Seven years. That’s how long James Stockdale survived as a prisoner of war in Vietnam. Beaten, starved, locked in solitary confinement—every single day designed to break him. But he didn’t break. He found a way to outlast the pain, control his own mind, and stay strong when everything was designed to destroy him.
This is the story of a man who turned torture into a test of willpower, and what it teaches us about surviving our own battles. Because suffering isn’t what breaks you—how you handle it is.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
🔥 The insane true story of James Stockdale’s survival in a Vietnamese prison camp
🔥 How to control your mind when everything is against you
🔥 The Stockdale Paradox—why balancing brutal honesty with hope is the key to endurance
🔥 The mental strategies POWs used to resist breaking under torture
🔥 A practical challenge to help you train your mind for resilience—starting today
Pain doesn’t break you. Panic does. The strongest people aren’t fearless—they just know how to fight their battles in the mind first.
Popular Podcasts
United States of Kennedy
United States of Kennedy is a podcast about our cultural fascination with the Kennedy dynasty. Every week, hosts Lyra Smith and George Civeris go into one aspect of the Kennedy story.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com