The complexities of fear often cripple individuals. Unique circumstances can provoke actions; actions lead to consequences for many; some more than others; actions that are oftentimes traumatic. Traumas frequently echo from trauma triggers and are often products of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
In recent years, a concept called trigger warnings—announcements that warn about likely distressing content—has made its way into our culture. Debates and studies for and against these warnings have been crowded and varied with some often mocking, dismissing, and shaming trauma-suffering individuals instead of affording them the benefit of empathy and compassion for requesting trigger warnings. Ongoing studies will ferret out the facts and lead us to progress in helping those that undergo such agonizing trauma.
The history of trigger warnings started in feminist groups examing violence against women.
"Out on the far end of the agreement machine, feminist writers and academics defended the use of trigger warnings, and tried to explain their utility and their history. The modern iteration of “trigger warning,” or “TW,” as it’s commonly written, came out of the feminist blogosphere, and, like many other terms used within insular, politically active communities, addressed a specific need. Roughly ten years ago, editors at feminist and progressive Web sites realized that they needed a way of encouraging frank and candid conversation about sexual assault without catching readers unaware. Many survivors of sexual assault experience symptoms of post-traumatic stress; graphic depictions of rape or violent attacks can trigger flashbacks, nightmares, and crippling anxiety. The editors theorized that a warning posted before disturbing narratives could allow readers to prepare for what might be an upsetting but, ultimately, necessary conversation.
“Censorship was never the point,” Alexandra Brodsky, an editor at the Web site Feministing, told me. “We knew that violent and traumatic narratives could have a grave effect on the reader, so we, working together as a community, created guideposts for people to navigate what has always been a tricky terrain.” Those guideposts helped. Trigger warnings “made people feel like they could write explicitly and honestly about things that they may have not written about under different circumstances,” Brodsky said. “They let people know that this was going to be a different type of conversation.'"
Debates about trigger warnings will continue yet, one wonders if the concept had originated in a Peer Support Group for Military Veterans would the contention be as rife?
"According to RAND, at least 20% of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have PTSD and/or Depression. (Military counselors I have interviewed state that, in their opinion, the percentage of veterans with PTSD is much higher; the number climbs higher when combined with TBI.)"
Therapists are now using something called a Fear Hierarchy List in Exposure Therapy for PTSD:
"Typically used in exposure therapy for PTSD, a fear hierarchy is your guide to gradually exposing yourself to your PTSD triggers, starting with the least upsetting one and moving down the list.
The goal: reducing your avoidance of triggers over time--and experiencing more of life as a result."
Society talks about fear and caution as binary—the fear vs caution or the us vs them mindset—and a dichotomy forms amongst the division of what we should feel and what we should not feel. More times than not, we're either told we should be fearful to an excessive degree past the point of irrational or our fear is laughed off and mocked because of weakness and a lack of courage. Fear—like anger or any type of emotion—is almost never discussed on a spectrum.
Theo Tsaousides Ph.D. writes in a Psychology Today article on 7 Things You Need to Know about Fear that "fear is healthy." "Feeling fear is neither abnormal nor a sign of weakness: The capacity to be afraid is part of normal brain function."
Fear is not caution and caution is not fear. These two things are not mutually exclusive. You can feel fear and be cautious. You can feel fear while taking steps of caution: not too much fear, not too much caution. Too much of either will begin to erode an otherwise healthy—or somewhat healthy—system. Our minds are like the engines in cars. What happens when you put too much oil in a car? It damages your engine.
A healthy system is a balanced system where both fear and caution are measured on a spectrum based on the essential facts of a situation—like fine-tuning an instrument or your engine. Emotionally manipulating fear or caution to a heightened sense by mangling or misrepresenting facts to distort either will harm your health e.g. my car is sick; it needs more oil or my car is healthy; it needs to be healthier so I'll give it more oil.
Remember: a healthy system is a balanced system. If you or a loved one are in an emotional or mental crisis, there are resources available to help you regardless of income. Vice has a particularly helpful post on How To Get Mental Healthcare When You're Young and Broke. You can also check out the National Alliance on Mental Health helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or check here for alternative options. There is no shame in having emotional or mental problems or asking for help.
You are cared about. Your mental health is cared about. We care about you.
BEC Integrated Solutions supplies a host of Security Systems that can keep you and your family safe. Contact us for a free quote today.
Fear is not caution and caution is not fear. These two things are not mutually exclusive. You can feel fear and be cautious. You can feel fear while taking steps of caution: not too much fear, not too much caution. Too much of either will begin to erode an otherwise healthy—or somewhat healthy—system. Our minds are like the engines in cars. What happens when you put too much oil in a car? It damages your engine.
A healthy system is a balanced system where both fear and caution are measured on a spectrum based on the essential facts of a situation—like fine-tuning an instrument or your engine. Emotionally manipulating fear or caution to a heightened sense by mangling or misrepresenting facts to distort either will harm your health e.g. my car is sick; it needs more oil or my car is healthy; it needs to be healthier so I'll give it more oil.
Remember: a healthy system is a balanced system. If you or a loved one are in an emotional or mental crisis, there are resources available to help you regardless of income. Vice has a particularly helpful post on How To Get Mental Healthcare When You're Young and Broke. You can also check out the National Alliance on Mental Health helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or check here for alternative options. There is no shame in having emotional or mental problems or asking for help.
You are cared about. Your mental health is cared about. We care about you.
BEC Integrated Solutions supplies a host of Security Systems that can keep you safe. Contact us for a free quote today.
