how neurotypicals think triggers work
i had a traumatic experience but i’m 100% fine and never think about it
unless i see a neurotypical-approved trigger
then i will remember it all of a sudden and have a horrible panic attack
how triggers actually work
i had a traumatic experience and the long-time effects of trauma influence my life every day
seriously, no one forgets about a traumatic experience
(unless they repress those memories completely)
a trigger is something that makes those memories resurface
triggers can be anything; words, phrases, smells, symbols, colours,
things that seem ridiculous to you
but to me have a connection to my traumatic experience that i am not obligated to explain just because you think i’m “tossing the word trigger around like it’s nothing”
reactions to triggers can range from slight discomfort to severe panic attacks;
none of these reactions are less valid because they’re not ‘bad enough’
my general mental health influences how i respond to a trigger.
the same trigger might not bother me on a good day but make me suffer from paranoia and anxiety on a bad day. it is still always a trigger.
veterans are not the only ones suffering from ptsd. “war” is not the only real trigger.
mocking triggers (no matter how silly they seem to you) means mocking and disrespecting everyone who had a traumatic experience
and everyone who asks people to tag triggers because they don’t want the memories to resurface more than they already do anyway
you’re not my therapist. you have no say in what triggers me and how i am supposed to deal with that.
so if i ask people to tag penguins,
but don’t feel comfortable telling everyone that the reason for this is that they are my abuser’s favourite animals which they often talked about
(when they weren’t hitting me, locking me up and letting me starve, and telling me i deserve it),
you have absolutely no right to make fun of that
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