uoa:

i always get shit when i talk about this but the reason i dont tag tw is bc

a) the term ‘trigger’ is meant to refer 2 those with PTSD those w severe anxiety and/or survivors of various forms of abuse it indicates an extreme reaction 2 certain stimulus like a panic attack/flashback/blackout caused by ur brain being unable to handle the resurgence of something horrific that happened to u 

b) with that being said, i dont post triggering content. i havent talked about serious triggering shit on this blog for a long time in fact i think the last time i tagged smth was when i reblogged this youtube video about domestic abuse probs like 6 months ago nowadays i just reblog pretty pictures and make fun of anons 

c) i get a thousand messages everyday from ppl suggesting i should tag shit like ‘spiders, ‘blood’, ‘feet’, ‘ghosts’, etc and it seriously pisses me off that u guys really believe ‘triggering’ equals ‘it makes me uncomfortable’ im not here to make tumblr a better place for u im not even getting paid man it’s ur responsibility to take care of yourself when it comes to these random ass ‘triggers’ if u cant see a gif of a ghost on ur dash you shouldn’t be online at all

d) in fact, ive come to the conclusion that demanding one of these lame ass trigger warnings it’s just a way 2 identify yourself as even more aware even more solicitous than the person who failed to ~adequately~ provide such a ridiculous warning. when i see ppl tagging ‘tw: spiders’ i cant help but think they are not demonstrating a sensitivity towards a topic but rather they just wanna be ‘seen’ doing so 2 demand that others ‘ought’ to do the same to validate one’s politics. this whole ’trigger’ business is less about protecting ppl from potentially re-traumatizing events and more 2 do with flagging up your right-on credentials even if it means silencing those who have actually gone through actual traumatizing events.

preface: i don’t agree with the tone of this post or the whole “if you can’t handle seeing x, you shouldn’t be online” thing because that’s literally stupid in a digital age, but there’s some good stuff in here that i want to build off of.

(content notice: rape, fire, animal death)

i have several different side blogs all attached to one account, which means that i follow a weird variety of people in order to curate different content. sometimes, this means people reblog things that make me really uncomfortable. for example, i am ace, and largely sex-repulsed. when people post sexual content, i have to decide if it bothers me enough to unfollow them, or if their other content is quality enough to skip it. that’s true of a lot of other content, but that’s the most readily available example.

as an extension of that, i am a sexual assault survivor, and things about rape make me extremely uneasy, but they no longer trigger flashbacks or unmanageable reactions. i unfollow and move along. not everyone is at that point, and you’ll notice that, at no point, do i say that i just deal with it. you are allowed to shape your online experience, and responsible for doing so. unfollow/block and move on.

i also survived a major apartment fire that destroyed everything i owned. i lost my four cats in that fire, and as a result, graphic imagery of building fires and content regarding animal death or abuse is actually triggering, in the sense that i have trauma from that event, and the stimuli causes panic attacks and similar. that used to be the case regarding rape; it may not always be the case regarding fire. how our brains process and cope with trauma varies wildly; therapy and medication and a strong support system can help, but should not be expected to cure, as well as protecting ourselves from things which would undo progress.

it is MY RESPONSIBILITY to protect myself. i am fortunate that, if i come across something that shocks me into a panic, my wife will often remove the content from my device, by closing/unfollowing/blocking/whatever is relevant. not everyone has that help. sometimes all you can do is close everything in a panic and throw your phone to the end of the couch/bed and try to cope through the panic. it’s not easy.

i do agree that i wish that people would not co-opt the word “trigger” for things like phobias (which may cause deep anxiety and panic, but are often not rooted in trauma) or dislikes. there are other words that one could use.