You may have chuckled when you heard your pal mockingly say they were triggered, but do you even know what the word means?

One of my pet peeves is when I hear jokes about the word "triggered". When people ignorantly state that someone who does not eat meat hears of a hamburger they are "triggered". Or people sarcastically preface a political piece with "trigger warning: this may offend special snowflakes", I know they don't understand the implications of their words. If you are someone who has picked up this socially trendy phrase, shared the memes, or made fun of someone you don't even know just because you can, this piece is for you.

Using the label "triggered" is not a joke or a punchline. It's purpose is to refer to any type of stimulus that evokes memories of traumatic events.

Would you ever joke about being "triggered" in front a combat veteran? An individual who volunteered to serve their country and many are still fighting, though not against a physical enemy but their own mind and memories through Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. I'm not going to congratulate you if you thought, "Oh, of course I would never disrespect a service member like that." My hope is that common sense and human decency would prevent anyone from purposefully triggering a combat veteran with some sort of combat related stimulant.

Yes or No: Combat veterans the only group of people that experience Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder? No.

Without belittling or undermining the voluntary service and experience of service members, it's essential to recognize that there are people all around you that have also experienced a variety of traumatic events. Regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, traumatic events are just that: traumatic. A fact that is often overlooked is that everyone handles these events differently. Some may not be significantly or visibly changed, while others cannot get their mind off it. It's not our place to judge, assume, or prod. Everyone's background holds unimaginable history and it is our job, as members of the human race, to understand that.

Be empathetic. Be the shoulder to cry on. Be the friend to laugh with.

Don't be the person that forgets that you never truly know what others are going through or have been through.

They may be suffering quietly, but that doesn't mean their whispers shouldn't be heard.

I recently went to a military leadership panel where the central point of discussion was mental illness.

There are two standout points I heard:

1) Stigma = Cowardice. The stigma against mental illness is utterly ridiculous. If you are scared to admit mental illness exists and affects lives, you should rethink what has led you to believe that. There needs to be a change in mental health awareness and the attitude towards the vast population of people mental illness touches.

2) Recovery and help are strong actions, not weak. There are resources and tools available. Help others help you find the value in your life. If you see someone struggling and they don't want formal help, the panel consensus was to "just be present for them".

You don't have to be a Navy SEAL to be traumatized, adversity can impact anyone.

Furthermore, it's not just the "triggered" joke. It is so much more. The societal cowardice against mental illness is hurting our people. Our children, our soldiers, continue to be beat down by the idea that you always have to be okay. It's okay not to be okay. It's okay to have bad days. It's okay to be a survivor. It's okay to have a mental illness. It's okay to be you. And it's okay to just be.

"The views expressed, [in this article] reflect personal opinions of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or position of the United States Naval Academy, the United States navy, any federal agency, the Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government.”