Triggers are strong emotions that overwhelm our ability to listen effectively and think clearly. They are essentially emotional memories that are partly from the past and partly from the present, and are difficult to unravel and separate. Here are the top ten “F” words to remember when triggered.
- Fight – when triggered we feel a need to fight back. This often makes it worse.
- Flight – sometimes it is better to avoid the issue. If the issue is important, it will return though.
- Freeze – sometimes we don’t know what to do. We need time before we take action.
- Fix – sometimes we try to fix it. Trying to fix someone without their help is impossible.
- Figure it out – sometimes we dwell on it. This may lead to overthinking.
- Forget it – sometimes we try to put it out of our mind. This may make us afraid of the problem.
- Fouls – making someone else responsible for solutions. This may lead to co-dependence.
- Feel – don’t be afraid to feel emotions, any emotion.
- Future – after feeling the emotions for as long as you need to (until it loses intensity), start focusing on future options instead of trying to change the past.
- Follow-up – it is easy to put it out of your mind once feelings subside, but if we don’t make changes, patterns continue.
What does the Bible say about triggers?
