One of my greatest teachers is a woman who triggers the shit out of me, and I'm not even paying her to do it. And before I go into detail, let me offer my own personal definition of "getting triggered".
"Getting triggered" means that some external stimuli, whether an individual or a situation, evokes an emotionally charged response in us the feels intense, irrational, and is usually quite uncomfortable to experience. Emotions often associated with getting triggered include anger, fierce judgment, jealousy, despair, confusion, torment--and the list goes on. The next thing that can often occur is a desire to lash out at or make wrong the person/situation that catalyzed the intense feelings. This can also be followed by feelings of victimization, helplessness and disempowerment. Sound familiar?
So here's the thing-- When we get triggered, there is an opportunity for us to discover an old (and sometimes ancient) pattern that is trapping us in a way of being that doesn't serve or empower us. And it is in this moment, where we can either choose to play out an old story, or become curious of what the message is beneath the emotional reaction. What are you protecting? What part of you is lashing out so fiercely to cover up the deeper desire for love, acceptance and permission for exactly who you are in this moment? Where is this an opportunity for me to reclaim more of who I am?
These are the questions I ask myself when I feel triggered. And this woman, this amazingly powerful woman who evokes such frustration, indignance, anger and desire all at once, offers me the opportunity to be humble, curious and supremely powerful, by inviting me to take full responsibility for my experience. Becoming curious of what part of me is wanting to be reclaimed and re-integrated, rather than going into the fear that I can't have access to this piece of my power.
What if we stopped blaming anyone for anything? What if we took 100% responsibility for everything that happened to us, no matter how out of our control the circumstance seemed? How would we live life differently if we know that our every thought, every emotion, every belief shaped our external reality? These are the questions I ask myself and live by every day. And let me tell you, it is a rich, rewarding and infinitely enchanted life I do lead.
With Love,
Arielle