Therapy in a Nutshell

Armoring - How Trauma Gets Embodied as Tension, Chronic Pain, Jumpiness or Emotional Walls

Oct 3, 2025
Explore how trauma manifests in the body through muscle tension and emotional walls. Learn about armoring, a protective response linked to hypervigilance, and how it leads to chronic pain and relational struggles. Discover techniques to unwind this armor, such as breathwork, yoga, and mindfulness check-ins. The discussion highlights the importance of self-compassion and vulnerability for emotional healing. Ultimately, listeners can retrain their nervous systems to foster connection and enhance overall well-being.
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ANECDOTE

Goggins' Body Locked Like Cement

  • David Goggins experienced extreme body tension, chronic pain, and compressions from lifelong hypervigilance and pushing through pain.
  • He started long daily stretching which he credits with preventing total physical collapse and restoring function.
ANECDOTE

Pete Walker's Flinching At The Pool

  • Pete Walker described persistent muscle tension and whole-body flinching around other swimmers after childhood abuse.
  • He retrained his body over time to stop reflexive flinching by gradually learning safety and softening.
INSIGHT

Armoring: Protective Tension That Gets Stuck

  • Armoring is the reflexive tightening response the body develops to survive fear, abandonment, or terror.
  • Chronic hypervigilance turns that protective response into a persistent feedback loop of tension even when no threat exists.
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