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“When we protect ourselves so we won’t feel pain, that protection becomes like armour, like armour that imprisons the softness of the heart” ~ Pema Chodron
For many of us, staying with uncomfortable sensations, whether they are experienced physically in the body (aches and pains) or as unpleasant emotions (fear, sadness, anger), feels difficult, if not downright impossible. As a result, we try to avoid discomfort through a variety of strategies — distractions, ignoring, and blaming to name a few of my favourites! While this is completely understandable, we also lose out on developing valuable skills to help us regulate our nervous system more effectively. In addition, by frequently avoiding discomfort, we can get stuck in