How to Protect Yourself from Trigger Stacking AKA the Volcano of Stress

Trigger Stacking Symptoms:  In modern life, family worries, office tensions, financial problems, health concerns, and numerous other worries persist in our lives. These worries negatively impact not only physical well-being but also mental health. Such worries are called triggers.

In psychology, triggers are those situations, actions, or behaviors that increase stress in our lives.  Everyone has to deal with many types of triggers like workload, burden of responsibilities, relationship stress, financial worries, mental stress, etc.  But when many such triggers occur after a short interval, it is called trigger stacking.

What is trigger stacking and why is it harmful?

As mentioned above, the gradual accumulation of multiple stressors is called trigger stacking. And why is it dangerous? Let’s understand this with this simple example. Triggers generated by various stressors are like lava, and when they accumulate, a person’s patience is lost and their behavior explodes. This leads to anger, causing the greatest harm to themselves.

Read More: Know What Chronic Stress is and Whether You are its Victim or Not

In trigger stacking, the thing that triggers a person to explode over may be very small, but behind it lies such a vast storehouse of triggers that the entire volcano erupts on that small trigger. Therefore, if we learn to clear this trigger stacking, we can avoid harming ourselves and our loved ones in anger.

How to Recognize Trigger Stacking: Its Symptoms

Talking about the symptoms of trigger stacking, the most important thing is that when a person is experiencing multiple stressors simultaneously, their stressors begin to accumulate in their mind and thoughts. In such situations, we often feel, “Enough is enough, this must end.” We need to understand the anger that accompanies this feeling.

Did this anger last only for a short time, or did it persist even after the problem was resolved? Are there constant thoughts of outbursts of control? If this mental thought persists regularly, it means that many triggers have accumulated within you. If not addressed promptly, this volcano of stress can erupt any day. Let’s understand some of its more noticeable symptoms:

• Getting angry over small things
• Increased irritability
• Insomnia or excessive sleeping
• Irregular eating and drinking habits
• Lack of concentration
• Sudden crying or silence

A Perfect Example of Trigger Stacking

Trigger stacking is found not only in humans but also in animals. Pet dogs are a prime example. Suppose a dog is very calm and friendly. But one morning, it woke up because a mischievous child threw a firecracker. Later that same day, a stray dog comes and fights with it and snatches its food.

In the evening, when it goes out for a walk with its owner, the traffic noise is intense, which makes it even more irritable. Now, when this same dog is sitting at home late in the evening, a stranger comes and teases it, and the dog bites that stranger fiercely.

Why does this dog do this? Because its tolerance is exhausted. Small events, from the morning firecracker bursting to the next, become small triggers for it, which eventually erupt like a volcano when the stranger touches it.

People don’t understand this and often say, “I don’t know how our dog bit you, even though our dog is so innocent.” This is a prime example of trigger stacking.

How to Deal with Trigger Stacking

Identify Your Red Flags: Tasks that cause you stress or irritation. Identify them yourself. Don’t ignore them.

Take Small Breaks to Deal with Red Flags: Once you understand which people, tasks, things, and places cause you stress. That is, once you become aware of your red flags, things become easier. You need to take small breaks while dealing with these people, things, and tasks.

This means you shouldn’t let these red flags occupy your mind for long periods of time. Think of it like when we used to think about the things we were interested in while in class as children. Similarly, when dealing with red flags, we need to think about the things that work positively for us.

Stress Management Techniques: Under this technique, we incorporate things like meditation, mindfulness, and prayer into our daily routine. This helps maintain a positive flow of energy around us.

Getting Enough Sleep and Reacting After Understanding Triggers: We don’t simply explode at someone. There’s a lot of logic behind our anger, and if we understand it, we can avoid harming ourselves. Therefore, the most important thing is to get enough sleep.

If a person doesn’t get enough sleep, their red flags will trigger them even more. Therefore, get enough sleep. Also, keep in mind that if you know what your red flags are, you should react to them as little as possible or pay no attention to them at all.

Seeking Professional Help: Try to form a small group around you where you can discuss things related to your red flags and triggers. Still, if this volcano of anger is erupting continuously and it is making you extremely irritable, then do not hesitate to seek professional help.

Some Important Tips

• Create a pause button in your behavior, where you stop yourself and think for a few seconds before giving an extreme reaction. This pause button will prove to be very effective in preventing your triggers.
• Develop a routine for your daily routine and keep in mind the times and people where you are more likely to be triggered by red flags. This will often help you identify which places and people are triggering you the most, so you can deal with them more easily.
• Most importantly, your mental peace is very important to you. Don’t let anyone else spoil it. Control your thoughts yourself.
• Discuss many such things openly with your group. This will help you understand these triggers better by discussing all aspects.

After adopting these tips, you will notice how controlled and composed you are even in anger. If we recognize our own and others’ triggers, pay attention to red flags, and manage stress, we can not only prevent trigger stacking but also live a balanced and peaceful life.

FAQ- Trigger Stacking Symptoms