I know it’s Sunday, but I was just wondering if anyone could let me know when we’re ready to talk about the difference between being triggered (as a trauma response) and ‘feeling uncomfortable/sad engaging with certain topics’. No rush. Hugs and kisses.

You know, when I get triggered, it takes a couple of days, sometimes weeks, to get over. I’m instantly frozen, unable to function. My brain re-experiences the trauma from my past. I feel immensely sick and helpless. Sometimes I get panic attacks and cry so hard I think I’m dying.

I can always feel it in my body afterwards. Like I’m emotionally sore. I always feel so weak and fragile when it has happened because being triggered in itself is traumatising. And we then have to take a few steps back in therapy, because some of the work has to be repeated.

I have never been triggered by a troll, an internet comment or anything like that. That’s just me though. I am certain that it *does* happen. I just maybe perhaps also feel like there is a chance that sometimes people mean ‘I feel uncomfortable’ when they say ‘I am triggered’.

And again, whenever we are ready to talk about this - the difference and why it’s important - I’d love to hear what people have to say. You know, especially when we have these studies that seem to show that trigger warnings don’t actually make a difference.

And some people even claim that trigger warnings make things worse, as it gives people a false sense of security when actually no spaces are safe spaces as long as humans are involved. I just think it’s interesting and can’t wait till we can all have a chat about it.

It’s not about forcing people to be uncomfortable and saying, ‘DEAL WITH IT, SNOWFLAKE.’

It’s about checking that trigger warnings aren’t actually being harmful. And making sure that trigger warnings don’t make it less accessible for neurodiverse & mentally ill folks.

I know my friends’ triggers. One is a specific piece of furniture that she was looking at as she experienced something horrible. One is a specific fruit. One is a specific holiday. Mine is a think most people do or talk about every day.

I know people who have experienced awful things and when looking for a place to talk about it, people who *have not* experienced that thing, have demanded a trigger warning. And the OP has always been like, ‘Fuck you, it’s MY experience. I didn’t get a warning beforehand.’

And yes, ‘triggered’ also means ‘provokes a negative feeling’. Which is why maybe we should figure out if THAT does require a trigger warning. You know what provokes a negative feeling? Acknowledging your privilege. Being called out. Hearing about tragic world events.

Things we all need to do in order to be better people who do better things. And so far, we don’t have a list of which negative feelings one should be allowed to ignore and which ones we should be forced to face.

The first time I heard radical activists talk about the problem with trigger warnings, it was because it had come up that a large number of white people used them to ignore posts about racism. And questions were raised about trigger warnings and who they actually help.

If someone does a post about having experienced fatphobia, I appreciate the trigger warning. Reading it would have made me feel sad. But I’d happily read it and feel sad if I knew that thin people wouldn’t get a chance to ignore it.

Because fatphobia makes me feel bad - but it doesn’t trigger me. I’m over it in a couple of seconds, sometimes a bit longer. And what would really help was if thin people learned what it was like to be fat and then actually did better.

Because if (insert act of oppression) triggers you, you’d never watch TV, listen to music, talk to strangers or walk down the street. Most of that shit is subtle. So do we draw the line when an oppressed person talks about their experience being oppressed?

I don’t know what the right answer is. These are just thoughts and things I have heard. And my gut feeling says there’s something in it. But my gut also tells me to not clean my house today so I know it’s fucking with me. Anyways can’t wait till we’re ready for this chat.