"McGrath's heartbreaking TikTok video brought old memories flooding back of a nightmare time in my life"
"I watched the video and muscle memory kicked right back in. Within seconds, I could feel my blood pressure rising steadily, the bile in the back of my throat."
"The TikTok video in question was of a young Irish woman, Aoife McGrath, opening a registered letter; the same letter that her housemates also received."
Viewing the video triggered immediate physiological responses tied to past trauma. Muscle memory caused blood pressure to rise and bile to collect, signaling acute anxiety. The clip showed Aoife McGrath opening a registered letter that matched letters received by housemates. The identical delivery created a communal resonance with previous distressing events. The moment resurrected a nightmare period and demonstrated how sensory cues and symbolic items like registered letters can provoke long-lasting, intense emotional and physical reactions.
Read at Independent
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