I'm being triggered

[ForeverRestless]

I've been trying to avoid and "push down" these two triggers that are happening to me lately, but I just can't deny them anymore. Is this normal for the Twin Flame journey? I'll tell you what I'm experiencing.

Two female friends I love dearly and have a lot of admiration and respect for are in extremely happy, blissful relationships right now. Both were previously in very bad relationships. Friend 1 was dating a man for three years whom she lived with, and he had a child with a previous partner. She went on a beach vacation with his family last summer and not two weeks after returning home, she found out her boyfriend had cheated on her with the mother of their child. It was devastating. It was one of those back-and-forth breakups but she managed to cut things off by winter. On New Year's Eve, she met a new man with whom everything was harmonious and blissful from the start. Their relationship has moved forward steadily and six months later, it's obvious they are very much in love. Her new boyfriend committed to her pretty much immediately and makes a point to show how devoted he is to her (in a non-creepy way). It all sounds well and good, but here's the problem: I've never seen another man who looks so much like my Twin Flame. I find myself insanely attracted to him, though not in a way that I would ever try to move in on him. It's just that he's very handsome and looks so much like my TF, and every time I see photos of them together, it reminds me of TF, and it triggers the pain knowing that a man who looks so much like TF committed whole-heartedly to my friend. It is just a reminder of how my TF ran from our connection.

Friend No. 2 has also had her fair share of relationship ups and downs. She was even engaged before, and moved across the country with her man, but he eventually dumped her. She came back to our city and restarted her life. She's been dating a ton but everything seems to go wrong. The guys stop calling, they try to use her, one guy sexually assaulted her, another may have been an actual criminal and she was in a very scary situation with him in which she had to call the police. Her most recent guy was a narcissistic elitist who had just made partner in a huge financial firm. They dated about a month and were almost immediately "boyfriend and girlfriend." She said she thought he was the man she would marry. But when the time came to have his big party to celebrate making partner, he did not invite her. So my friend logged on to a dating app to get some breathing room and keep her options open, then she met a new man. They've been basically inseparable for two weeks. He's met her mom, they've gone on a lake vacation. They are talking about future plans, traveling abroad in the fall, etc. She's blissful, and they are very much committed. Here's the catch: This man is foreign. He's from the same country as my TF. In fact, he's from the same city as my TF. He could even have friends in common with him. And the way my friend describes their romantic connection... she says it's better and more fulfilling than anything she's ever had with a man. She said she didn't know things could feel like this, that she knows it's right, etc. etc. It's a huge trigger point for me for several reasons. 1.) Because she's dating a man from my TF's city and is blissfully happy. It's hard not to be reminded of TF. 2.) Because this man committed to her right away and my TF ran. 3.) Because I question my grip on reality and the validity of my experience because a man from the same country and culture as my TF is providing my friend with a similar romantic experience. Great communication, harmonious sex, warm and happy exchanges, enjoying all the same activities, etc. I find myself wondering if I had a templated experience that men from this country create for all women they date. And as if I was replaceable. That TF just recreated our same dynamic with the next girl that came along, and that my female friend's new foreign boyfriend has the same relationship "tool kit," and is just giving her a romantic experience that's common in his culture. And of course that would mean that he could have offered that romance to any woman, not just my friend.

I realize that all the analysis is ludicrous and I'm not saying I believe that thread of logic. But what I'm trying to point out is I'm being triggered very heavily by two men that I cannot avoid being reminded of my Twin Flame. And as much as I love these two female friends and am happy for them, every time they talk about or display their happiness, I feel the searing pain of my own loss. I want to talk to my friends about their relationships but it actually hurts to do so. I feel very jerked around by the universe and I don't know how to be there for them as a friend while simultaneously keeping my emotional pain to a manageable level. I'm not sure I've ever felt so stuck in this way, and I'm experiencing it with two friends at the same time. It seems like too big a coincidence.

If you think this is divinely orchestrated or scripted, please tell me why. What am I supposed to learn from these experiences? How am I supposed to grow as a result? What is my task to overcome? Some sort of association or attachment? The thought process that puts TF in a category with others? Is this part of my journey meant to show me that he is an INDIVIDUAL and I cannot lump him in with any other earthly experience (and I do tend to put rules around things like, "all men do this")? Any more spiritually advanced folks on this forum: if you have insights into this very heavy trial I'm experiencing, please let me know.

Thank you so much and blessings

[wolfgaze]

Well, the very fact that you can even be 'triggered' by these circumstances is indicative that there is unprocessed/unresolved emotional energy within you associated with this individual (TF) - which is quite understandable. So you might ask, why would the Universe put you through such circumstances? For the very reason that you will experience this sensitive emotional energy being stimulated and brought to the surface where you are more or less 'forced' to have to fully experience it and consciously process it. As uncomfortable as this may be, this is what you must go through (internally) in order to heal yourself and eventually bring about your liberation from the hurting/suffering you've been experiencing. Try to imagine your friends were not experiencing these circumstances - that sensitive emotional energy is still present and residing within you. Your natural reaction may have been to push it down/away, to avoid consciously confronting it fully and head on (which would seem scary and too painful). So here the Universe comes along and decides to orchestrate some circumstances that are going to help you with this challenging internal process and cause you to experience a reaction which ultimately is going to serve to contribute to your conscious growth/evolution and help secure a higher state of being for you. In truth, your Soul and the Universe are one in the same at the highest level and cannot be separated. So you may find it helpful to mentally practice temporarily stepping outside of your perspective and try to imagine why your Soul may wish for you to go through this experience and such circumstances in the present - try to contemplate what higher purpose could lie behind this... When you can 'shift' the light in which you perceive these matters/circumstances - you will simultaneously alter/affect your internal reaction to them.

I'll share with you a significant personal experience of being 'triggered' that I went through in my own life. Throughout much of my adolescence and early adulthood I struggled with feelings/emotions stemming from not accepting myself - you could say self-rejection. I had to bury a lot of this sensitive emotional energy that was generated over the years so that I could continue to 'get by' and survive my life experience. Well in my mid/late 20's I found myself going through a spiritual awakening over a 5 year period and during the earlier part of this time frame - I got involved in a relationship that lasted about 4 months. I was not 'in love' with this individual, and the relationship was not all that great/rewarding - however when this person understandably decided to call it 'quits', I had the most unexpected/unanticipated reaction. This experience happened during a critical point in my life journey and it had the effect of 'triggering' all of the stored sensitive emotional energy I had created over the years stemming from feelings of non-acceptance/self-rejection. It was so confusing to go through this initially because my reaction to the surface level circumstances did not make sense to me - how could I feel so terrible and distraught over the ending of a relationship that I didn't even place much value on? It took me many weeks to process the intense emotional energy that would surface. It was only in hindsight that I came to understand exactly what had transpired wthin me and more importantly - why it had happened and what higher purpose it served. I had to release/purge all that stored emotional energy that I had been carrying around with me and it was like the Universe put me in those circumstances in order to facilitate that important internal process and cause me to go through something which would ultimately end up contributing to my purification and to freeing/liberating me. One other element of this story and an example of how the Universe works/operates in mysterious ways - the individual I had dated had gotten to know my best friend (and roommate at the time) better during the course of our relationship. The two of them eventually ended up getting together and dating - 2 years later they got married and now have a child together. I'm happy for them (my close friend in particular) and I think it's so interesting how a series of events/circumstances ended up having such a significant impact in the lives of three individuals.

I know it's painful and uncomfortable - but try your best to allow yourself to fully experience the weight of the sensitive emotions that are surfacing as a result of these circumstances. No matter how intimidating it seems and no matter how unpleasant it feels at times - always remind yourself that this is not a permanent condition you are enduring through and it will pass....

Regards,
~WOLF

[Angel44]

Sounds like you still have unresolved emotions. Have you worked through your feelings for TF or suppressed them? Once you do your work and experience a rise in consciousness, nothing or no one should be able to trigger you, including TF. After posting earlier today about my growth, my guides repeatedly tried to test me with strong signs, songs, numbers, and synchs. I just smiled and said "yes, I will always love you" I felt NO pain or negative emotions whatsoever.

You can't run from this connection, you have to do your work, otherwise you will continue to feel triggered by tests.

[Awakened Queen]

Triggers are part of the process. I used to see people who looked like my twin all the time. And it would trigger these uncomfortable emotions for me, just like it's doing for you. It's a way to help you heal your deep wounds. Just go with the flow. Don't try to fight it. Focus on your healing. Keep a journal and write down these triggers to help you recognize them. If something bothers you, write it in your journal. Let it all out. If you need to cry, cry. Releasing that pain is a way to heal from it. Soul connections trigger us to help us.