What happens when vulnerability has been historically expensive?

In this episode, I read Love Finds a Way by Vern Kousky and explore a deeper question beneath the story: What do we protect when someone gets close?

This conversation introduces the idea of vulnerability tolerance — the capacity to remain emotionally present and regulated when being seen, known, or dependent feels risky.

We discuss:

• Why protection often feels automatic
• What attachment research reveals about self-protective patterns
• The difference between protection and capacity
• How low vulnerability tolerance shows up in leadership, marriage, and friendships

Protection is adaptation. But what once kept you safe may now be limiting you.

If vulnerability has been expensive before, are you  ...