Awareness is what you need when you want to learn to recognise your emotional triggers….what tweaks your buttons when you find yourself feeling upset, freezing or reacting strongly, then wondering what the heck came over you.
You can start to become aware by observing where in your body you tend to react, what are the physical sensations you experience – perhaps a racing pulse, sweaty hands, a knot in your stomach, a tightness in your throat.
You can then look at what sort of situations trigger those reactions…perhaps it’s criticism, feeling that you don’t know, feeling invisible, rejected, or maybe certain types of people….then explore what lies underneath that, what’s the root cause, what happened in your life that caused you to feel wounded and never want feel that way again.
The great thing about recognising triggers is that it opens the door to the possibility of responding consciously rather than reacting, of being discerning. And, if you’re someone who tends to keep the peace and repress your feelings, you may discover how that pattern can imprison …and decide to break free of it.