Self-Triggering? An Exploration of Individuals Who Seek Reminders of Trauma

Abstract

Trauma survivors who self-trigger, or seek reminders of their traumatic events, have been noted in the clinical literature but have not yet been the subject of a systematic empirical inquiry. This article presents the results of two exploratory studies of self-triggering. In Study 1 ( N = 545), we estimated the behavior’s clinical relevance among trauma survivors. In Study 2 ( N = 360), we examined descriptive characteristics of self-triggering as well as potential motivations for the behavior. We found that self-triggering is uniquely associated with more severe symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder. Self-triggering takes place via a wide variety of methods and can become compulsive for many individuals. Reasons endorsed for self-triggering comprised several broad motives, but the desire to make meaning of one’s trauma was most predictive of self-triggering frequency. Limitations, clinical implications, and directions for further research are discussed.

Self-triggering: Does function determine pathogenesis?

“…Similarly, individuals with a history of being violently victimized were more likely to watch a video of a graphic beheading made by the terrorist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria than those with no such history (Redmond et al, 2019). Further, numerous online trauma-related blogs reveal the experiences of many individuals who are mystified by their tendency of feeling compelled to “self-trigger” by exposing themselves to reminders of trauma (Bellet et al, 2020).…”

“…Thus, it remains unclear whether the different factors of motivations identified in Bellet and colleagues’ study might be subsumed into more parsimonious and clinically relevant functional categories (e.g., arousal-seeking and escaping from numbness reflecting a general emotion regulation function). Second, although Bellet et al (2020) conducted a factor analysis to derive motivations for self-triggering, the scale’s psychometric properties were not reexamined after removing cross-loaded items, as this was not the main aim of the article. Thus, it is unclear if all remaining items still load together to produce the same factors.…”

Umgang mit Ängsten als Folge mediatisierter sexualisierter Gewalt: D

“…Möglicherweise sucht D. nach Fällen sexualisierter Gewalt, um seine Ängste zu bewältigen. Wir wissen aus jüngerer klinischer Forschung mit traumatisierten Menschen, dass diese sich bisweilen selbst triggern, sprich sich mit Triggern konfrontieren, um Kontrolle zurückzugewinnen, sich von innerem emotionalem Druck zu befreien oder aber ihren Erlebnissen Sinnhaftigkeit zu verleihen (Bellet et al, 2020). Eine Traumapädagogin wirft in den Focus Group Interviews ein, dass die Suche nach Aufzeichnungen der eigenen Gewaltgeschichte nicht per se zu problematisieren ist.…”

Scaring away anxiety: Therapeutic avenues for horror fiction to enhance treatment for anxiety symptoms

“…Some individuals with PTSD also report "selftriggering," where they remind themselves of their trauma through films, books, and other methods. One study by Bellet et al, 2020 found that this behavior is not uncommon among individuals who have experienced trauma. Much like the anecdotal reports of using horror as a way to control feelings of anxiety, many participants in Bellet et al's study reported self-triggering as a way to control their PTSD.…”