What to Do as a Marketer When You're Triggered

I was triggered by the Boulder, Colo., shooting. My mind immediately regressed back to the Black Lives Matter protests, and my heart began to ache for the AAPI community. However, my personal mental health journey has empowered me to help others through tough times. This is our moment to amplify the messages of those hurting and affected.

Going through this deeply dark time had an impact on my work in and around social media. However, I was able to manage and maintain success throughout my struggles by doing the following: 

• Take advantage of mental health resources offered at work. Time off is of value.
• Get inspired to create by using apps like Pinterest, browsing Adweek and keeping up with creators on Behance. 
• Understand that burnout in the social media industry looks more intense than normal burnout. As we jump off of brand accounts, we tend to feel the need to disconnect from socials altogether but somehow end up checking our own accounts after work. It is a never-ending cycle that does not help your depression or anxiety episodes (at least with my personal experience). I tried limiting my phone/computer screen time and switching out that time for listening to music or watching a documentary.

If you are searching for help or identify with even a fraction of this, here’s the timeline of my own healing with an actionable tip and some steps I took to maintain my career during this time. It is important to break the stigma around discussing mental health. Maybe my story is just what somebody needs to hear to finally get the help that they need.

Denial

As a small child, sadness was an emotion more accessible than happiness. I had panic attacks every day before school until I graduated high school. I did not want to fully face what was going on inside of my mind. I did not care about my physical health. I was tired every single day. I lived in the in-between.

Mental health tip: Give yourself grace. This is a delicate process. In the moment, your mind is racing, but it is important to remember that you are not alone and grace is always there for you.

Anger

I would become upset when confronted by my family. This anger came from a place of embarrassment. I was angry with myself for allowing my mental health to spiral this much. I was suffering in silence. 

Mental health tip: Try journaling through the anger. This will be a helpful tool when you are able to get to therapy. If therapy is not accessible to you, this will still be a very helpful tool.

Bargaining

I prayed a lot during this time. Maybe I would magically heal if I landed that dream job. Surely I would be happy if I went out more? I was willing to do whatever might work.

Mental health tip: Instead of trying “what if” scenarios, try mapping out what happiness looks like for you overall. Write this out in your journal and come back to this when you are on Stage 5.

Depression 

When things were the bleakest, my mother stepped in before things could get any worse. She took me to get a proper diagnosis and therapist. 

Mental health tip: Self-care looks different for everyone. If you are able to watch something that makes you laugh/smile, that’s just as valuable as getting yourself to shower that day. Do what you can.

Acceptance 

I was diagnosed with severe depression and clinical anxiety. It took some time, but I began to feel better. I could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. I am now able to identify my triggers, keep my anxiety under control and accept the love that I deserve. The biggest takeaway from this process of healing is to let others love you. Let them help. 

Mental health tip: Take the journal you’ve started with you to therapy. If you can’t get to therapy, open your journal and look at how far you’ve come. Take actionable steps to achieving those goals you wrote down during Stage 3.

We are humans first. We have to take care of each other. We can do this simply by spreading kindness and love.