Please note this disclaimer: this post is not a “holier than thou” write up, nor is it meant to be inflammatory. I have seen so many threads lately dedicated to “triggers”, and I started to think that most of my own past “triggers” were really poorly disguised excuses to use because I was not 100% ready to make a change, or put in the work dedicated to successful sobriety. Triggers can include: kids, spouses who drink, death in the family, a pet that dies, a friend who relapsed, an ad on TV, the smell of alcohol, a holiday, the weekend, evening time, an invitation to a party… the list literally goes on. I am only putting this out there so that maybe someone who is feeling “triggered” will read this and actively make the decision to stay sober by changing their behaviour this time around. We all need to choose to be sober each and everyday- and we need to put in the work required to recover.
For myself, I completely agree. I won’t let anything be an excuse to drink. Yeah it might sneak up on me and make me freak out, but it’s how I handle it that matters. If i maintain my resources to help me when I’m having a weak moment, I will be persevere.
Triggers are going to happen, it’s how I respond that matters. Today I have no reservations. Nothing is worth what will inevitably happen if I give in to a trigger. Honestly, I don’t even get triggered anymore.
Same. I used to wake up and actually calculate the hours I had in the day before I could start drinking. Basically my entire day was one big trigger lol
I agree. A trigger for me is often something I do myself. I might tell a lie or (until recently) spending time on my own would always lead to strong urges.
If I feel frustrated I might think ‘fuck it’ and get an urge to drink. But urges or cravings are ok as long as you’re strong enough to not follow them. And that is down to the individual and how much you have committed to changing your life.
It’s fucking hard, I know. And who knows what will happen tomorrow. But today I’m not letting any ‘triggers’ or reminders or excuses make me drink. Fuck that shit. 
Early on, i eliminated trigger from my vocabulary. For me, it was just an excuse to drink. Not going back to that life.
We all should remember were we came form what made is choose this new life.
Than we can accept that all these triggers are only tests to make out lives stronger and so better and get us closer to our higher power.
Bless jou all
plenty of excuses over the years to drink but hadnt any reason so i didnt keep on trucking
If being clean and sober is important, we find a way.
If it’s not, we find an excuse.
“Triggers” are temptations. Nothing can make you use or drink, if you don’t want to use or drink.
I don’t like the word “trigger”, because it implies a mechanical relationship between the conditions and reactions. Cause and Effect are “programmed”, the “A gets B” of it on some sort of addiction flow-chart. Dealing with a bad day, or a break-up, or all the other hooks we used to hang our using on, the addict hasn’t been “triggered”. They’ve been tempted.
We are rational creatures. We have the ability to reason and make decisions. We make choices every day. Do I get out of bed? Do I have coffee or tea? Do I do something my SO has asked of me, or do I say “no, do it yourself”. We may be subject to some level of mental conditioning due to our repetitive use of some substance to engage in escapism, but intentional thought can overcome conditioning, and the mind and body reconditioned to respond to temptations in a healthy way.
At least that’s the way I see it. Of course, your mileage may vary.
I definately use the word trigger, but in my mind it generally means normal life things that made me want to drink BEFORE. Now I just laugh at my triggers (most of the time) and move on. Cravings are a similar, but separate thing for me. Cravings seem to be harder for me, but I still let it pass because I KNOW it WILL pass. Cravings are way more sneaky. They come at the oddest times. Recently I was laying in bed one night and my brain visualized a ton of flavored vodka being poured from a gallon container into a smaller bottle. No idea why. Kinda messed with my head for days because I kept having this image all day long. But it didn’t change the way I feel about my sobriety. I control the first drink! That’s MY power! After that first drink I’m powerless. I will NOT give up my power, so I don’t take the first drink.
I never understood any of this in super early recovery. It was a non stop struggle. I’m glad I worked hard and got where I am today. Today, triggers and cravings aren’t an excuse to drink.
Warm weather and summer was my trigger bar b q and parties always seemed like alcohol was needed. However I got an entire different rush being sober in the summer. This was my first time enjoying the season with a clear mind. When it comes to triggers we also have to be mindful of the choices we make that may make us susceptible to triggers.
Yes!! I have said it many times that I was taught that as an alcoholic I am not responsible for the first thought of a drink. At my core I am a drunk. Of course the thought of a drink will come. What I am responsible for is the thoughts that follow that first thought. The “what am I gonna do about it?” Thoughts.
To the untreated alcoholic that first thought (or trigger) comes, and that’s it. They drink. They drink because they have no mental defense against that thought of a drink.
I had triggers or temptations around me all day long and I do almost every day. I am a foodie in food and beverage business. I did not give into bottles of wine at the little shop I stopped after work, I bought some Earl Grey as I intended instead. To me, a trigger comes after my first drink. After that first drink; I can be happy, sad, annoyed…an excuse or trigger is justifying that first drink in my case. Trust me, a bottle of red after the day I had is the easiest excuse but sobriety is about honesty. An excuse is justifying a lie. Today I was strong enough to come home happy, I was able to make that choice. Tomorrow is another day. Hang in there gang, we can do this.
"Another day WON is better than another day ONE😉
Great job!
Awe this makes me so happy 
️
When it comes down to it, days that ended in “y” for me were triggers for me when I was active.
Breathing: 
Day that ends in y:
Permission to Drink with Abandon:
What was I drinking at all those nights? Ultimately feelings in one shape or another.
You know what isn’t going to kill me?
Feelings.
You know what will kill me?
More Booze. Whether it kills me “softly” or takes me out with the fury and immediacy of Thor’s hammer, I know the outcome.
Love that quote
This thread is great. I think it’s so important to emphasise personal responsibility in thinking about triggers-it’s too easy to rationalise and justify drinking and any reasons why it feels like a good idea for me are dangerous.
For me, the ways I excuse my drinking it through my mental health. Thinking, I’ve been having a hard time recently, I’ve been well behaved, my anxiety is high, I deserve a break, it’s just one drink. I’m trying to keep my value system around drinking behaviour solid enough that I can always have an answer to these thoughts. It’s a struggle.
When I talk about triggers it refers to a negative psychological response to an event. The event usually beings up a ton of bad memories and emotions that can result in a spiral into depression. PTSD usually has a “trigger”. It’s a legitimite word as long as it’s clearly defined.
On the flip side, the word is used a lot as an excuse for outrage, etc., especially online. People can be triggered by a person’s haircut they don’t like, or by anything they consider remotely offensive. I think that’s where it gets a bad rep sometimes.
Ok @Yoda-Stevie you know I love your wisdom very much. Yesterday I ended a three year relationship. (with a break of just over 2 months at start of year). We are both drink dependant. Alcoholic. Whatever term you wish to use. I have chosen to change my life albeit with bumps and restarts. My partner (ex) talks the talk but I rarely see any real attempt at change and I can’t do it for him not can I hinder my own sobriety by staying with him. However. Having broken up with him yesterday I was extremely emotional and I did cave in. I had 3 vodkas then was angry with myself and stopped. I guess what I’m asking is. I didn’t say no to the first drink but I did say no to a 4th or 5th or 10th. I’m just wondering what your take on that is. Ironic that I broke up with him because if his inability to want change then completely made a mockery of that