a trigger
- gives you flashbacks of traumatic events
- sends you into an agonizing panic attack
- makes your heart skip beats from sheer terror
it does not
- mildly offend you
- make you feel uncomfortable
- gross you out
- make you angry
are we fucking done here
I’d just like to come back at this from another perspective. I’ve been trying to work out how to word this for months and this is the best I can do.
Anxiety/panic/PTSD triggers are not the same as self-destruction triggers (self-injury/suicide/eating disorder, as examples), and they don’t have the same effects, but they are both real and valid and need to be respected.
If I’m triggered I won’t have flashbacks or a panic attack. Instead I get self-destructive thoughts and impulses or will become numb and unable to move or speak or think. These reactions may or may not be immediate or overwhelming and they may or may not affect my ability to carry on normally in that moment (because triggers can be mild or severe, and my response can be immediate or delayed) but they are difficult and distressing and can leave me in danger.
Please don’t describe your experience as the universal and only definition and dismiss others’ experiences.
(Source: speedwagonfoundation, via cream-and-stars)
![betterthandarkchocolate:
[TW: self harm, cutting]
virginx:
your-recovery-is-possible:
I love this so much.
Once, my friend found out I cut he couldn’t stop staring at my wrists. Then he asked “If you cut, where are all your scars?” I responded with “You know, there are other parts of your body that you can harm…” He was shocked.
People do not just cut their wrists, people cut their legs. People cut their hips. People cut their stomachs. People cut their chests. People cut their shoulders. You can cut anywhere and nobody seems to understand that.
this](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mb08ooM7hg1rf3pxio1_500.jpg)
