How I Release Emotional Triggers: The 5-Step Reset Process

How I Release Emotional Triggers: The 5-Step Reset Process

If something can trigger you, it means you’re walking around with a loaded gun. It’s not everyone else’s job to tiptoe around you—it’s your job to unload that gun. That’s why I created a tool called the Reset Process. 

This is the same process I’ve used to move through betrayal, loss, frustration, and high-stakes stress without carrying the emotional baggage that usually comes with it. It’s not about suppressing your emotions. It’s not about breathing through the moment and hoping it passes. This process gets to the root cause and releases the trigger entirely—so it never controls you again. 

Most People Manage Triggers. This Process Eliminates Them. 

When you’re triggered, you’re not in control. Your nervous system is. You might grit your teeth, feel a wave of anxiety, or lash out without thinking. That energy doesn’t come from now—it’s usually tied to old, unresolved threats stored in the body. The Reset Process doesn’t just manage these reactions. It removes them. 

You’ll be able to stand in front of someone who hurt you—or challenges you—and choose exactly how you want to respond, without old emotions taking over. That’s real freedom. 

I’ve used this process on major business betrayals, stolen money, painful family moments—you name it. And every time, I come out with more peace, more clarity, and no emotional weight dragging behind me. 

The Reset Process: A Step-by-Step Guide 

Step 1: Feel the Trigger 

Start by identifying something that triggers you. It could be as simple as someone cutting you off in traffic or as deep as a memory from your past. Sit with the feeling. Pick one specific moment and replay it in your mind. 

Now, imagine the person who triggered you sitting right in front of you. Above your shoulder, picture a wise, infallible presence—God, Buddha, Jesus, or just a beam of light. Not someone you know. Someone symbolic. This opens the unconscious part of your mind and body. 

Step 2: Name the Truth 

Look at the person in front of you and tell them what they did—clearly and specifically. Not “you were a jerk,” but “you said X,” or “you cut me off.” Then say how it made you feel. Disrespected? Betrayed? Scared? The more precise, the better. 

Now here’s the hard part: fully feel it. Go back into your body and notice the tension, the sensation in your chest or gut. Let yourself physically experience the emotion. That’s how your nervous system processes it. 

Step 3: Turn on Curiosity and Gratitude 

Once you’ve sat with the emotion, bring in curiosity. Ask yourself: What’s one good thing that came from that experience? Even the smallest win counts. 

This might sound simple, but gratitude rewires your brain. It flips a switch that makes forgiveness possible. And forgiveness is what actually turns off a trauma loop—permanently. 

Step 4: Practice Empathy and Compassion 

Once you’ve found the good, step into their shoes. What happened to them to make them act this way? Were they hurting? Were they raised in trauma? Did they even know what they were doing? 

Empathy doesn’t excuse bad behavior—it just frees you from carrying the weight of it. Compassion opens your heart, and with that, peace starts to emerge. 

Step 5: Check for Completion 

Now check in with your higher guide. Did you do the work? Do you feel peace or tension? If there’s still emotional charge, that means you can go deeper. If your heart feels relaxed, and the tension is gone, you’re done. 

You can revisit this process any time. For bigger triggers, you may need to run it more than once. But it’s specific, repeatable, and powerful. 

This Is Biohacking for the Soul 

I built this technique into the foundation of my neuroscience upgrade program, 40 Years of Zen. It’s helped thousands of high performers release unconscious stress and rewire their brains for clarity, calm, and power. In five days, clients often reach the kind of inner peace that would take decades of traditional meditation. 

This process puts your biology first. From customized meals to full-brain neurofeedback and deep emotional reset work, it’s designed to help you live without the hidden stress that keeps most people stuck. 

To get a full guide to the Reset Process, check out my book Heavily Meditated. 

The End Goal: Freedom 

Imagine what your life would feel like if you could talk about your biggest hurts—and it didn’t hurt anymore. If you could take the energy you’ve used to suppress emotions and redirect it toward your goals, your growth, and the people you love. 

That’s the power of the Reset Process. 

It’s simple. It’s powerful. And it works. 

Make it part of your meditation or journaling routine. Try it when you feel tension in your body. Revisit it after difficult conversations. And if you want to take it further, I invite you to come experience it in full at 40 Years of Zen. 

You’ll feel lighter, clearer, and more in control than you ever have before.
You’ll be free. 

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If you want to lose weight, increase your energy, or sharpen your mind, there are shelves of books offering myriad styles of advice. If you want to build up your strength and cardio fitness, there are plenty of gyms and trainers ready to offer you their guidance. What all of these resources have in common is they offer you a bad deal: a lot of effort for a little payoff. Dave Asprey has found a better way.
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