Overcoming Fear

byPAFOSTER

376 followers

5 years ago

Life Challenge: Learning to Overcome Fear

I have been told, and believed, that everything we need for living is already dwelling within us. If this is true, then fear is not part of us, or how our being was designed to live.

Fear exists as an opportunity to overcome any challenge, not for holding the mind hostage.

Yet fear is still allowed to exist. The COVID19 pandemic is not only spreading a deadly disease, but fear and panic follows it everywhere.

As one of the most powerful emotions, fear can significantly impact our bodies and our minds. I have been told that fear originated as one of our most primitive feelings, to help create strong signals within our bodies, so that we could take some immediate action.

The term I have heard tossed around is fight or flight. We have been told that this sense of fear evolved to keep us safe and warn us of imminent danger.

This is awesome for getting out of the way of something right in front of us.

In today’s world, and even right now during this crisis, much of the fear circulating around the globe is not from reactions to any immediate personal threat.

First of all, if anyone gets it... they have no idea of having it until it is too late.....they have it.

So, fear is actually taking hostages by advantage with presumptive, supposed, and possible outcomes.

I am not saying we should not fight to win, take all precautions with social distancing, or even require drastic quarantine measures to contain and overcome this powerful unseen virus

I am saying Fear can never be protection from what is possible, and we have a choice of facing our challenges with fearful emotions, or with faithful certainty that everything is going to work out.

LOok... I get it, Especially right now, you may be feeling pressured to be afraid. I face the choice of feeling afraid also. With so many things that could happen during this crisis, there is a lot to consider.

I am not making choices without any concern, or having a carefree attitude about what is happening.

I care a lot. This is why I am sharing a truth that is necessary medicine for defeating fear.

Fear will never protect you from loss, lack, physical harm, disease, or even death. Fear will only hold you hostage for as long as you choose to be imprisoned by it.

How do you overcome fear then?

Below are five tips for you to practice when fear is seeking to make your mind a hostage.

Tip 1: Take a Breath and Step Back

When you are in the grips of fear or anxiety, you cannot (literally) think clearly. Your subconscious is controlling the show, and all it wants is to keep you safe, so rational thought is not possible. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and clear your mind before you start to make any real decisions. You may even benefit from doing something entirely different for a time before you try to consider how best to proceed.

Tip 2: Visualize Success

When you are afraid to try something, it can be helpful to visualize yourself successfully completing the task or enjoying the fruits of your labor. The positive image of yourself enjoying your competence can serve as a success road map for your subconscious, helping you overcome your fear. The more you visualize this positive outcome, the more likely you will be able to make it happen.

Tip 3: Stop Trying to Ignore Your Fears

There are very few positive outcomes that have ever resulted from ignoring real fear. In fact, the more you ignore fear, the more anxiety it may create. Instead of pushing fear aside, try just first observing, rather than participating with the emotion.

As the observer, look at the fears and consider what it is that really frightens you and why. What is the deeper reason for this fear, and how can you act today to start overcoming it? Is this a fear you can do anything about? Will there be a different outcome by remaining afraid?

You can practice by observing other anxieties purposefully also. Usually I find that fear is generated by my perception of what might be, rather than what actually is.

Tip 4. Let Your Actions Drive Your Emotions

Often, we allow our feelings to dictate our behaviors, but you may not know that the opposite is also true. If you behave in a certain way, your emotions will follow suit. So, if you do not feel courageous now but act in a way consistent with one who is brave and confident, you will start to feel that way pretty soon. Cool trick!

Acting as if is a great way of assuming everything will work out. This is a faith based action that will provide a sense of incredible certainty.

Tip 5: Talk About Your Fears

When you learn to express your fears and share them with others, they start to lose power over you. When you say them aloud and place them in the light of day, you can often see that your fears are irrational, not based in fact, or are out of proportion to the situation.

Other fears may be more significant, and talking with a mental health professional can teach you positive strategies for reducing their influence on your life, too.

Final Thoughts

Fears are only as powerful as we allow them to be. Learning to face your fears, confront them for the imagined things that they are, and acting in ways that give us confidence and competence can help you to overcome these fears and live a happier, more productive life.

Let me leave you with one other final thought, that is really the master key when I am choosing to keep my mind free from any negative emotion. Remembering this always gives me a reason to become courageous when any negative emotions seek to take my mind hostage.

Dr. Wayne Dyer put it like this: "No one can create negativity or stress within you. Only you can do that by virtue of how you process your world. Change The Way You Look At Things And TheThings You Look At Change”.

However you decide to move forward during this challenging time, I send you all thoughts of abundance, love, peace, and strength to endure.

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below. Thank you for reading!