As a resident of South Florida, I know that June through November is hurricane season (also called cyclones or typhoons in other parts of the world). Over the years, we have learned what preparations to make at the start of the season although most of them are done once we learn that we are “in the cone” (the probable track of the center of a hurricane).
As anyone who has lived through a storm knows, what we do before the storm arrives is different from what we do when we are experiencing it and once it has passed. Much of what I know has come from a scientific understanding of the nature of hurricanes as well as the experience of having lived through them and learning from those experiences. The best way to minimize damage from a storm is to prepare for it in advance.
I find the analogy of a storm a good one as it relates to trauma. When we have experienced trauma, we know that there will be times when we will be triggered. It’s like knowing that if you live in an area that is prone to hurricanes, one is likely to be impacted by it. The advantage of this awareness is that knowing in advance that we are prone to being triggered we can learn skills that prepare us to navigate them.
If we are prone to being triggered into anxiety, feeling alone, perfectionism, or self-criticism, we can learn practices that help us minimize the impact. These practices must be done in advance so that when we are triggered, our nervous system can still access them. Without practice, when we get triggered, our state of activation will take over much like being in a storm. On the other hand, if you have been doing some self-honoring and self-regulating practices, you will be able to lean on them and allow the storm to pass as your nervous system resets.
Click the link below to immediately access two free practices that you can use to prepare yourself for those times when you might feel triggered into feeling rejected, alone, or self-judgmental. Use these as a guide to create your own version of these practices and practice them often so that they are available to you when you need them the most.
