BPD Symptoms and Diagnosis Understanding Borderline Personality Disorder Triggers By Kristalyn Salters-Pedneault, PhD Kristalyn Salters-Pedneault, PhD Kristalyn Salters-Pedneault, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and associate professor of psychology at Eastern Connecticut State University. Learn about our editorial process Updated on February 03, 2022 Learn more." tabindex="0" data-inline-tooltip="true"> Medically reviewed Verywell Mind articles are reviewed by board-certified physicians and mental healthcare professionals. Medical Reviewers confirm the content is thorough and accurate, reflecting the latest evidence-based research. Content is reviewed before publication and upon substantial updates. Learn more. by Daniel B. Block, MD Medically reviewed by Daniel B. Block, MD Daniel B. Block, MD, is an award-winning, board-certified psychiatrist who operates a private practice in Pennsylvania. Learn about our Medical Review Board Print Verywell / Catherine Song Table of Contents View All Table of Contents Defining a Trigger Relationship Triggers Cognitive Triggers Managing Triggers Close Most people with borderline personality disorder (BPD) have triggers—particular events or situations that exacerbate or intensify their symptoms. BPD triggers can vary from person to person, but there are some types of triggers that are very common in BPD. Defining a Trigger You may have heard the term "trigger" but are not sure what it means. Usually, a trigger refers to some event that brings on a major exacerbation of BPD symptoms. The event can be external (something that happens outside of yourself) or internal (something that happens in your mind, like a thought or memory). Triggers are events that make you feel as though your BPD symptoms are "off the charts." Immediately following a trigger, one or more of your BPD symptoms may intensify significantly. Relationship Triggers The most common BPD triggers are related to interpersonal distress, especially relationships. People with BPD often experience intense fear, anger, impulsive behavior, self-harm, and even suicidality when events in a relationship make them feel rejected, criticized, or abandoned (what's known as abandonment or rejection sensitivity). For example, you may feel triggered when you leave a message for a friend and do not receive a call back. Perhaps after placing the call, you wait a few hours but then begin to have thoughts such as, "She's not calling back, she must be mad at me." These thoughts may spiral into thought patterns like, "She probably hates me," or "I'll never have a friend who sticks by my side." With these spiraling thoughts come spiraling symptoms, such as intense emotions, anger, and urges to self-harm. If you are having suicidal thoughts, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 for support and assistance from a trained counselor. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911. For more mental health resources, see our National Helpline Database. Cognitive Triggers Sometimes, you might be triggered by internal events, such as thoughts that seem to come out of the blue. This is particularly true for people who have BPD related to traumatic events like child abuse. For example, a memory or image of a past experience (like a traumatic event or a loss) can trigger intense emotions and other BPD symptoms. However, a memory does not need to be distressing to trigger symptoms. Some people are triggered by memories of happier times, which may remind them that things are not as good in the present. How to Manage BPD Triggers Fortunately, there are things that you can to do help you manage your BPD triggers. Some steps you should take include: Identify your triggers: Triggers are highly individual. The first step in managing your triggers is to know the events, situations, thoughts, or memories that trigger BPD symptoms such as anger or impulsiveness. There are exercises you can use to figure out what your triggers are.Avoid triggering situations: Once you've identified your triggers, you can figure out how to cope with them. You can start by determining whether a particular trigger can be avoided. For example, if you know that watching a specific movie is triggering, you can choose to not watch that movie.Find ways to cope: Many triggers, however, can't be avoided so easily. If you find that some triggers cannot be avoided, you can learn to cope with them by developing an action plan, seeing a therapist, and working on approaching your triggers gradually. A Word From Verywell Understanding the things that can worsen your BPD symptoms is an important part of managing your condition. Consider talking to a mental health professional if you need additional help learning how to identify and cope with your triggers. 2 Sources Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Staebler K, Helbing E, Rosenbach C, Renneberg B. Rejection sensitivity and borderline personality disorder. Clin Psychol Psychother. 2011;18(4):275-283. doi:10.1002/cpp.705 Bungert M, Liebke L, Thome J, Haeussler K, Bohus M, Lis S. Rejection sensitivity and symptom severity in patients with borderline personality disorder: Effects of childhood maltreatment and self-esteem. Borderline Personal Disord Emot Dysregul. 2015;2:4. doi:10.1186/s40479-015-0025-x By Kristalyn Salters-Pedneault, PhD Kristalyn Salters-Pedneault, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and associate professor of psychology at Eastern Connecticut State University. See Our Editorial Process Meet Our Review Board Share Feedback Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! What is your feedback? Helpful Report an Error Other Submit