Every now and then there seems to be a medical term that slowly loses it's meaning as it integrates into casual usage. These buzz words are chewed up and spit out my the media and socials; altering the medical meaning and invariably ignoring the needs of individuals suffering with the stigma attached to the definition of these terms. I first noticed it with the word anxiety. I was watching "The Hills: New Beginnings," and every episode had at least one character claiming they had anxiety. They couldn't attend an event because it caused them anxiety. They couldn't have a difficult conversation because it was making one of them anxious. I am not one to judge their feelings and gauge if they actually had anxiety, or were feeling stressed out, but I have noticed the word being overused. It is okay to feel stressed and afraid; these are normal human emotions! However, overusing or improper usage of the term "anxiety," can make it lose it's medical meaning, which if you research is quite different than you experience in it's casual use.
Many people live with anxiety and the medical term includes a traumatic relation to the overwhelming feeling. It can be linked to various factors including: financial stress, traumatic historical events in one's life, addiction, depression ...etc.
In newer reality television and on social media I am now noticing the frequent use of the term "triggered" in all it's variations. Again, I am not one to judge how another being is experiencing life; however the fear of this word becoming mainstream is that it will lose it's medical meaning. Essentially turning it into a fad.
When medical terms like this become fads they are often misused and lessen the perceived intensity of those living and learning to actually deal with triggers.
In psychology, triggers are experiences or stimuli that cause someone to relive a traumatic event in some way. The trigger may evoke difficult memories, bring back feelings of helplessness or fear, or cause people to behave in ways they or others do not understand. [...] The reaction is sudden and does not match the situation. -Medical News Today
For example, if a friend buys an item that the other friend wishes they could have, but cannot afford; being upset, sad, or jealous are normal reactions. But they are not triggered. That would be an inappropriate use of the term.
However, if a friend has a baby, which the other individual is incapable of having, despite thousands of dollars, numerous amounts of painful needles, and multiple miscarriages. This is a trigger as it can bring the distressed individual into isolation, locked in past traumatic events, depression...etc. This person is likely unable to shop for a baby shower as seeing the items may be extremely challenging for them and can lead to unsafe coping mechanisms.
Personally, my experience with triggers was a lot of hard work. I used the SMART Recovery tool: ABC It helps me to find the activating event after a lapse, or relapse. I have to ask myself or fill-out the worksheet (in the link above) or simply journal about the event without judgement.
I first take a look at the unsuccessful event in my recovery. As I think about it I assess what made me feel uncomfortable, uneasy, or even traumatized. It is the thing that made me make the less ideal decision in my recovery.
Finding the trigger is the first step. I then need to be aware of my triggers.
For example, every time my boyfriend leaves the house it is a menta cue to do things I really do not want to back to as it brings me a step back in my recovery.
I know this is a trigger and will cause me to do things I don't want to do, make me feel guilty, and be even harder on myself and less recovery-focused. I use this knowledge to practice mindfulness and keep myself busy as he is out of the house.
Awareness is the key that helped me not only identify my triggers, but to be present when I see them, and take positive action towards passing through them. There are many SMART Recovery tools, which helped me find these things to manage my triggers and my urge to immediately respond to them.
I could talk about this all day. But the important thing to remember is that trauma is real, but so is sadness, panic, fear, stress...etc. Dealing with triggers and traumatizing flashbacks is no easy feat. Which is why I try not to use the word too often. I do use it to help my family and supporters to understand things that for reasons I cannot explain, send me into an unexpected experience and sometimes unwanted consequences.
We do not want people who deal with triggers and trauma to feel different, or become annoyed or offended by being overly sensitive. Most people will tell you or their professional supports about triggers. I am notorious for stopping a conversation and asking if it is triggering. I am becoming more, and more aware of this and am beginning to trust that people will tell me if the conversation or activity is getting triggering.
I basically need to worry about my own emotions, but be supportive when people who trust me reach out. :) I am one of the sensitive people, who gets irritated when people perceive triggers for me and try to read my body language. I trust that the more I inform them, the more likely they will better understand my needs; especially as I have a large medical team helping me through my mental health needs.
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