How Triggers Impact Mental Health

By Donnisha Sambrano 

Most of the psychological triggers are caused by external events, circumstances and stimulus, such as sight, sound and smell. Some of these triggers can invoke the feeling of distress and flashbacks of traumatic events. Though most of the triggers are innocuous in nature, some of them can turn quite threatening. Because of their innate tendency to evoke traumatic memories and emotions, it can turn more challenging for people to wrestle with these triggers. More than a warning bell, it can turn into an obstacle capable of instilling fear and inhibitions.

Psychological triggers among individuals coping with addiction and psychiatric illnesses are more likely to induce the feelings of anxiety, panic, discouragement, or other uncomfortable states of emotion. Moreover, the exposure to these triggers increase the risk of re-engaging in unhealthy behaviors and negative thinking among people with mental disorders.

Therefore, it is essential to know the ins and outs of these triggers. By developing the ability to identify triggers and implementing measures to reduce their impact on life, a person can significantly dissuade the aggravation of the symptoms of psychiatric diseases in the long run. In fact, triggers can influence moods and behaviors even among individuals not affected by mental disorders.

Although a person cannot predict, identify and avoid all triggers, building effective coping mechanisms can prevent negative effects by strengthening a person's ability to exercise control over them.

Though reacting to triggers is a normal thing, one should keep this point in mind that most reactions are built subconsciously over a long period of time. Some forms of coping are very maladaptive in nature that can cause a person to be in a constant state of anxiety and distress. This not only worsens his or her mental health symptoms, but also prevent him or her from exploring more adaptive ways to deal with their triggers.

Understanding how triggers work

As such, a person's reaction to triggers is not understood well. However, it is believed to emanate from the sensory memories and the formation of habits. When a person perceives patterns that resemble his or her traumatic experiences, it is very likely that he or she is probably already responding to a trigger. After certain time of the traumatic event, the person's efforts to cope with the incident coerces him or her to form certain habits.

Most of the times, these habits are not beneficial to the person and over time it can become deeply ingrained or his or her second nature. Such individuals are unlikely to be aware of the psychological impact of their natural reaction and the habits they demonstrate, especially when the trauma is fresh in their mind. Therefore, it is essential to keep a check on one's potential triggers to avoid serious consequences, particularly on mental health.

Among various types of mental disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has a large number of psychological triggers. Some of the negative life experiences, such as death, injury, sexual assault or other debilitating incidents, can lead to the onset of PTSD in people. When the brain links certain sight, sound, smell, circumstances and places to the sensory memories of the traumatic event, it could potentially trigger his or her memories of that incident and coerce him or her to relive it again.

Triggers also play a crucial role in dictating the chances of a relapse among individuals with substance use disorder (SUD). People with mental health problems and SUD aware of their unique triggers for relapse should plan their day to avoid some places or people that can reignite distress and cravings.

Correspondingly, they could find ways to controlling their thought so that their mind and body does not give in to the pressure of a trigger. It is unlikely that a person will be able to stay away from his or her triggers at all times, but it could significantly reduce the hardwiring of their negative automatic responses.

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How To Banish Your Fear Of Success In Just 3 Simple Steps

By T. Harv Eker

Have you ever wondered why you haven’t reached the level of success you want in life?

Many of us are afraid of failing, at least some of the time. But fear of failure is when we allow that fear to stop us doing the things that can move us forward to achieve our goals.

But for a lot of people, it’s not a fear of failure holding them back…

It’s a fear of success.

When you’re afraid of success, you can find yourself getting very close to your goals – and then suddenly falling short. You might not even know why — or what you’re really afraid of.

Recently I had a conversation about this with a student during one of my Tough Love Mentoring calls, and I discussed why this happens… and the three steps you can take to identify, understand, and overcome your fears today.

When you find yourself stumbling on the path to success, there are three elements you need to do if you really want to create change. The first element is Awareness. The second is Understanding. And the third? That’s where you Reprogram or Rewire yourself in order to change your conditioning.

Let’s take a look at each of those 3 steps in more detail… 

Step 1  — Awareness: Get To Know Your Fear

You may tell yourself: “I have a fear of success.”

But what is it about success that’s so scary? What’s the story in your head that’s really holding you back?

Until you identify it, you’ll never be able to move on.

So what do you do? If you have a fear of success or even failure, narrow it down.

Ask yourself: what is the belief at the core of your fear? Write down exactly what your mind is saying. I’m not talking about general terms – I want you to dig deep and be as specific as possible. What are you afraid will happen?

Some of the most common fears I hear are things like this:

• “If I succeed, everyone’s going to want something from me.”
• “I’m going to have to take care of my whole family, and I don’t want that responsibility.” 
• “I’m going to have to pay too much in taxes and I hate taxes.”

Once you nail down what you’re really afraid of, it’s time for the next step…

Step 2 — Understanding: Why Your Fears Aren’t Real

Now there’s one thing that is really important to understand if you want to be successful… 

Everything you’re telling yourself right now is complete freaking bulls**t!

It’s made up by your mind itself. Fear isn’t real.

Now I mentioned earlier that this came up during a recent coaching call. And during that call, one of my students disagreed with me on this. She told me, “Not all fear is bulls**t. I don’t believe that.” But let me explain what I mean when I talk about fear.

What is the definition of fear? It’s the anticipation of pain.

And when you’re anticipating something, is that past, present or future?  It’s not the past or the present. Anticipation is the future. But it isn’t the actual future – it’s the future you’re imagining. And guess what? The future doesn’t exist – yet.

That’s what I mean by bulls**t. It’s only imagination. It’s not real. It only feels real because you made it that way. That’s why it’s so important to overcome the fears holding you back.

You weren’t born with this fear, by the way. When you were half a minute old, you probably weren’t saying, “I’m going to have this fear that I’ve got to take care of everybody now.” That came later, as you grew up and learned to see the world a certain way.

Ultimately, you’re the one making it up.

You’re the one continuing to buy into that story. Whether it’s good or bad, everything you tell yourself is really just a story. We just make the whole thing up as we go along. And the sooner you realize that, the sooner you can let that story go.

“Fear is just the anticipation of pain. Ultimately, you are the one making it up.”

Step 3 — Reprogramming: Finally, Let Go Of Your Fears By Reframing Them

After you’re able to understand that your fear isn’t real — that it’s just the future you’re making up — the final step is looking at the story you’ve told yourself, and reconditioning or reframing it.

And by that, I don’t mean telling yourself “This belief is wrong.” Since fear lives only in your imagination, there’s nothing right or wrong about it.

Instead, I want you to ask yourself a simple question: “Is this belief helping me, or not helping me?” It’s that simple.

The truth is, you can change your beliefs any time you want to.

So every time you have a fear that’s holding you back, I want you to tell yourself, “That’s not helpful. I’m going to believe something else.”

Then, take a moment to reframe it. For example, take the fear I mentioned earlier:  “If I am successful, everyone’s going to want something from me.”

Stop and think: Where did that come from? Was there a person in your life who told you this? In this example, maybe it was your dad – and every day he would say to you, “Don’t bother trying for more because if you do, everyone’s going to want it. Everyone’s going to be a taker.”

That’s his frame. That’s his belief. But it doesn’t have to be yours.

You have the choice to let it go and believe something else. Why would you want to cut yourself off now from being successful just because you might have to worry about a problem in the future?

I always say, “Why don’t we just cross that bridge when we get there? How about you become super successful now, and worry about any problems as they come up?”

Once you stop worrying about what’s going to happen in the future and start living in the moment, you’ll be amazed at how much progress you make in a short time.

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Where To Begin On Your Fitness and Health Journey

By CA Flemming

Going back and forth with where to start on your new healthy adventure can be very frustrating and confusing to the point where a lot of people give up after a week of trying new and different things. My best advice while starting this new adventure is to get in the mind set that everything works differently for everyone! Not every diet will work the same for each person. For example my best friend can only have half the carbohydrates a day than I can because my body can process them faster and distribute it evenly throughout my body. So don't get frustrated from the beginning because everyone starts out in the same place you are now.

Here I have listed a checklist of things you should consider while starting off on your new adventure of being fit healthy and happy!

Throw out more than half of the junk food in your house, if not all of it. 

They are only temptations that we don't need. Yes you can eat them occasionally but having them linger around gives us more incentive to give into the temptations.

Write a list of your fitness goals. 

Start off with writing down your morning weight and date it. Then write down where you want to see yourselves and the time frame you are giving yourself.

Start thinking about meal prep. 

Meal prep is all about making meals for your week to get you started on a healthy week because the moment you open that fridge you can grab anything but if you know you already have meals that you prepared you are more willing to go for those and that is always the healthier option.

Go shopping for healthy food options. 

You can check out anywhere on the internet for recipes and grocery lists for healthy food options.

Get a gym membership 

I know not all of us have a lot of money to spend on expensive over the top gym memberships but there are some gyms like XSport or Planet Fitness that offer $10 memberships and the moment you know you are paying for something you will tend to use it way more often. If this really isn't a viable option then do at home workouts, take daily walks, start up running or biking riding as a new hobby. It is all about starting off with small changes.

Drink more water. 

Your daily water intake should be at least 8 glasses of water a day. This will help with your skin, hair, and overall hunger that we tend to get when we start a diet.

Think of this as a lifestyle change for the better. 

The moment we stop calling it a diet is the moment we keep trying for this end goal and we keep up with what we started off doing in the first place.

HAVE FUN!

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