Trigger warnings are often included in shows and films, but not everyone makes use of them. #Triggered talked with two different organisations about whether to use trigger warnings or not. Saskia from VLESP thinks we shouldn’t use them, while Dr. Dan Reidenberg from SAVE thinks it’s better to include a trigger warning, “Having some warning is better than having no warning and traumatizing someone," Reidenberg says.
If you’ve been following our blog, you might have noticed that at the top of (almost) every article, we write TW. This abbreviation stands for 'trigger warning' and is meant for people who may be triggered by reading the articles we post. For example: if we write TW – eating disorder, we provide a warning about the difficult subject the article discusses for people who have suffered from an eating disorder. So that they can decide not to read the article to not get triggered.
Trigger warnings might attract vulnerable people There are mixed opinions about trigger warnings, though. Saskia from VLESP (the Flemish Centre of Expertise for Suicide Prevention) thinks they shouldn’t be used when it comes to articles about suicide. “I think the question that we have to ask ourselves is: do we want to prevent people from being shocked by what they read, or do we want to prevent suicides? We have to think about the target audience that’s suicidal. We know that people who experience suicidal thoughts are attracted to books, movies, shows and websites that discuss these topics. Because of a trigger warning, suicidal people can tend to watch or read these faster, with possible copycat behaviour as a result. We don’t want that to happen.”
“A trigger warning can be helpful for people who have been suicidal in the past and don’t want to be remembered of it. It can also protect people who have lost someone to suicide from painful images. But if we think about that suicidal target audience, I think it’s more important to not include a trigger warning," Saskia explains.
“What we do recommend is to end every article, show, book and so on with a message of hope. Refer to a helpline or website that can help people with mental illness or suicidal tendencies.”
"Trigger warnings do give the viewer notice that they are about to or might be exposed to something that could be potentially harmful to them." - Dr. Dan Reidenberg from SAVE
Protect the viewer American Dr. Dan Reidenberg from SAVE (Suicide Awareness Voices of Education) thinks differently about this. “Having something is always better than having nothing. Trigger warnings do give the viewer notice that they are about to or might be exposed to something that could be potentially harmful to them. So in having them, they help at least minimally. I wouldn’t argue with what VLESP says, but I also feel that having some warning is better than having no warning and traumatizing someone.”
SAVE created tips for watching the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why to ensure that parents, teachers and adults working with youths would had some guidance on how to address the issues in the series with the youngsters who were watching it. “Suicide contagion is relatively rare, but it is more frequently seen among youth," says Dr. Reidenberg. “I wish the show hadn’t been so graphic and sensational in their depiction of the suicide at the end of the first season.”
“The Papageno effect discusses the concept of including a message of hope in stories about suicide. The idea is that when you include these hopeful messages, that treatment works, that there is help and that recovery is possible, we see better outcomes. The more we can include something along these lines, the better," Dr. Reidenberg ends.
Our decision If you’ve read any of our previous articles, you might have noticed that we still make use of trigger warnings, even though the suicide hotline of Belgium advised us otherwise. We talked with different people, like Dr. Reidenberg, and found that everyone has a different opinion on the topic.
We debated whether or not to include these trigger warnings, but decided that we don’t want to shock any of you with any of the topics we discuss on this blog. Some testimonies can be difficult to read through, since they talk about a lot of painful things that have happened to people in the past.
We don’t want to trigger anyone, but we also want to make these topics more discussable. We want you to know that it’s alright to have gone through struggles of your own and that everyone should be proud to have lived through them and still be here. The testimonies we post, show that it does get better. There is help out there for everyone.
That’s why we also decided to include a link to Belgium’s suicide hotline (1813 or www.zelfmoord1813.be) and a link to all national helplines. If you ever think about suicide or self-harm, or are in need of a conversation, don’t hesitate to contact them.
Text and image: © Janne Schellingen
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