Content Warnings FTW
There has been a lot of talk recently about trigger warnings, content warnings, and safe spaces. I’ve seen it in my Facebook and Twitter feeds, I’ve experienced it working in a public higher education institution.
I am someone who is extremely appreciative of content warnings, so this is something I’ve really given a lot of thought to. Why do I appreciate them so much?
**Content Warning: partner violence, sexual assault. **
As a survivor of partner violence and sexual assault I appreciate content warnings. I appreciate them, not because I want to avoid talking about the hard topics, but because we live in a society that is full of triggers that are unavoidable.
I appreciate trigger warnings because every day, at least a few times, I have to work hard to keep it together when E is crying and shouting “No, stop, stop!” as I change her diaper and brush her hair.
I appreciate trigger warnings because sometimes (but not always) I get really angry when I’m washing dishes. I was sometimes forced to while he and his friends played Rock Band.
I appreciate trigger warnings because I never know what kind of apologist language I’m going to be exposed to driving to work.
I appreciate trigger warnings because there are some people in my life who take, without any thought to what the consequences might be for the person they are taking from.
I appreciate trigger warnings so that if there is a day where I know a hard conversation is going to be had, I can think about the experiences I have already had and make a conscious decision to avoid specific content that day.
I need trigger warnings where I can get them because a lot of my emotional energy is devoted to keeping it together when a trigger crops up without warning.
So no – I do not ask for content warnings because I want to avoid talking about the hard things. I ask for them because I do want to talk about challenging topics but I also need to be a functioning member of society.
Thank you for sharing this. Content warnings can be such an immense protection, not just so we can avoid when necessary, but so we can prepare.
Any time :). There's nothing that makes your heart race and your breath stop short quite like being blindsided by a trigger. I think we all prefer to not feel that way.
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STOPThank you so very much for illuminating some of the reasons for trigger and content warnings. I share many of the same concerns. I just really appreciate your emphasis on choice, because that's what a content warning provides: a choice to read now or read later, when the reader is mentally and/or emotionally prepared. I think there is a huge misconception (especially in academia) about the message of a content warning--that it encourages avoidance. That those of us who need or value those warnings are so fragile and delicate that we can't face anything negative, scary, violent, etc. I faced violence. So did you. So do many of us. Why shouldn't I have a choice now about when and how I will face more violence? It takes almost no effort whatsoever to provide a content warning, but it drains me for days to be triggered when I read something I wasn't prepared to read. Thanks again for sharing, and I'm sorry for everything you endured. <3
I'm sorry for both of us too. But I also think having that experience has made us more compassionate people and I can't be sad about that.
Had never considered this perspective. Thanks for sharing.