What a great honour it is to be an Executive Contributor for BRAINZ. Digital Magazine, sharing my experience and wisdom, along with thought leaders and spiritual teachers from across the world. Creating this article, Triggers – Life’s Lesson’s & Break Throughs, I share my life experience, insight and perspective on how triggers can show up in our lives, challenge us, hit hard and take over, but most importantly how triggers can teach us life lessons, going on a deeper dive, experiencing break throughs that can inspire and empower us on the journey through life.

Carl Heath – Former Professional Athlete, Sportsman, Coach, Mentor and Self Published Author With Over 35 Year’s Experience. Founder of The EnergyWize University Of Life, Co-creating Empower 2 Recover Live Events and Conferences Across Canada, Protecting in Supporting Mental Health, Addiction Prevention and Recovery.

Hi and welcome, I’m carl Heath, a former professional sportsman, coach, mentor and self published author with over 35 years experience. Born in Hull, UK in 1968, experiencing family difficulties and separation, growing up in a children’s home from the age of 6 – 15 years (1974-1983), switching off in my last year at school I left with no qualifications and direction, soon to be caught up in alcohol, drugs, crime, fighting and the negative influences of life on the street.  At there age of 17, whilst going through depression, I reconnected with long distance running instilled in me through school, experiencing a mental break down and emotional break through, connecting to the universal flow of potential that has guided me throughout life. With more break throughs ahead, experiencing my greatest shift through boxing, retiring from professional fighting in 1997, I found my true calling working in alternative learning with challenged youth.

What’s Your Release? – Learn To Get High On Your Own Supply! Coaching soccer, working within mainstream schools for many years, then working in alternative learning, I could see how more and more children were struggling with stress, caught up in technology, video gaming and over stimulation, the lack of emotional awareness and increase in challenging behaviour was becoming more prominent. Schools like stress factories, many children and youth unaware and not exercising a positive release. Working with many youth I was seeing the rise of designer labels such as ADHD Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder, young people medicated on prescription drugs. I would need to show young people how movement was medicine, how boxing had given me a positive outlet, was a great stress buster, and had taught me valuable skills for life. When we learn to move, exercise and push through a great workout, we can activate our endorphins, our natural neuro feel good chemicals, learning to get high on our own supply!.

1997: The BoxWize Skills System – Release & Recharge: Seeing the increase in challenging and emotional behaviour playing out in the education system, working in alternate learning with children aged 12 to 16 years, sharing my life experience and journey, I started taking them to the local boxing gym. Then setting up punch (release) bags in a shed at the back of the school, I started developing The BoxWize Skills System, teaching them how to control aggression, release and channel emotional stress and physical energy positively, boosting positive energy and recharging focus.

Switching Off – Becoming Left Brain Dominant: Discovering a concept called brain gym, I was learning about our left and right brain hemispheres, and how through stress, information overload, over stimulation, and the inability to process through our thought, feelings and emotions, our right brain hemisphere can switch off. This leading to blocked pathways in the brain, poor concentration, listening skills and memory, becoming more left brain dominant, stuck in our heads, disconnected from our hearts. Experiencing cognitive dissonance, sensitive when challenged to critically think and change our beliefs, freeze – shutting down and switching off, flight – running away from uncomfortable conversations. Self absorbed by our ego, taking ourselves serious, easily offended, caught up in the external pleasures of the material world. Fascinated by human behaviour, studying stress, human biology and behavior for over 28 years, I created my concept human technology.

Studying Stress, Human Biology and Behaviour For Over 28 Years, Developing My Concept Human Technology

Human Biology – Reaction > Human Technology – Response: Upgrading Our Bright Response Software: Fascinated by human behaviour, studying stress, human biology and behaviour for over 28 years, I created my concept human technology. We are becoming more aware that our human biology and human technology are one. Human Biology – Reaction: Switching off, becoming more left brain dominant, stuck in our heads running our old reactive caveman software struggling to deal with past trauma, stress and fear, many of us can freeze – shut down, flight – run away, fight – overcome by anger or fawn – a people pleaser hiding behind emotions. Many of us running our old reactive caveman software, running a program and a belief system on our internal hard drive and operating system. Moving From Reaction to Response: Switched on and tuned in, using their intuition, learning to stay calm and present, using strength, strategy and skills, developing their ability to respond, the caveman over time successfully harnessing the skills to live, hunt and survive.

Our Electromagnetic Energy System Is Interconnected With The Electromagnetic Universal Flow

Activating Our Human Technology – Bright Response Software: Aware that we are electromagnetic beings, thoughts electric, emotions magnetic and like frequencies, interconnected to the electromagnetic universal flow, our hearts are like transmitters and receivers. Learning to activate our human technology, switching on and tuning in, we can learn to upgrade our bright response software on our internal hard drive and operating system, developing our emotional awareness and heart-mind intelligence.

BoxWize Skills > Brain Gym – Switching On and Tuning In: Integrating brain gym in to BoxWize, I started teaching young people how to activate both left, right and whole brain function, activating human technology, learning to switch on and tune in, accessing your heart-mind intelligence upgrading our bright response software. Developing your ability to respond – responsibility. More present and in the moment, open to feeling, sensing and processing through our thoughts, feelings and emotions, energy in motion, we can develop our emotional awareness, learning to use our heart-mind intelligence.

BoxWize > Download > Ground > Integrate: Learning to BoxWize, developing new skills, listening cognitively, taking in the information, visually see through demonstration, then exercising skills and drills, kinaesthetically feeling, sensing and physically downloading and finding flow. Going through the process to learn, grounding and integrating, over time developing skills for life, education, athletics and sports performance. strong a foundation for life.

Laptop Analogy: Get Your Virus Protection – Chuck Out The Trash: Get yourself a virus protection from external negative influences, learning to chuck out the trash, delete delete, constantly upgrading your bright response software. Clearing old files and past experiences like trauma on our internal hard, boosting your internal operating system.

Triggers – Life’s Lessons and Break Throughs: Now we are more aware of stress and how our old reactive caveman software can run our lives, it’s fascinating to see how people perceive life’s triggers, managing the moments quite often with avoidance. ‘Your triggered’, what’s your problem?, when it can be a shared experience. ‘Your triggered’ when a heated conversation needs resolving. ‘Your triggered’, we need to stop fighting, don’t say what you feel, don’t express your emotions, keep quiet, hold it all in, just bury it and say no more. What I have come to learn is how important our triggers are, it’s how they show up, how our emotions can test us without taking over. How our emotions can be our great teachers, how our thoughts and feelings and emotions, our energy in motion can guide us. When we learn to recognize reaction from response, going through the process, we can learn to use our emotional awareness and heart-mind intelligence.

Going Through Your Personal Battles: In a world where anger and aggression can drive our passion, in a time when you’ve got to have that inner fight, your triggers can fire you through life’s personal battles. The truth is, many of us have lost the fight and drive, asleep at the wheel, before you know it, your tires are flat and you’re going nowhere!. When we learn to become the observer, that we are not our thoughts, feelings and emotions, that life is just a process. When we recognize the value and experience that triggers can bring in to our life’s, finding the heart to face the uncomfortable truth, embrace the charge and feel it through. Triggers are life’s lessons and break throughs that can allow us to learn, grow and release our true inner potential.

Trauma Triggers –The Wounded Child: A place I know well, trauma triggers. When we are deeply impacted by life experience, overwhelmed and troubled by the past, physical, mental, sexual abuse, loss or grief. The wounded child, stuck in the past, the emotional confusion, stories that can hold back our journey of healing and growth. The soldier lost at war, experiencing PTSD, post traumatic stress disorder, a veteran stuck on an invisible battle field,  intrusive images and memories from the past, a trigger from a sound, a sensory activation. Trauma triggers in the moment that can take over, the reactive mind loops reminding us to do our inner work, learning to process and detach old files on our internal hard drive and operating system. Triggers, the subconscious drivers that can impact our future, broken relationships, separating families, leading to homelessness, with a mental health and addictions crises at an all-time high across the world today, with over a 150 million every month, looking for online solutions across the globe.

Parental Triggers – Like The Wild Wild West!: There’s no doubt that being a parent in this technology information age can bring the many stressors and triggers. There’s no handbook or manual, just the influences, support and guidance around us. Through the external influences and drivers around us, access through phones and devices, our children are growing up in a world bombarded by the over stimulation, easy access and the potential negative influences of excessive technology, screen time, video gaming and meltdowns, reactive programming and social conditioning impacting behaviour. Guiding our children through the world of influence, distractions, temptations and chaos, it can feel hands on, gun fire ready to implement some tough love, boundaries, discipline, self-responsibility, respect and teaching good values. Parenting, managing relationships and life, triggered we can get lost in the moment, like a gun fight at the O.K. Corral, bullets flying, a child caught in the cross fire, like the wild wild west, the pain and suffering can hit home. Experiencing separation, co-parenting, overtime we can learn to disarm, coming together, an observant child can go through the process, feeling the response – responsibility,  love and reconnection.

Trigger Traps – Dodging Bullets: Stuck in the entanglement of family dynamics, school or in the work place. Growing up Lacking self-awareness, carrying our reactive patterns of behaviour, personalities and perspectives. The stress of falling out, drama management, negative energy and emotional disconnect. Trapped in an environment, body language projecting, you can feel it, sense it, it’s in the air, an atmosphere and deadly silence. Dodging bullets, emotional triggers, frustration and anger like a shot of adrenaline, or hit with cortisol, anxiety robbing your energy, taking you down. Once you can see the trigger traps, the challenge is to stay responsive, exercise emotional awareness and heart-mind intelligence, find a way through and a way out, changing your environment. Learning to break free, letting go and moving on, growing through the process.

Triggered, Fired Up For a Good Shoot Out: When there’s a little friction in the kitchen, something is brewing, there’s something in the air, you can feel it, sense it, there’s a buildup driving you inside, a need to say something. Reactivity, body language, the look in the eyes, the wrong choice of words, a slip of the tongue, the bullets are loaded and you’re triggered for a good shootout. It’s time to call it out, get if off your chest, it’s better out than in, with some harsh words firing in, the bullet hit’s a nerve, the truth can hurt, with potential fallout and emotional damage that needs repairing. A heated conversation, challenging our emotional awareness, managing the ego that’s easily offended, the sensitivity, feeling it through, allowing stuff to come to the surface, triggering an idea, co creating something new, feeling a sense appreciation, gleaning new found perspective and wisdom for the future. Triggers in business, leadership, coaching and mentorship. Being open to receiving, the uncomfortable reality that comes with the challenge to not take it personal, the conflict of the ego, the process of allowing, your emotions intelligence guiding you in the right direction. Exercising the art of letting go, when time is the healer, for those of us holding on, unforgiving, it’s like taking a poison and expecting somebody else to suffer. 16 years of working as a doorman in pubs and club, when alcohol starts loading the bullets, a strong presence and good communication can disarm a potential shoot out or sometimes the triggers been pulled and you’ve got to manage the gun fight.

Pulling The Trigger – Hitting It Home: Sports, Coaching and Mentorship:  NHL Hockey: When emotions are running high, there can be triggers in the moment, a release, an instant shoot out, an outburst or a good in your face swear fest. Often, like in NHL hockey, when there’s friction, that shot of adrenaline, when it’s time to go, pulling the trigger, the lids off, the gloves are down and it’s game on, it’s fight time, more often than not ending in respect and good sportsmanship. Playing semi-professional football-soccer back in my home city of Hull in the north of the UK, it was intense training on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and Saturday afternoon it was game on. Working class lads, tough characters, competitive games played at high intensity. Your reputation on the line, it was physical, challenging and demanding, you was in the battle, in the moment, out of control the trigger is pulled and you’re in the fight. Red card, off you go, your fighting your case on the side lines with good fine for good measure. Boxing amateur and professional it was next level, the self-discipline, just you, your fear and the drive. Early morning runs and intense training, sparring sessions that would hit hard, test your mindset, your heart and the gut check, how much did you want it. The big fight, fear of the unknown,  you’re ammunition loaded, you’re ready, into the ring you go, ding ding the bell rings and it’s go time. In control, you’re in the moment, fired up, you’re in the battle, first to pull the trigger, you hit the target, every round, every second a moment in time, managing the pressure, adrenaline hiding the pain, your in the fight, your in the battle to win the war. Coaching over the years and retiring from boxing, I would enjoy the challenge of training and coaching local football-soccer teams. Training the team, getting your soldiers ready for game time. Firing them up with a good team talk, then sending them out in to battle, the field of play, a true test of mental, emotional and physical strength, in a game that can expose you, the distractions or being outplayed. A soldier being beaten or wounded in battle, in the moment, making a decision, calling out a situation, you pull the trigger, bringing on reinforcements. Half time team talk, looking for the win, making those decisions, uncomfortable changes, firing things up, hitting your point home. Coaching and mentoring different personalities, some players need a hug, some need a knuckle sandwich and words of encouragement, and some need that look in the eye, a truth bomb and a straight forward rocket up the jacksy!.

Triggered By Betrayal – Loading The Bullets With No Shame: Triggered by betrayal was a new for me, at a time in my life we’re betrayal could have taken over the wheel, taken me off track, hitting a major roadblock, it could have been a crash and burn moment in life. I’ve always lived by a code of conduct, your word is your honour, an handshake, integrity and that look of trust in the eyes that always seals the deal. So let me share my journey of betrayal with the hope my experience can shine a light on common topic of conversation. Developing a relationship I could see somebody in a position of leadership, somebody stuck in a corporate company with a greater vision to build his own brand and company. Bringing a lifetimes work and a wealth of wisdom, years of investment, commitment and goals, there was great potential for me to collaborate, with a verbal agreement and blind trust allowing the financial control, I didn’t see this one coming. Corporate the stress, his work load taking over, our partnership was flagging, commitment drifting, a lack of energy, will and desire, unfortunately I was working with a brand that had become a side hustle with a big front, an ego booster to share at meetings, to carry on those corporate travels. End of a development phase in sight, lack of communication, suspicious moves behind the scenes, flipping the script, dirty tricks and dishonesty, money and trust taken over by greed, temptation and opportunity too good to deny. Calling for a meeting, finances and investment, I hear the words ‘It’s all over, there’s nothing left!. No meeting, no communication, cut off, left high and dry.

Preparing The Reactive Triggers, Looking for Ammunition to Use Against Me: Trying to work things out, where’s the investment?, no communication, disconnect, trying to call out the truth, work things out was met, I was met with arrogance and ignorance all wrapped up in denial. The look in the eyes, no emotional investment, just a dead look of greed. Betrayal, loading the bullets with no shame, preparing the reactive triggers, looking for ammunition to use against me. Staying in control was a great challenge, managing that feeling of wanting to put somebody’s lights out, like back in time before the discipline of boxing, developing work and BoxWize. Asking myself, was it desperation or was it just a privileged twat from a dog eat dog corporate world of competition, patterns of behaviour lacking truth and integrity. Searching for the truth, gathering proof and evidence, accessing a lawyer, accounts completed, it was clear to see. Caught in the act with an unwillingness to take responsibility, avoidance met with justifying lies, digging a deeper hole, lacking the emotional capacity, betrayal is a tough one to get out of.

Why Did I attract This Situation? What’s The Universe Teaching Me?, What Do I Need to Learn?. One thing I know for sure is when you seek the truth, your heart will always guide you through the process. Having a good meeting with myself, questions arising, so why did I attract this situation?, what’s the universe teaching me?, what do I need to learn?. Switched on and tuned in, using intuition and gaining insight, accessing the universal downloads, grounding and integrating through the process, I would need to go deeper, on the deep dive through deception. Grounding and going deeper, experiencing an ocean of emotions, feeling through the energy is in motion, going on a deep dive through deception, emotions like teachers, experience teaches wizdom, knowledge and new found skills. Coming back to earth, feeling grounded, taken for a ride your now back in the driving seat, hands on the wheel, leaving the past behind, my hearts passion driving me through. Moving on, moving from reaction to response, from the head back to the heart, growing through the process, feeling inspired to share my perspective and insight, writing this article, sharing how life’s triggers can take us on a journey, teaching us valuable lessons, learning to do our inner work, going deeper, experiencing life’s great break throughs.

Has you can see, taking the road less travelled, over many years of learning, enduring the tough times and personal challenges, creating The EnergyWize University Of Life, my concept human technology, developing The BoxWize Skills System, established in 1997, still going strong, going online as a training system in 2026, 30 years in development in 2027.

You can check out Carl’s work at The EnergyWize University Of Life – energywize.ca

Co-creator of The Empower 2 Recover Foundation –  empower2recover.com /

Co-creator of The GRC Project – Global Recovery Community / globalrecoverycommunity.com