The Trigger Isn’t the Problem

I used to think the problem was the thing that set me off.
The email.
The comment.
The tone in someone’s voice.
The feeling that came out of nowhere and took over my whole body.

I spent years trying to control the world so I wouldn’t get triggered.
But the world wasn’t the problem.
My reaction was.

The trigger didn’t create the fear.
It exposed it.
The trigger didn’t create the anger.
It revealed what was already burning under the surface.

I thought I needed people to change.
I thought I needed life to be easier.
I thought I needed to avoid anything that made me feel small, threatened, or unseen.

But the truth was simple.

The trigger wasn’t the danger.
The part of me that reacted without pausing was.

The pause didn’t remove the trigger.
It just gave me a chance to choose who I wanted to be when it hit.

Reflection:
When something sets you off, do you protect the wound or the person you’re becoming?

If something in this story hit home, I built a free 5-Day GRIT Challenge to help you start your own shift.

Start your GRIT journey through the Free 5 Day GRIT Challenge