The Cure for Chronic Pain with Nicole Sachs, LCSW S5 E9 - The Prison of Perfect (and how to break free)
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Oct 31, 2025 Dive into the concept of the 'prison of perfect' and discover how the drive for perfection can lead to pain and anxiety. Explore the origins of perfectionism as a protective response rooted in childhood experiences. Uncover how repressed emotions manifest physically in the body. Learn that choosing to embrace imperfection can be empowering, using tools like awareness and JournalSpeak to facilitate healing. Try a practical exercise to let go of the need for perfection today!
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Daughter's Ballet Injury Sparks Emotional Work
- Nicole describes her 17-year-old daughter's ballet tendon injury and how it prompted TMS-style emotional work alongside physical rehab.
- She uses this family example to show acute injury care plus exploring perfectionism's role in recovery.
Perfectionism Is Protection Turned Prison
- Perfectionism often starts as trying to stay safe and loved, but becomes an emotional prison when safety depends on flawless performance.
- Nicole reframes perfectionism as protection that eventually disconnects you from feeling and being human.
Body Speaks What We Don't Feel
- Repressed emotions don't vanish; they get stored in the body and eventually speak through pain, fatigue, anxiety, or illness.
- The body communicates distress in physical symptoms when we can't listen to feelings.
