Do Trigger Warnings Really Help?

Trigger warnings are a relatively new (and divisive) concept, but do they really help?

Hosted by: Brit Garner
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[TrekkieBrie]

When I was in the navy my dad took his own life, and anyone who has ever been in the military knows how often there is training on suicide awareness, for about 6+ months I just couldn’t show up to those trainings, thankfully I had a decent command at the time and they allowed me to wave the training, but having the option to opt out is very important for people coping with serious trauma.

[lllll]

rare to see such an unbiased scientific look at such a politicized issue

[bersl]

I personally don't like the name. Granted, that's probably because the word "trigger" is now tainted, and I actively avoid using it so that no one has a reason to make a sarcastic "I'm triggered" response—because let's face it, that crap's really gotten old. I personally like "content warning" as a replacement: It has a well established history in English media of being used to warn listeners/readers/viewers that a potentially sensitive topic is about to follow, without the negative connotation which the screaming match has produced for me.

[jutiajulia]

As a person with diagnosed ptsd, trigger warnings are extremely helpful for me. I (or anyone else) won’t try to censor or remove something that’s resembling traumatic experiences. If something is extremely specific/random you can’t expect the world to know or prepare you for that.

I do, however, really appreciate when I can feel in control of what’s happening thanks to the warnings. Especially if I’m not emotionally secure/stable/safe/ready.

[unleashingpotential-psycho]

That's a good point you made about how you don't know if trigger warnings are good or bad since they can trigger someone to feel PTSD symptoms but they also give the person the ability to implement A coping strategy once they see the trigger warning or avoid the scene entirely.

[protohale]

The goal of a trigger warning is to let people know what's coming, so anyone who might find it more difficult because of their past experiences can avoid additional trauma. Triggers are highly specific to people, and are often things from right before the traumatic event. Some people think they're important for creating safe spaces for everyone, while others believe they coddle people and stifle free speech. This is where trigger warnings aren't going to help, because no one's going to think doors or sunny days require warnings. The triggers are just too idiosyncratic to predict.

People with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) often choose to think about their trauma, rather than just involuntarily recalling it, so they're more likely to be prepared for it. But it's also possible that trigger warnings could be bad for people with PTSD. Researchers have found that warning messages can have unintended effects, and we don't know if this is the case here.

[patty]

It is only common courtesy to refrain from blindsiding people with violent content. Trigger warnings have become a hot topic because more and more violent and graphic content has been seeping into everyday situations.

I remember in college 30 years ago more than one professor flat out told us when videos were going to be extremely violent etc. There was not a word for it. It was just a professional way to run a class. It really should not be an issue today. It is not like it hurts you to warn people about graphic content.

In many cases people who are bullies are just trying to validate their own unpleasant behavior by saying it is unreasonable for others to be upset by extremely graphic content.

[rosieisla]

As someone who suffered from PTSD for quite a while this is a great video!
I personally don’t profit a lot from trigger warnings because my trauma comes from a car accident, which isn’t something that’s talked about (or warned about) a lot, but luckily so long as there are no images of injuries or the car after the accident, I’m generally alright. (And even seeing a mutilated car is usually not enough to cause a panic attack, but it’s definitely gonna give me a raised heartrate and some faster breathing.)

Exposure therapy has helped me a lot and I agree that you shouldn’t avoid things that are triggers, but it should definitely be done in a controlled environment.
I started getting panic attacks the first period of school back in 2016 and thus ended up missing a lot of classes that I had in the first hour or so.
It was caused by me having one panic attack in the first period after an extremely stressful period of time (a close relative died, I was late for the first time ever in my high school “career, ” and I had a maths test that day. Weirdly enough, that led to one of my triggers being trigonometry for a while and I know it sounds fake, but studying for the retake of the test gave me a panic attack, despite knowing how it worked.)
Going into class while I was having one would inevitably end with me almost throwing up but going to the last few minutes and building it up from there, knowing that I could leave if I had to, along with about a year of therapy worked for me. My school also helped a lot - I found that doing something to ground myself (to make myself feel like I was part of the world instead of kind of numb) and something that was distracting (to stop myself worrying) helped a lot and I was allowed to leave class and get a jigsaw puzzle whenever I had to and it worked surprisingly well.

Anyway tl;dr - this video is spot on and I couldn’t be happier. Triggers can be weird so not all warnings help, but having them and being able to avoid certain things when you know you’re not equipped to deal with them at that moment is important.

[dabzvapelord]

I was a university student when the whole issue around trigger warnings was starting to affect classrooms and was also suffering from extreme anxiety at the time. When a lecturer blurted out 'trigger warning' it immediately put me on edge, but when someone said gave a simple 'heads up' it made it easy to cope with and decide whether or not I felt I could cope.

[omnisel]

Oh, I've never considered the Nocebo effect! That's a completely different way to consider trigger warnings.

[FlamingoCollective]

As a trauma survivor with a few (legitimate) triggers, one of which is a relatively common household object, I'm not really sure how to feel about trigger warnings. I don't particularly dislike them, but I'm also not the kind of person that typically needs or wants them.

I once asked a friend to keep a specific item put away when I came to his house because I'd been having flashbacks lately and didn't want more potential stress. At the same time, when I see the same object out at a store while shopping with others, I don't get irritated that they don't tell me it's there first. I know that it's a common object and I need to be able to cope with its presence to function in society.

More importantly, a huge part of my recovery is actively reminding myself that I'm no longer in a situation where it poses a threat. Nobody is going to hurt me with it anymore. Have I had flashbacks after seeing one? Yes. But after every flashback, I come back to reality and find I wasn't in danger. I learn. I think that's useful- for me, in that specific situation.

On the other hand, another trigger of mine is being touched on the shoulder. This one is particularly tricky, because it's seen as a fairly neutral place to be touched. It is one of my strongest triggers. When I was younger, I couldn't handle it at all. I once spun around and shoved a guy who came up behind me and put his hand on my shoulder. I didn't want to hurt him, but my immediate instinct was that I needed to defend myself because he was going to hurt me. I don't have that strong of a reaction anymore- usually I just flinch, and I'll pull away if I feel the contact is lasting too long. Still, I ask my friends and family not to touch my shoulder, because even if I can deal with it if I have to, it still makes me anxious enough that I actively avoid it whenever possible. And because it's something that (I feel) is reasonable to ask people not to do, I do so, because otherwise the stress is unnecessary.

It's reasonable for me to ask a new friend not to touch my shoulders or to warn me before touching me from behind. It's not reasonable to ask people to hide common household objects that I'm gonna have to deal with at some point. I think at the end of the day we all just have to be reasonable.

[maggiee]

Tbh I don’t like watching sexual abuse/ assault even in movies. I’m not “triggered” by it in the traditional sense but I like to know it’s coming.

[garbageknights]

This was a very well made video that doesn't try to make a stand on something that wasn't well researched while giving as many of the facts as possible and many of the hypothesis.
I liked this video more then I thought I would just because it reminded me that people are weird and nothing is straightforward.

[pdpocket]

fresh, fact-based take on a contentious and misunderstood topic. thanx for that.

[Nicoyutub]

It shouldn't be a tough question. It should be calmly and openly studied. The fighting only comes from self-righteousness on either side

[Ldarogeninga]

One thing I think a lot of people don’t realize is that trigger warnings don’t put a damper of free speech, they can actually be a helpful tool. Instead of banning anything with loud bangs so you don’t upset people, you can put up a warning and then carry on with the content you were gonna make in the first place. It’s honestly not that hard. I don’t have ptsd, but I personally don’t like seeing blood or gore. So I appreciate when there’s a trigger warning or something similar so I don’t have to watch or see something I just don’t want to.

[TheMutantCreeper]

The only thing I’ve ever been “Triggered” at was a yelling scene from Stranger Things where Eleven and Hopper were arguing and the yelling was so intense/believable that it brought me to fight or flight mode and made me very uncomfortable. I had traumatic incidents where I was yelled/screamed at directly and indirectly from my father. It stuck with me and now my brain makes me think I’m in danger whenever I hear anyone being angry in any degree. I don’t think I need trigger warnings even though almost every day I experience it but I think some people might need it depending on circumstances.

[BathroomCube]

I have ptsd, trigger warnings are important to me. Stuff like discussions of child sexual abuse and panicked screams can send me into a dissociative state or a deep depression if I'm not prepared. its really stressful and I'm usually not productive AT ALL for awhile afterwards. I really appreciate when people tell me about that stuff. I'd rather not be hit with an audio recording of a 911 call without warning. Not only is not properly warning people common but so is mocking people for wanting those warnings. triggered jokes and ridicule has made my life, and the lives of so many other victims, a living hell.

[singingsiren]

I've dealt with Self Harm, Suicidal Thoughts and Attempts, Sexual Assault, and PTSD... because yeah. I honestly will almost always avoid a video or class that goes into Sexual Assault. I had one teacher that let me do outside work because it was the primary topic for 2 classes. But, if I'm warned about the Self Harm and Suicidal thought issues before hand I may not avoid watching the video, but go in prepared that thoughts may occur and to prepare myself. My PTSD issue is from a whole other issue that I can't be warned about, so I just deal with what triggers it. Oh, I also have physical triggers from flashing lights and repetitive nosies, so I just have to stay out of those as much as possible. That's me personally though. The phrase I'm triggered over piddly things that are just annoyances instead of actual issues has gotten annoying though. It minimalizes what the word actually means to something small and insignificant (like I'm triggered that my small popcorn cost $10!).

[anthropomorphisis]

I remember health class in high school where my grandfather was dying of cancer in my living room (we opted for hospice in home). We had a class on cancer, and I almost broke down in the middle of class. I attempted to leave, but despite receiving an email from our guidance counselors stating I should be allowed to leave at any time, my health teacher would "not let me" leave. This was after her pointedly mentioning my weight in a class about eating disorders ( I had disordered eating to deal with the trauma of my adoptive father dying in my living room in front of me and helping change his diapers), and just general spiteful comments in my direction. I ended up being spoken to by the VP of the school, but nothing came of it. Trigger warnings certainly would have been extremely helpful in my case.