Triggers Don't Mean You're Broken: I Closed the Door and Fell ApartAwaken to Purpose Podcast
I went back to Jamaica to bury my uncle. I thought I was healed. I thought I was further along. And then I closed a bathroom door and fell completely apart.In this raw, unscripted episode of the Awaken 2 Purpose Podcast, I sit down with my co-host, activist, clinician, and survivor Ms. Regina Dyson, for one of the most honest conversations we've ever had about what healing actually looks like in real life. Not on a stage. Not in a highlight reel. In a bathroom in Jamaica, at a family funeral, surrounded by people who still believe we must have liked it.This episode is for every survivor who thought they were "over it" and got blindsided by a trigger they didn't see coming. It's for the one who wonders if they're going backwards. It's for the one who has done the therapy, done the work, done the praying, and still found themselves on the floor.Here's what we cover in this episode:Why triggers don't disappear, they just take up less space over time, and what that actually looks like after decades of healing work. The truth about therapy, Ms. Regina has been in therapy for nearly 50 years and is still doing the work at 72. There is no finish line. How trauma lives in the body, why your shoulders, your nervous system, and your hyper-vigilance are not personal failings but survival responses. What EMDR did for Larissa's body and why Jamaica sent her shoulders right back up. Why setting boundaries with family is not unforgiveness, it is wisdom. How the father wound shapes the way survivors seek love, accept mistreatment, and go silent in intimate relationships. Why attachment to things is often a trauma response, and what it means when people leave but your stuff stays. The moment Larissa brought her firstborn son home and realized her trauma had followed her into motherhood. Why survivors statistically don't live as long, and what we owe ourselves by choosing to heal with intention. A call to every person still suffering in silence: you have to get it up and out of your body.This is not a polished performance. This is two survivors, one in her 40s, one in her 70s, sitting on a couch, telling the truth, and refusing to let shame have the last word.Healing is not linear, it is not a destination, and you are not broken because something still hurts.Reassign the shame.If this episode spoke to you, share it with someone who needs to hear it. Leave a comment below and tell us, what trigger caught you off guard on your healing journey?Subscribe to Awaken 2 Purpose Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and all major podcast platforms.New episodes every week.RESOURCES & SUPPORTIf you or someone you know is processing trauma or in need of mental health support:RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673 | rainn.orgCrisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI): 1-800-950-6264 | nami.orgJamaica: Victim Support Unit — 1-888-VICTIM (842-8466)💛 Let’s Connect:Instagram: @journey2freeTikTok: @journey2freeFacebook: facebook.com/journey2freeSubstack: thedefiantdisruptor.substack.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/larissarhone🙏🏾 Want to Support the Mission?CashApp: $Journey2Free Zeffy: - https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/give-the-gift-of-healing-help-a-child-survivor-thrive to donation/sponsorship pageYour giving helps us support survivors, host retreats, and create life-giving content.💙 Subscribe, share, and stay awhile.Your voice matters, your healing matters.Let’s heal forward, together.**DISCLAIMER: Episodes may contain graphic details. ***Please be advised - Maybe triggering to trauma survivors ~ If triggered, please call your local sexual assault hotline.***