Emotional armor: how to remove armor to free yourself

When we suffer shock or trauma, the survival instinct it becomes the automatic pilot that directs our actions and our decisions.

To protect us from future blows –whether physical or emotional–, we built ourselves a thick armor which can take many forms.

The armor can manifest through the habits we adhere toand that end up forming our comfort zone. Our body and our facial expression they become rigid under this protection, reflecting what is happening in our emotional life.

As long as we wear the armor on us, Like the gentleman in Robert Fisher’s fable, We will continue to think that life is an endless battle, without realizing that the danger is far away and that it is time to open up to life.

we lose then communication with our inner being and with the authentic emotions that connect us with the rest.

Why free yourself from emotional armor

The breastplates are created to protect us from everything that affected us too much, emotionally and physically.. In survival mode, the brain will stop feeling everything that torments it. It is a mechanism that is activated instinctively when life hits us.

The problem is that if that emotional block is prolonged in time, there will come a time when we will stop feeling even what is worth it be lived.

When we turn to alcohol, drugs, the indiscriminate use of medicines or even food, we opt for anesthesia so we don’t feel what we keep under our armor.

Certainly, it hurts to reconnect with dormant emotions, but the effort worth: once the physical and emotional releasewe will reconquer the lost lands of our kingdom.

As proposed by the Dr. Gabor Matéa Canadian addiction doctor, instead of asking why I have this addiction, whatever it is, the real question would be: where does this pain come from?

How to take off our emotional armor

On the bodily plane the past does not exist: our body lives in an infinite present. Anything that remains encysted without being resolved, when the memory is activated, it will return us to that point in our history in which everything happened.

Carrying a trauma or a wound that beats inside the armor is like living with a stuck record in the player of our sensitive nervous system. So How can we start to take off those breastplates that once saved our lives, but that no longer serve us?

To begin with, it is important let emotions flow freely. You can count on professional support if you need it to reconquer these emotional territories. It is a process in which You can feel very vulnerable, but you don’t have to go it alone.

It is not about reliving everything that happened to you, but about freeing yourself of the breastplates that prevent you from living fully now. It is time to honor your courage and sensitivity, and move on the road without hurting yourself.

As the American spiritual master Ram Dass said, “If you know how to listen, everyone is a guru.” You too. To free yourself from your armor, you need listen to yourself.

It is also essential stop to rest so that your body and your mind can integrate your openness to the world.

The best part of your life starts now!

4 gestures to free ourselves from armor

Get a little bit of sun and don’t forget the water. We are plants with feet: we need water and sun just as much as they do. Treat yourself to sunbathing time throughout the year and drink plenty of water.Practice self-massage with or without clothes. Caress your body with soft but firm movements. Maybe stronger in the neck, shoulders and arms. Then gently massage your face, head and the skin under your hair.Move your body and look for contact. Exercise releases endorphins. Practice it, especially when you don’t have the chance to hug your loved ones. Petting a pet is also therapeutic. Root yourself with this little visualization. In your meditation, imagine that a root descends from your tailbone into the depths of the earth. Feels like this connection fills you with vitality and frees you from worries.