A trigger is a cue that the nervous system associates with danger and that results in protective action. That’s a general definition. Now let’s make it more concrete.
As a child, Devin learned that when their caregiver was angry, the caregiver was likely to harm them. Over time, anger became a cue that they were in danger of being hurt. When someone around Devin became angry, Devin’s nervous system responded in a protective way. In Devin’s case, they apologized a lot and did a lot of people-pleasing. Another person might respond by freezing.
Triggers can be difficult to identify at times because they can be almost anything, including:
- sounds
- facial expressions
- a place
- a person
- a situation
- weather
- a relational dynamic.
Triggers can also be internal, including emotions, sensations, thoughts, or a memory.
Triggers vary from person to person because it is the person’s nervous system that assigns the meaning (“danger”) to the cue. For example, a person who was attacked by a dog as a child may find dogs to be a trigger where other people are happy to interact with dogs.
This page is part of the Why Do I Get Triggered Without Knowing Why? section of the CommuniDID site, which explains how trauma associations form and why the nervous system can react automatically before you consciously recognize what caused the reaction.
Explore more:
- Questions about being triggered without knowing why
- You will find more about body memories in Body-Based Symptoms in DID
- Unrecognized Trauma Memories
- Triggers Can Activate without Conscious Awareness
- How Do Triggers Form?
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