Sentence:  Five nights a week, six hours a day, for the next four months—and, fortunately, never again—I made my living by exhibiting the peculiar way I am formed. The Clinic had prepared me for it, <WSD>benumbing</WSD> my sense of shame, and besides, I was desperate for money. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  To deaden, dull (the mind, faculties, etc.).