[little*rhino]

I won't say exactly what triggered me so badly just now except to say that it had to do with something I read regarding animal mistreatment. I accidentally stumbled upon something while trying to make a nice picture to send to a friend who has a sick dog.

I do not wish to discuss the trigger itself... I can't...

but it leads me to think about the question of such things, meaning triggers that are large issues. I have always been one to take up the battle of all manner of social issues but I realize that I must learn to do so in ways that does not detract from my own wellness... and I wonder how others manage this...?

So how do you put it in context for yourself? When confronted with some trigger that is connected to a larger issue, like animals kids or other social ideas... how do you handle it without turning a blind eye or weighing yourself down? How do you keep yourself from sinking under the weight of things? I know there is a lot of pain in the world and I can only do what I can do within my own realm... which is very tiny... I don't try to save the world and I know I couldn't if I wanted to...

Just not sure how to file away the pain of a painful horrific trigger when it drops in my lap this way. I feel sick... very distraught. I know it will recede but damn...

[slowinmi]

((((LR))))

I am certainly not an expert - I am still learning to cope with things myself. But the mindfulness meditation that I am learning teaches us to experience the pain and emotions in a safe way during the meditation. By experiencing them, you decrease the pain and hurtful emotions. Another idea you might try is drawing the emotions you feel. It sometimes helps to visualize how you feel inside.

These are a couple of things that I have been trying. I usually also try your method of doing the small things that I can do to help that do not make me worse physically, mentally or emotionally. Usually it's not a great deal, but I always think that it is better than nothing.

I hope you feel better soon. I'm very sorry that you're hurting.

slow

[Aunt Donna]

I have a hard time coping with big triggers. They seem to consume me and I worry. I am like you that I strumble across them while looking for something else. I am still trying to learn to cope with the triggers. I have a friend who had the internet disconnected from her home because of triggers she found while looking for something else. I try to find something else to do because the triggering sets off an ocd cycle and I am having major issues with it right now.

You have a big heart and don't change that. You care about what happens to things. That means a lot these days when so many people turn a blind eye. Sometime I wonder who really has mental issues, those of us who worry and care about things to the point it consumes us or those who don't care about anything.

[lael8]

I am with you there. I often wonder about that too. How you could see someone hurt and not be affected.
I feel you on the triggers thing also, I am from out of state and had a very traumatic childhood. it's the holidays and I miss home, I feel kind of conflicted about that, how can I miss home with all the things that happened there, It's why I left, but at the same token , I am so hopeful. Not that I like having symptoms of anxiety , but I am glad I don't have some rare disease that there is no treatment for and no one has heard of. At least I can have a support group and feel supported, although many don't understand anxiety, but heah neither do I.

[madisgram]

i too have problems with triggers. thank you for this topic! i'll be checking back to see the replies. we can learn so much from each other.

the one thing that does help me some is to try to take what triggers me into a positive action. meaning writing a protest letter or becoming involved with a group that agrees with my position on harming animals, etc. it's a small step but it allows me a way to express my emotions in a healthier manner.

[phoenix7]

i saw somthing on TV about aninmal cruelty that triggered me - i had to ground myself and remind myself that i couldnt change what had happened - that i couldnt have stopped it cos i wasnt there - that there are bad people out there who do these things and its not in my power to change that

i donthave any spare cash or i would have donated to the charity that helped the pet

I guess it made me feel powerless and that is a big trigger for me

I had to accept that there are some things that we are powerles over

i signed an online petition against animal cruelty and i support charities as and when i can - so i guess thats how i dealt wiht it - dotn know if that helps....

[lonegael]

I handled many of my triggers by 1) blowing up verbally and limitedly 2) more importantly, getting the training I needed to work professionally in an area that deals with one of my major trigger areas; children that need help. Other areas I choose a more set way of trying to handle my triggers by donating set amounts or being active in more long term manners, such as churhc project or awareness raising activities for a limited number of causes. Otherwise I risk letting myself be drained completely and frittering away my energies on whatever hits me hardest at a given time. That's just me, the proverbial loose cannonThis way I try to make my tiny drop in the ocean as effective as I can. HUGGS all.

[Princess_Obsidian]

Greetings,

One on one with a psychologist is great with such an issue. I hope you seek one out and make good use of him/her.

Have a good one.

[little*rhino]

i am in therapy and have been for almost 4 yrs... but i have more immediate life issues that we need to focus on in the limited time we have.

i think that is a very good observation, to wonder who the people with issues really are. i was saying something to that effect to someone today - that for kids in less than optimal environments they take their real circumstances as normal and that is the standard... but some kids try to then make the world make sense through that standard and it messes them up - not because they are the issue but because what they were given as the "norm" was the real problem.

i've had a deep meditation practice for... um... 14 yrs now i guess. It calms me and provides insights, distance, detachment... but, it doesn't take away the wave that hits me. It's the empath in me... i FEEL the agony that the animal felt... or person, as the case may be. It tears me apart.

i used to work in shelters... had to stop eventually, got burnt out on the suffering.

idk... maybe being crazy really is the sane response

[kikki27]

Originally Posted by little*rhino

I won't say exactly what triggered me so badly just now except to say that it had to do with something I read regarding animal mistreatment. I accidentally stumbled upon something while trying to make a nice picture to send to a friend who has a sick dog.

I do not wish to discuss the trigger itself... I can't...

but it leads me to think about the question of such things, meaning triggers that are large issues. I have always been one to take up the battle of all manner of social issues but I realize that I must learn to do so in ways that does not detract from my own wellness... and I wonder how others manage this...?

So how do you put it in context for yourself? When confronted with some trigger that is connected to a larger issue, like animals kids or other social ideas... how do you handle it without turning a blind eye or weighing yourself down? How do you keep yourself from sinking under the weight of things? I know there is a lot of pain in the world and I can only do what I can do within my own realm... which is very tiny... I don't try to save the world and I know I couldn't if I wanted to...

Just not sure how to file away the pain of a painful horrific trigger when it drops in my lap this way. I feel sick... very distraught. I know it will recede but damn...

Hi I struggle with animals rights.And It stressful like when I see stray cats that dont have an home that triggers my ocd and anxiety I feel sorry for them cause they be hungry and I try to call them too me and feed them them they run under cars dont trust nobody and that made me sad cause I feel sorry for them and homeless people are also a big trigger for my ocd .What I mean by the trigger of my ocd the thoughts keeps coming In my mind they are hungry and people abuses them .I feel like If I dont feed them then something bad will happened to me or my family members.

[ana_rdh]

Just think about it.. There are human beings that suffer more then animals in this world. And yet nobody seems to notice them. Sometimes i feel like we are neglecting our own kind

[little*rhino]

Thats a false economy... which means that you don't have a limit or quota for caring. By caring about animals it does not mean one has to choose one vs the other. Caring is the one thing that you get more to give away with each bit you do give...

having said that... i notice people who suffer but i have no real connection with people. i don't understand most people and i don't feel kindred with them the way i do with animals. i also know the animals have nothing to do with the situation in the world, but people do... and while an individual person may not cause it, people as a whole do. The number of people who suffer at the "hands" of animals = next to none, but the opposite is beyond calculating. Animals dont have the capacity to lie, cheat, steal or hate... they may physically injure or kill a person but they dont torture people.

there are literally hundreds of agencies to help people... so people do notice how people suffer.