I cannot read (or watch) things with s\*xual assault or abuse of women/partners. But so many times I’ve picked up a book that looked interesting, flipped through it or started reading it, and come across certain chapters that…trigger me into ptsd, to the point it makes me very angry and bitter and scared about the world, and men. Sometimes I struggle to function from being paralyzed by fear/ptsd. Not good. I’m trying to do my own healing from it and only want to read about positive relationships.
But I’ve been feeling limited to reading tween/teen books because they are less likely to have such unbearably cruel moments. Is there somewhere I can looked up trigger warnings for certain books titles, or do I need to just browse through book reviews and reddit?
by Foreign-Molasses-357
9 Comments
StoryGraph has a content warnings section, scroll down below the blurb and reviews to see them
[Does the dog die](https://www.doesthedogdie.com/) works for a lot of media, I don’t personally use it but know many people who do, no idea if it has a lot of books in it though since it’s based on user input and I don’t know much about the userbase.
On the Storygraph, readers can enter content warnings about books. They have quite an extensive list of specific topics which might be a problem. You can also indicate the severity, like graphic, moderate, or minor. Those warnings are only available if other readers have added them, but it’s the best system I’ve seen in terms of warning about very specific types of issues and the amount.
You need intensive therapy
Stop reading books. Go to therapy.
Seek out Exposure Therapy so you don’t have to go through life walking on eggshells.
If written words trigger your anxiety you need to reach out for help.
Many Goodreads reviewers put it in there, but it’s not consistent and sometimes you have to do some digging.
Also, you should go to therapy if you haven’t already. When I did it, the improvement to my mental health was extraordinary. Good luck.
I see you’re getting other comments in the same vein, but I’ll add to them.
Good for you for working on healing on your own. But, really, you should consider talking with a professional who can help you work through things. There IS healing, and you CAN move past trauma, but it will come so much easier for you with experienced help. Find a therapist you vibe with and trust.