for some support.

Triggers are episodes where you find yourself reliving a traumatic event. when I am triggered I can visualize certain scenes of myself in the event. I go into a Fight or Flight mode and I feel short of breath and my heart races and I have to get out of that place but I am frozen or feel paralyzed. I certain words, watching tv, and seeing find many things that can trigger me. Smells, certain sounds, even tv mostly can trigger me, certain words or people's faces can send me back into remembering. When you are Triggered you will know it because you go back to the place in your head and certain things come to the front of your mind about what happened.

Triggers are different external situations or events that cause an emotional response, usually a negative and uncomfortable one, that reminds us of past traumas. I find that listening to our own heads and bodies is one of the best ways to know what triggers us. Then, taking a step back and allowing ourselves to become curious (of course, assuming we are in a safe place to do so) and asking questions such as what and where do we feel it in our bodies and, when we feel ready, try to identify the root and the steps we can take to create new automatic responses to them.