desensitize

“One of the things that we teach them to do is to massage that over repeatedly throughout the day, to desensitize it,” April says.

From Slate ● Oct. 15, 2024

"If we can increase levels of GDF15 before someone becomes pregnant, that might desensitize them, similar to how we try to desensitize people to allergens who have severe allergies," says Fejzo.

From Science Daily ● May 22, 2024

For young children and people who have to take many different allergy medications, immunotherapies in the form of shots and oral drops can help desensitize the immune system to allergens, treating symptoms at their root.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 22, 2024

The pretreatment seemed to desensitize the animals to the hormone’s effects later on.

From Science Magazine ● Dec. 13, 2023

Riding in the open air is better than not being in the open air at all, but it does not compare in its power to desensitize people with active exercise in the open air.

From Health Through Will Power by Walsh, James J. (James Joseph)

“We hear stuff like this all the time. It just desensitizes you to there being an actual threat, knock on wood.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 13, 2026

“It desensitizes you to handcuffs, to steel, to concrete, to cold, to institutions,” said Roybal, now 38 and a physical therapist.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 10, 2023

In addition to killing cavity-causing bacteria, the treatment hardens tooth structure, desensitizes the tooth and even stops new cavities from forming.

From Washington Post ● Sep. 11, 2020

“Wikipedians are used to hunting trolls and fighting them. It desensitizes them.”

From Slate ● Dec. 11, 2014

Regional anesthesia desensitizes a large section of someone’s body by injecting drugs into the spine that block nerve signals to the brain.

From Salon ● Mar. 20, 2014

Reactions to other recent reports have been muted as well, with investors seemingly desensitized to Nvidia’s big numbers.

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 23, 2026

Or maybe, through repeated exposure, Americans have been desensitized to the burden that unnecessary complexity imposes on us.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 12, 2026

Investors have become desensitized to risk as the 2008-09 financial crisis fades from memory, Block believes.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2025

We’ve become desensitized to the ritual by now, but slobbering over an elected official—of any stripe—is, and always will be, unbecoming.

From Slate ● Mar. 8, 2025

I’ve been desensitized to the horrors of group therapy.

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

Saturating audiences with doomsday stories risks desensitizing them, Nelson warned.

From Slate ● Mar. 13, 2026

Skylar King, who’s performing at the show, said she had a week of long conversations with her fellow performers on how to joke about climate change without desensitizing people to the seriousness of the topic.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2024

Leprosy primarily affects the skin and peripheral nervous system, causing physical deformity and desensitizing one’s ability to feel pain on affected skin.

From Salon ● Mar. 21, 2024

Trainers begin by desensitizing the chimps to the sound, doling out bananas, Cheerios or other treats as it plays.

From New York Times ● Aug. 8, 2023

But this morning I noticed a real improvement when I went through the massage and desensitizing routine.

From "The Running Dream" by Wendelin Van Draanen