both parent and child, where every moment is a meeting of spirits, and
both parent and child appreciate that each dances on a spiritual path
that’s unique, holding hands yet alone. Coming from this realization, we
respond to each other creatively instead of reacting destructively.DISCOVER YOUR EMOTIONAL INHERITANCE
Each of us is triggered on a daily basis by all kinds of things. As parents,
we are especially susceptible to being triggered because our children are
continually around us and in constant need of us.
However, the next time your children trigger a mood in you, instead of
reacting out of frustration, sit with your reaction to see what the trigger
is about. This willingness to look within, which doesn’t require
introspection into the cause of your mood, just the simple awareness that
it comes from within your own self and not from the other person’s
actions, will enable you to suspend your thoughts long enough to shift
out of reactivity and craft a response that’s more grounded.
Most of us are able to identify our triggers on a superficial level, such
as, “I get triggered when my child disrespects me,” “I get triggered when
my child doesn’t do his homework,” or “I get triggered when my child
dyes her hair.” These are the surface reasons we are triggered. But what
in us is actually being triggered? What, on an elemental level, are we
experiencing?
To be triggered is to be in resistance to whatever may be happening in
our life. By reacting, we are saying, “I don’t want this situation; I don’t
like the way things are.” In other words, when we resist the way life
manifests itself in our children, our intimate partner, or our friends, it’s