As a self-defined Troll Whisperer, I'd like to offer some tips on how I deal with trolls. Here are some truths I hold that help me do this:

1. Trolls are people too.

2. Trolls exist therefore they have a right to be here.

3. There is some evidence in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore that Trolls and Jötunn are two sides of the same coin. The origin of each term, mythologically-speaking, leads back to the same place. I find that fascinating. 

From the wiki entry on Trolls:

A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, troll may have been a negative synonym for a jötunn (plural jötnar). In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human beings.

Later, in Scandinavian folklore, trolls became beings in their own right, where they live far from human habitation, are not Christianized, and are considered dangerous to human beings. Depending on the region from which accounts of trolls stem, their appearance varies greatly; trolls may be ugly and slow-witted, or look and behave exactly like human beings, with no particularly grotesque characteristic about them.

Trolls are sometimes associated with particular landmarks, which at times may be explained as formed from a troll exposed to sunlight. Trolls are depicted in a variety of media in modern popular culture. 

4. If a Troll offends me, that has everything to do with me and nothing to do with the Troll other than they were the vehicle used to point out something within me that needs a little more love. Thank you.

5. Per 4, I am grateful for Trolls.

6. Fear-based responses to a Trolls fear-based post solves nothing.

7. Concern Trolls are still Trolls and have a double layer of trickiness to them. I handle them with a little more care for they know not who they are. Their intentions are genuine and I honour that in them.

8. Per 7, I am also a Troll. It takes one to know one, as they say.

9. Per 8 and 3, I must also be a Jötunn.

10. There are two sides to every story and then there's the truth.

11. Everything is true. It's perspective that is missing. 

12. Compassion and empathy and discernment are the tools of the Troll Whisperer.

13. When I speak to them, I am speaking to a part of myself that is looking for my attention. If I cannot locate that vibe within myself, I simply do not respond. In that case, it isn't my attention they require. And so it is.

The picture above came from an entry on Wikipedia I discovered today as I was researching "Trolls". It depicts the divine goddess Þorgerðr Hölgabrúðr. She is often mentioned together with her sister Irpa although many believe that they are two parts of the same whole. 

I can't say really, it is mythology after all, but it does represent many a truth as it reflects in my own personal journey. I am not just one or the other, I am both and I believe this applies to everyone for I am not alone.

Sometimes I fuck up and get sucked in and that's OK. Some Trolls are very powerful. When that happens, I still thank them for their service but I do it quietly and in the privacy of my own being. My safe place is under a bridge of my own making after all... :)

May all the Trolls who read this be blessed with the courage to know that the Sun will not kill them if they come out of hiding. It's safe to come out. For the benefit of all. Much love to you and your inner Jötunn.