About Trigger Notes

Grief does not always follow the calendar. Sometimes it comes crashing in when a song, a scent, or a passing thought sets it off. The Trigger Note is a simple tool you can print (download once, print free forever) whenever you need it. Use it to capture those moments and then draw strength from faithful Christian practice.

Trigger Note: How to Use

When to use: Every time something jolts grief into fresh intensity.

What to record:

• Date / time
• What triggered you? (objective description)
• Immediate emotional impact (anger, sadness, longing, etc.)
• Physical reaction (tears, racing heart, withdrawal)

What to do next:

• Open the Journal to today’s entry. (If you don’t have the Journal, open a Bible as your spirit moves you, and trust in God to guide your hands.)
• Look at the inspiration section on the page (Scripture/thought). If it does not resonate for you, work backwards in the Journal to the one that does, or to any other Scripture if you are reading the Bible.
• Apply the realization (truth learned), gratitude (what you can still thank God for), and prayer (speak the need, surrender, or cry of the heart).

A word about gratitude to God in grief

God does not require you to fake gratitude. As explained in the Journal, you should look to the small things for inspiration to practise gratitude. For example:

• The fact that your heart is still beating without you having to think about it
• That your eyes can still focus on these words
• The simple fact that you woke up this morning
• The automatic reflex of blinking

Also, you could try repeating this practice slowly, deliberately:
Your last breath: thank you, God. Now then, this breath: thank you, God. And then - the big leap - your next breath, that small act of faith: thank you, God.

Why a trigger note works

A trigger note:

• Captures spikes: Instead of grief feeling random or chaotic, the trigger is written down and processed.
• Brings you back to engaging with grief rather than just enduring it.
• Builds patterns: Over time, seeing repeated triggers can show growth ("This used to overwhelm me, now I can pray through it").