When Triggers Speak: the Power of Saying “No More”

In the past few months, I have found myself wrapped in waves of emotional triggers — those unexpected jolts of discomfort that seem to knock at the doors of our deepest fears.

I have written about them before. Triggers can be exhausting, relentless, even annoying… and some days, I just want them to stop.

But they don’t.Because they carry messages. And lately, one message kept echoing louder than the rest: “You deserve to be protected”.

The Ache of Being Ignored

One of the most recent and intense waves came from feeling unseen — from those subtle acts of being ignored or dismissed. The silent treatment. The cold shoulder. The passive aggression that says everything by saying nothing.

It wasn't just the moment that hurt, it was the deeper echo of it. A buried yearning awakened:A craving for protection. For someone to stand beside me, to say, “This is not okay — I see you, and I’ll stand up for you”.

Anger and sadness took turns speaking inside me. I felt the familiar stir of the Victim archetype whispering thoughts like:

• “Why do I keep feeling unprotected in my relationships?”

• “Why do I crave safety so much?”

• “What is this pain trying to teach me?”

The storm within brought chaos. But within that chaos, I found clarity. A golden word surfaced — boundaries.

Becoming the Warrior I Needed

Boundaries.

A word that used to feel foreign, or even forbidden.

I had struggled for years to name them, draw them, live them. I stayed silent far too often. I kept the peace at the cost of my own voice. I wore the mask of the good girl, the people-pleaser, the peacekeeper — even when it hurt me.

This trigger, as painful as it was, pulled me toward a shift. Toward the Warrior archetype within. The one who protects, defends, and nurtures the sacred space of heart.

So I picked up my brushes and painted them. My boundaries. Not walls, but gates. Not anger, but love. A soft, fierce love that says:

“This is where I end, and where you begin.”“This is what hurts me, and I will no longer stay silent.”“This is how I need to be treated, to feel safe and whole.”

I began to speak aloud what once lived only in my mind. I expressed when I didn’t feel emotionally safe. And I allowed myself the radical right to ask for that safety —to claim it, to embody it.

Collective Healing, One Voice at a Time

This isn’t just my story. It is a shared one — whispered among women and girls I have worked with as an educator, artist, and space holder. The longing to be heard. The pain of emotional neglect.

The silent screams of unspoken hurt.

We need to speak. Together.

This is a call to dissolve the silence. To create space for articulation, protection, and the power of emotional truth. Because triggers are messengers, not enemies. And they are leading us — if we listen — to a deeper love for ourselves.

So here I am, listening. And speaking back.

To every past version of myself who stayed silent:I love you. To every future version of myself learning to stand tall: I am building a bridge for you.

To you, reading this — if you feel unseen, unheard, unprotected —May this be your permission slip: To set your boundaries. To speak your truth. To become the warrior your heart is waiting for.