- Your mind has the tendency to "clench" or "contract" in certain situations. I'm not sure exactly what's going on here, biologically, but I'm referring to some sort of psychological resistance to particular situations, thoughts, memories, or emotions. - My best guess for the mechanism is that the mind/nervous system learns to use muscles to alter blood flow as a coarse way to regulate mental processes. - This resistance, or "tension," can cause adverse effects in the body (physical muscle tension, inflammation) or psychological effects (anxiety, listlessness, depression, confusion...). - It is possible, through a variety of techniques, to learn to perceive tension, and to release it. - Releasing tension through such techniques has helped resolve almost all of my anxiety, ego, shame, etc. - I highly recommend that you take up a practice that allows you to resolve tension, such as [[Meditation]].