Very true words. Trauma actually transforms how an individual processes information. For instance, extremely traumatic events often not only take long periods of time to process but memories of such events tend to be very disjointed - often stored non-chronologically within the brain. The actual structure of the brain itself also tends to be altered. For instance, It is the job of the amygdala (a small part of the brain within the limbic system) to process emotional learning, especially in regards to the emotion of fear. The amygdala ultimately aids in the survival of the organism by recognizing danger. So when an individual is exposed to a traumatic situation (especially recurring threats) the amygdala becomes extremely efficient at detecting danger and recognizing any situation that resembles danger. In order to activate the amygdala a situation only has to be about 10-20% similar to the traumatic event. So, whereas the neo cortex is good for rational-logical thinking, the limbic system (housing the amygdala) is great for reacting emotionally to situations for the purpose of survival. As such, If a traumatized person feels even remotely threatened, then the limbic system activates, which in turn reduces the persons ability to think clearly and rationalize the situation (as these thought processes come from the neo cortex). There is a term for such an event - it's called "amygdala hijack." Ultimately, being "triggered" is this process of amygdala hijack in action. Being triggered is the amygdala percieving a situation as being threatening because the situation (sometimes only slightly) resembles their own personal traumatizing situation. I hope that made sense to people who got this far.

I think one issue though with the term "triggered" is that it is overused to the point of becoming a meaningless buzz word. People say "I'm triggered" often when they actually mean they are offended, or when they are experiencing a normal emotional response like anger, annoyance, frustration...etc. The true meaning of the word is meant to convey a flashback, a panic attack, emotional paralysis or an overwhelming emotional response, to name a few.

Ok hopefully that wasnt boring for everybody who actually read it lol :)