The Rising Beyond Podcast

Ep 134: Triggers 101: What They Are and How to Navigate Them as a Survivor of Narcissistic Abuse

Sybil Cummin, MA, LPC, ACS Season 1 Episode 134

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We’re diving deep into the world of triggers. A common and often overwhelming experience for survivors of trauma and abuse. We’ll explore what triggers are, why they happen, and how they can actually become opportunities for healing and growth.

Whether you’re just beginning your recovery journey or you’re further along, this episode offers practical tools and validation to help you navigate triggers with confidence and compassion.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

  • Understanding Triggers: What they are, how they relate to the brain and body’s fight/flight/freeze/fawn responses, and the difference between triggers and flashbacks.
  • Common Triggers: Examples like certain sounds, behaviors, or phrases that may remind you of past trauma.
  • Recognizing Triggers: Learn how to identify early signs of being triggered and track patterns using a “trigger tracker” journal.
  • Managing Triggers in the Moment: Techniques like grounding exercises, deep breathing, and creating a personalized “calm kit.”
  • Growing Through Triggers: How to reframe triggers as milestones in your healing journey and use them as data to guide therapeutic work.

Key Takeaways:

  • Triggers are a normal part of recovery and not a sign of failure.
  • Grounding tools, when practiced consistently, can help regulate your nervous system.
  • With mindfulness and support, triggers can illuminate unresolved trauma and help you move toward healing.

Call to Action:
This week, choose one grounding tool like deep breathing or the 5-4-3-2-1 technique, and practice it daily. Building this habit can make it easier to manage triggers when they arise.

Related Episodes:

  • Episode 133: Poly

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I want to help you jumpstart your healing process, no matter where you are on your healing journey, with evidence- based practices that I have seen work for survivors in this new, transformative workshop.

This workshop is for you if:
You have survived an abusive relationship and set the goal to move forward on your healing journey in 2025.  Whether you are in the thick


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