What is a trigger?

I Work with Stressed Out Professional Women

Licensed in Massachusetts & New Hampshire
Rachel C. Sykes, LMHC, LLC
Rachel@rachelcsykes.com

Snow

I woke up to more snow this morning.  Not just me, of course but I am talking about just me right now.  So, for me, snow is a bad thing-it reminds me of shoveling the driveway as a child.  Our driveway had a little hill, then turns into a large circular driveway that accommodates lots of cars.  It took hours to shovel and it was always a drama.  It hurt, too.  I had a bad injury when I was a kid and my back has literally hurt since then.  Not at every single moment but probably every single day. 

Therefore, when I wake up to bright, shiny sun flooding through my bedroom window, I have a negative reaction.  I can admit that the snow is objectively pretty and know that my husband will take care of the shoveling/snow blowing duties but, without fail, my first reaction to seeing snow is to get upset-irritated, a little angry, and it feels like it comes out of the blue.  So, despite intellectually KNOWING otherwise, it bothers me. 

s(hoveling) + b(ack) * p(roblems) = m(iserable)

WHEN I SEE SNOW, I THINK THIS

Photo by Erik Mclean on Unsplash

Does it create a real problem for me?  Well, not really.  Not unless my husband goes on strike and I am somehow forced to cope with snow shoveling myself.  We once had a big snowfall when my husband was out of town on business and I had to cope with it myself but sucked it up and was able to do it.  Typically, when I feel triggered in this way, it is a momentary flare-up but I am pretty well able to move forward. 

What if triggers create a real problem?

For some people, these types of trigger responses are actually much harder to navigate.  The emotions, associated memories and fearful thoughts are so huge that it really disrupts their ability to function.  For some, the experience is so overwhelming, it is difficult for them to grasp what stimulus is triggering their reaction. This experience can negatively impact relationships, functioning at work, performance at school, etc. Sometimes, this negative experience is compounded by the triggered person’s embarrassment, as they are generally unable to prevent the response, despite really wanting to change.  Given that a trigger is often based on one’s personal experience, others who witness a trigger response are probably unlikely to understand what is going on, sometimes making the situation more complicated.

What causes a trigger reaction?

In my experience, trigger is caused by some type of traumatic experience. This can be something significant and distinct, such as a car accident, or a series of smaller incidents that have become debilitating over time.  My example of being triggered by unexpectedly seeing snow is a relatively minor trauma but hey, it’s still with me after decades of winters.

I believe one of the qualities that makes a difficult experience actually traumatic is the lack of context.  The traumatizing experience is often unexpected or is otherwise outside the normal bounds of expectations.  Because the experience is so distressing, those experiencing it have difficulty even finding the words to describe it, and sometimes push down the trauma, trying to act as if it never happened.  Sometimes, one is able to ignore the problem for some time but it seems to find a way to force itself back into one’s awareness.  When one encounter something that reminds them of the trauma, it may act as a trigger, prompting a reaction to the original traumatizing experience. 

triggers

Photo by Rodion Kutsaiev on Unsplash

What can be done about triggers?

Well, there are a lot of possible ways to treat this.  Some people may respond well to talking about the experience.  For people who relate to verbal processing (otherwise known as talking), sometimes putting the experience into words provides the context to allow the brain to transform the inexplicable experience into something more normal, and the experience can be stored in memory like everything else.  Does it make the memory pleasant?  Nope, of course not.  However, it can make the memory less intrusive and hopefully prompt fewer triggering responses. 

One particular type of traditional talk therapy is called narrative therapy which uses the metaphor of story telling to conceive of self and one’s place in the world.  This approach can allow a person to incorporate the traumatic experience into the narrative of their life and shape their trajectory forward through words.  I really like this one!  Another talk-based approach that I like is called internal family systems (IFS) and uses a “parts-based” metaphor to conceptualize the self. For some, this perspective allows them to become more aware of the “parts of oneself” that appear to be behaving in conflict and sometimes take actions that appear contrary to one’s best interests. 

For others, only talking doesn’t make things better.  In these situations, another avenue to consider is finding somatic or body-based approaches.  One of my favorite go-to somatic approaches is called Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) where the primary tool is tapping.  Simple and surprisingly effective, at least for some and can be used for conditions other than trauma like anxiety.  Other meaningful approaches include mindful yoga, walk and talk therapy (walking outside with therapist while talking about stuff), and other mindfulness-based approaches.  Another approach is called EMDR, which stands for Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing therapy.  This approach is characterized by following repetitive eye movements through use of lights, sounds, or other stimuli to help process trauma. (I am seriously considering taking a training in this approach perhaps this spring but I haven’t yet signed up.) 

This is certainly not an exhaustive list of all ways to process trauma to lessen one’s trigger responses but I personally feel optimistic that there are multiple possibilities.  I hope that a reader of this blog may at least become aware that practitioners in this field recognize the challenge of overcoming trauma and are vigorously pursuing novel, new treatments.

Questions?

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email: Rachel@rachelcsykes.com
phone: 781-630-4670

* I am licensed to work in Massachusetts and New Hampshire