AVOIDING TRIGGERS ISN’T THE SAME AS HEALING

Understanding the difference between avoiding triggers and true healing.

Audrey Vivian
ILLUMINATION
2 min readNov 3, 2023

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Skipping triggers isn't the same as recovery.. Photo by Usman Yousaf on Unsplash.

Understanding what triggers are:

Triggers are stimuli or situations that often evoke strong emotional responses usually from past traumas or difficult experiences. They range from specific places, and people, as well as certain words or actions. Triggers can come from marriage, relationships, jobs, etc. Understanding and handling triggers is very vital. For many individuals, avoiding triggers usually seems like a logical strategy to maintain emotional stability. However, while this guidance on avoiding triggers is crucial in managing immediate trouble or distress but then it’s imperative to understand that avoiding triggers doesn’t entail true healing. A life dedicated to avoidance of triggers has the tendency to become extremely limiting. It leads to isolation, an overall sense of fear and anxiety, and missed opportunities. It perpetuates a cycle of avoidance and dependency instead of fostering growth and resilience.

Understanding the path to true healing:

True healing involves facing and processing the underlying emotional wounds and traumas. It requires introspection, self-awareness and often seeking professional assistance when necessary. True healing is painful and challenging but then, it’s the only way to find a lasting relief from the grip of triggers. One of the key aspects of healing is learning to reframe and reform our relationships with triggers. Instead of fearing them, we can work towards understanding and coping with them in a healthy way. This transformation allows us to regain control over our lives, build resilience, and develop healthier responses to triggers.

Avoiding triggers and taking them as healing is akin to putting a band-aid on a wound without cleaning and treating it properly. Doing so will only provide temporary relief but doesn’t facilitate true healing. Avoiding triggers is a short-term coping mechanism, it should never be mistaken for genuine healing. True healing involves confronting our emotional wounds, understanding their origins, and working to overcome them. By so doing, we break free from the cycle of trigger avoidance and move towards a more fulfilling and emotionally balanced life.

Stop running away from your triggers, embrace them. It’s a guide to true healing because triggers are only mere teachers sent to us by the universe to help us learn and unlearn things.

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Audrey Vivian
ILLUMINATION

A poet, LinkedIn writer, public speaker and a content creator. Support, join and enjoy my writing @LinkedIn.com/Vivian Omeokwe and on medium.com/@prettyviv109