Stupor/Frozen State: Do you feel paralyzed when faced with events?

Sometimes, when confronted with stressful or overwhelming situations, the body and mind shut down. This is known as stupor or a freeze response: a state in which we can neither run away, nor react, nor take action.
This blockage can slowly spread into everyday life: difficulty concentrating, procrastination, emotional exhaustion, feeling as though you're watching your life from the outside…
This is not a weakness. It is a protective response. And it is possible to move beyond it.

The freeze response, according to Henri Laborit (1981)

Henri Laborit, a French neurobiologist and physician known for his work on stress, the inhibition of action, and behavioral biology, made the concept of sidération (inhibition through stupor) central to his reflections on human behavior in situations of stress or danger.

Definition:
The freeze response is a total blockage of action in the face of a danger or situation perceived as insurmountable. When a person is confronted with a threat and can neither fight nor flee, they enter a state of inhibited action—a kind of psychological and physiological paralysis.

According to Laborit, there are three possible responses to stress:

• Flight: escaping from an avoidable danger.

• Fight: confronting the threat.

• Freeze: when neither fight nor flight is possible.

Consequences:

• Accumulation of unprocessed stress

• Increased risk of anxiety, depression, and other disorders

• Development of psychological or physical defense mechanisms

Concrete example:
A child victim of family violence may enter a freeze state if they can neither escape nor defend themselves. They become immobilized and passive, and may later develop serious psychological consequences if the situation persists.

Freeze and society: Laborit’s social critique

Laborit explains that the freeze response is not only an individual reaction to immediate danger. It also becomes a social phenomenon when individuals are placed within rigid hierarchical structures that prevent free action.

Example: the workplace
An employee subjected to strict hierarchy, contradictory demands, and no possibility to decide, escape, or oppose authority, may enter a state of inhibition. They submit, suppress their impulse to act, and slip into resigned passivity—or illness.

Laborit argued that inhibition of action is the primary source of modern psychosomatic disorders.

In his view, our societies:

• Value obedience and hierarchy

• Punish or suppress free expression

• Maintain the illusion of free will, even when action is constrained or forbidden

This leads to a society of “frozen” individuals—people who, unable to act on their own lives, withdraw, sink into depression, or sometimes explode in irrational ways (violence, addiction, etc.).

“The Praise of Escape”: A possible way out?

For Laborit, escape is not cowardice, but a survival strategy when action is impossible.

He promotes:

• Self-awareness

• Understanding mechanisms of domination

• Education toward freedom of thought

• And sometimes, creative escape: changing one’s environment, profession, or way of living

How to move out of the freeze response?

Here are a few steps to help restore movement where everything feels stuck:

1. Acknowledge what you are going through
   Accept that this state is a normal response to an abnormal situation. It is a survival reflex, not a personal failure.

2. Put words on your experience
   Through writing, speaking, or therapy: naming what blocks you is often the first step toward releasing it.

3. Regain control through small choices
   Even tiny steps count: change a habit, try something new, assert a need.

4. Allow yourself to seek support
   A therapeutic space can help release accumulated tension, regain clarity, and rebuild momentum.

Are you struggling to take action, make decisions, or regain motivation?
I am a licensed psychologist in Switzerland, and I can support you in:

• Restoring emotional balance

• Overcoming feelings of blockage or overwhelm

• Rebuilding confidence in your ability to act

Contact me for an in-person or online consultation.