Trigger Shift
Discover how to access hidden emotions, heal unresolved traumas, and regulate your nervous system using a simple but powerful practice.
Stress, emotional dysregulation, and unresolved traumas are all too common in today’s fast-paced world. Many people struggle to manage their nervous systems and find themselves stuck in patterns of reactivity, stress, or avoidance. But what if you could use those very triggers, the cravings, the discomfort, and the emotional pain, as tools for healing and growth?
That’s the idea behind Trigger Shift, a somatic technique created by Daniel Tyack. It’s a practice designed to dig deep into your emotional and nervous system patterns, leveraging the natural processes of your body to heal, regulate, and transform.
Whether you’re new to somatic work or looking for a powerful addition to your healing journey, Trigger Shift offers a profound and tactical way to change your emotional state and access subconscious stories that may be holding you back.
What is Trigger Shift?
Trigger Shift is a simple, duplicable protocol that combines intentional abstinence, dopamine activation, and emotional integration to regulate your nervous system and reveal hidden emotional stories. This practice is rooted in the idea of creating contrast, deliberately juxtaposing negative emotional sensations with positive ones to access subconscious material and reset your nervous system.
At its core, Trigger Shift is about leaning into discomfort. By intentionally allowing yourself to feel triggered, dysregulated, or emotionally raw, and then introducing dopamine to create a contrasting positive sensation, you set the stage for deep emotional and neurological transformation.
How It Works
Trigger Shift operates on multiple levels to address both surface-level emotional regulation and deeper, subconscious healing. The practice is as effective for calming a nervous system in the midst of stress as it is for uncovering suppressed memories and traumas. Here’s how it works:
1. Intentional Abstinence Creates Emotional Sensitivity
The process begins by abstaining from a tool or behavior you use to regulate discomfort. This could be sugar, nicotine, alcohol, media, or any other habit that helps you “check out” or soothe yourself. By removing these coping mechanisms for 8-12 hours, your nervous system becomes more sensitive to dysregulation, creating a heightened emotional state.
This step brings unresolved patterns and emotions closer to the surface, making them more accessible for processing.
2. Contrast Brings Subconscious Stories to Light
When you’re in a heightened emotional state, the next step is to introduce dopamine, the body’s natural “feel-good” chemical. This creates a contrast between the negative sensations of dysregulation (e.g., stress, anxiety, discomfort) and the positive sensations of dopamine activation.
This juxtaposition forces your nervous system into a state of awareness, often revealing hidden emotions, subconscious stories, or past traumas that were previously playing in the background unnoticed.
3. Emotional Processing and Integration
As these hidden stories or emotions come to light, the goal is to stay with them, allowing them to surface without judgment or suppression. By holding space for these emotions while simultaneously experiencing the dopamine-induced feelings of contentment and happiness, you create an environment for emotional processing and integration.
The Science Behind Trigger Shift
The Trigger Shift Protocol leverages several key principles of nervous system regulation and neuroplasticity:
Cortisol Opens Neuroplasticity
When you abstain from your usual coping mechanisms, your body’s cortisol levels rise. While cortisol is often labeled as a “stress hormone,” it also plays a critical role in opening up neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to rewire and create new patterns.
Dopamine Activation Enhances Contrast
Introducing dopamine through techniques like rapid eye movement creates a stark contrast with the cortisol-induced dysregulation. This contrast highlights subconscious patterns or stories that may have been normalized but are no longer serving you.
Juxtaposition as a Healing Tool
The simultaneous experience of negative and positive sensations forces your nervous system to reconcile the two. This often results in a “revelation moment,” where suppressed emotions, memories, or beliefs come to light.
Somatic Processing Anchors New Patterns
By staying present with the emotions and stories that surface, you give your nervous system the opportunity to process and release them, creating space for new, healthier patterns to take root.
How to Practice Trigger Shift
Step 1: Set the Stage
- Choose Your Focus: Decide which tool or behavior you’ll abstain from (e.g., sugar, nicotine, media).
- Prepare for Discomfort: Plan to abstain for at least 8-12 hours to allow your body to enter a state of emotional sensitivity.
- Create a Safe Space: Find a quiet, comfortable environment where you won’t be disturbed.
Step 2: Lean Into the Discomfort
- As you abstain, observe the discomfort or cravings that arise. Pay attention to where you feel these sensations in your body (e.g., tightness in your chest, knots in your stomach).
- Name the sensations or emotions without judgment, simply acknowledging their presence.
Step 3: Activate Dopamine
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- Rapid Eye Movement
Sit comfortably and begin rapidly moving your eyes up and down in small, steady movements. This helps trigger dopamine release while keeping your body slightly “worked up.”
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- Rapid Eye Movement
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- 4-7-8 Breathing (Optional)
If you feel too overwhelmed, use the 4-7-8 breathing technique to calm your nervous system slightly and trigger more dopamine:
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- Inhale through your nose for 4 seconds.
- Hold for 7 seconds.
- Exhale slowly for 8 seconds.
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- 4-7-8 Breathing (Optional)
Step 4: Witness the Contrast
As dopamine begins to flood your system, notice the interplay between the positive sensations and the discomfort.
Simply acknowledge the stories that come through. Do not buy into any fears or negative emotions that come up. These are just a felt experience that’s passing through. They are not who you are as a person.
Stay present with whatever arises, this might include memories, emotions, or even physical sensations. Allow them to flow without trying to control or suppress them.
Step 5: Integration
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- Reflect: After the practice, take a few minutes to journal about what came up. Ask yourself:
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- What emotions or stories surfaced?
- How do I feel now compared to before?
- Did I notice any patterns or memories?
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- Reflect: After the practice, take a few minutes to journal about what came up. Ask yourself:
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- Ground Yourself: Place a hand on your heart or belly and take a few deep, natural breaths.
- Nourish Your Body: Consume something warm and comforting, like tea or soup, to signal closure and safety to your nervous system.
Real-Life Results
People who have practiced Trigger Shift report:
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- Feeling calmer and more balanced after stressful situations.
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- Gaining clarity about subconscious patterns or unresolved traumas.
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- Accessing deep emotional wounds that they were previously unaware of.
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- Developing greater resilience and self-regulation over time.
Hey gang, I had a super killer session last night with a protocol I’m calling Trigger Shift. I’m still developing the process but the core of it is there and it works great!
A fantastic way to back door into your subconsciousness and access your wounded self.
Has anybody ever tried any processes like that? This one came to me in a bit of a flash vision. 🚀
Thank you brother 🙌🏿✨️