Navigating False Alarms

2:52

Companion Slides

When the brain can't tell past from present — how to respond when someone is triggered.

Key Concepts

  • The brain literally cannot distinguish past threat from present safety
  • Grounding to the present: 'You are here, you are safe, that was then'
  • De-escalation through calm presence, not logic
  • Minimizing known triggers in environments you control
  • Supporting without fixing — the power of being with

Part of

Module 2: How Trauma Shows Up

Recognizing trauma responses in behavior, across ages, in the body, and through a cultural lens.