A disturbing video in Sean “Diddy” Combs kicking, hitting and dragging his then girlfriend Cassia Ventura has come to light — and experts say it’s important to know about triggers before you decide to watch it.
In the video, Ventura is seen wearing a black sweater with the hood up and backpack in hand, calling for an elevator in which he CNN reports is the now-closed InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles. In a different camera angle, Diddy is seen with a bath towel running down the hotel hallway. He catches up to Ventura before the elevator arrives, striking and pulling Ventura by the hair and throwing her to the ground. The music producer then kicks Ventura twice as she lies on the floor, grabbing her bag and dragging her back to the hotel rooms.
The surveillance footage, reportedly from March 5, 2016, and released by CNN on Friday, is difficult to watch — and mental health professionals say it’s not necessary.
“I don’t believe we have a responsibility to witness every instance of violence that happens,” says therapist Erik Anderson. “Here is an example of very ugly violence, and people need to be responsible for understanding what will trigger it and what they are capable of tolerating.”
The footage of Diddy and Cassie Ventura is disturbing. You don’t need to watch.
The term “triggering,” like other mental health terms, has become a popular part of the modern vernacular. And while this has caused greater awareness of the trigger, it has also confused what it actually means, experts say.
Mental health experts tell USA TODAY that triggering is a response to something that reminds someone of a specific past trauma. Things that remind someone of their own abuse or another traumatic memory, for example, are triggers.
Experts say Diddy and Cassie’s violent video could certainly be triggering for people who have experienced domestic violence or violence.
More: Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs seen hitting and dragging ex Cassie Ventura in 2016 surveillance video
Additionally, if you have not experienced violence but are particularly sensitive or empathetic, the video may still be disturbing and damaging to your mental health, even if it is not technically triggering.
“I think it’s really important for people to pay attention to how they feel,” says mental health counselor Catherine Del Toro. “Normally when we watch these types of violent videos, it’s very normal to feel shocked, anxious, sad, disgusted and those are very, very normal feelings. But again, (it’s important) to distinguish between feeling that and allowing that emotion passes. go instead of ruminating about it and actually having it affect our overall functioning.”
Before people watch the video, psychotherapist Stephanie Sarkis encourages people to check in with themselves and be honest about how they think watching it might affect them. Most people, she says, may find that they don’t actually need to watch the footage to better understand domestic violence.
“It’s important to ask yourself, ‘Will this really help my understanding of the story? Will this benefit me? Or is there a possibility that this could trigger past trauma for me?’ ” she says. “Most of the time we won’t add additional benefits.”
More: Many people talk about ‘complex trauma’. What does that mean?
What happens when you get triggered?
Triggering can cause a range of mental health problems, experts say. These include flashbacks to the trauma itself, panic attacks, and feelings of helplessness, Sarkis says. Triggering can also make someone feel depressed, anxious, discouraged, or even suicidal.
Because witnessing violence can harm anyone’s mental health, regardless of whether it triggers it, Del Toro recommends extreme caution before watching the footage or not watching it at all. Sarkis adds that for those who are passionate about ending domestic violence, their energy may be better channeled into activism or fundraising than watching these disturbing images.
“Definitely, our human curiosity leads us to want to watch the video, but we need to be very attentive and aware of how these videos can affect us,” says Del Toro. “Ultimately, it’s our choice whether we watch these videos or not. And so if we believe that it could have a negative impact on our overall well-being, I would definitely recommend that we not watch the video, and sometimes we don’t we do. We really know how much it’s going to affect us until we’re watching it.”
Contributing: Taijuan Moorman, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared in USA TODAY: Diddy, Cassie, and Why It’s Okay Not to Watch the Disturbing Video
