The 'window of tolerance' — a concept from trauma therapy — explains why repression pushes us into states where we can't function well, and how to expand our capacity.
What Is the Window of Tolerance?
The window of tolerance is the zone of arousal in which we function optimally. Outside it:
- Hyperarousal (repression 'too high'): Panic, overwhelm, rage, anxiety — above the window
- Hypoarousal (repression 'too low'): Numbness, dissociation, shutdown, depression — below the window
How Repression Narrows the Window
Trauma and chronic repression narrow the window of tolerance, making us more easily triggered into dysregulated states by smaller stimuli.
Widening Your Window with Repression
Trauma-informed therapy specifically works to widen the window of tolerance — building capacity to experience repression triggers without dysregulation.
Titrated exposure (small doses of difficult material), somatic practices, and skill-building all contribute to window expansion.