Facing your Fears - Is it Worth the Risk or the Regret

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Facing your Fears

Being afraid and fearful is not always a bad thing? Sometimes our body needs an alert system to be cautious when approaching danger. Fear will stop us from doing anything that is unsafe or harmful. But fear can actually rule our life if we do not face some of the less threatening and harmless occurrences. 

We have to analyse our fears. Maybe the fear is a phobia where the fear is an active imagination. A phobia is an irrational fear triggered by an event, a past experience or even lack of knowledge and this makes the anxiety outweigh the threat it poses. 

For example:
  • You may want to see the world but you are afraid of flying
  • You want to spend some time relaxing on a cruise ship sailing the Caribbean Sea but you are afraid of the water and you cannot swim
  • You want to have adventures but afraid to do anything on your own
  • You want to join a rambling group so you can walk with others and see some beautiful places but fear that no one will speak to you.
  • You want to dance but you have two left feet and no partner so you fear you will not be able to join in.
All these fears and phobias will stop you from living your dream life or you may become isolated and lonely through the worry and distress of failure before you have even started!

How to Face your Fears and Phobias

Avoiding your fears or telling yourself that you don't want to do something (hiding your fear), might initially make you feel comfortable, but in the long term will only bring regret or even resentment towards others that have succeeded where you have failed to even try. These kind of feelings are very negative and will continued to be nurtured by your fear. So how do we break the cycle of fear and phobias? 

Gradually facing your fears, in small steps, will decrease your unease and anxieties. This means breaking down your fears into small pieces and facing one piece at a time. It can be easier to analyse if you write down your fears and list all the components of that one fear. Look at each component and start a plan to tackle this list one element at a time so that you are not completely overwhelmed.

Start your plan of action by looking at the advantages and disadvantages of facing your fear and consider the effect this will have on your future life. If by facing your fear and proceeding with your future plans will enhance your life enough to bring the happiness you desire, then this will determine a way forward. If facing your fear will not alter your life sufficiently then maybe it will be better to walk away and reduce your levels of anxiety and concerns.  

Plan of action

  • Write a wish list of the things you wish to achieve or do in your life
  • Make a note of any feelings of fear and anxiety that obtrude when you think about doing those things on your wish list
  • Look at the advantages of facing your fears and what will happen to your life if you are successful.
  • Look at the disadvantages of facing your fears and whether it will be beneficial for you to go forward.
  • Break down your fears into smaller components and tackle each one separately.
  • Write down how your life will change after each element of fear has been challenged.
Always face your fears with an action plan rather than bring yourself straight into a point of distress or emotional trauma. Facing your fears in a healthy manner, taking small steps, monitoring your progress and making decisions at each stage will give you a clearer picture of what is ahead of you and whether it will be beneficial for you to continue.

How to Conquer your Fear

Healthy fear is good fear. It reminds us that there are parts of life that we cannot control and we have to enter with caution. None of us know what the future holds for us, but we do have some control of what we can wish for and what we want to achieve.

When I think of the things I have wished for in my life, I can still remember how I felt when I started to pursue my dreams. I am not fearless, in fact I suffer from panic attacks and anxiety. I have learned to take a breath and assess my future plans and break down my own fears. This makes my pathway to the future a more flourishing option and a lot more beneficial for my health.

I am always looking for an adventure and my motto has consistently been "life is too short not to go for it". I made a decision last year that it would be now or never if I want to change my life around. It would certainly have been easier to stick with what I know best, fitness in my case and just continue along the same line of work. However the industry has changed quite a lot over the years and although this is also my passion, I felt the changes had made me unhappy. 

I saved a large percentage of my wage over the last year so that I had enough money to live on if I left my job and went looking for an adventure. I also studied Yoga and Meditation in more depth gaining additional qualifications to add to what I already have. I wrote down all the ideas I had on what would be my "best life". I then had to face my list of "fears".
  • I am afraid that I am too old to go off on adventures
  • My fear of not being accepted or being good enough
  • I am afraid that I have not calculated my finances correctly and it could all go wrong.
  • I fear that I will slow down as I am on the wrong side of youth
  • I am afraid of anxiety and panic attacks
  • I am fearful (ahead of time) that my travel schedule will not go as planned
  • I fear that my new life and new adventures will not be successful.
I analysed my fears one step at a time and faced each small measure with research, investigation and groundwork. 

It's time to Face your Fears

It is now time to face my fears and change my life. Don't get me wrong, the fears are still here but I feel they are healthy fears, the good fears, not the fears that will lead to anxiety and emotional trauma. 

I have wanted to work on an overseas Yoga retreat or Spa hotel for many years. I want to work as a freelance Yoga Teacher or Fitness Instructor, so that I can choose where and when I work. I love to travel and see the world, mix with different cultures and learn new ways of life. I am not looking for highly paid jobs, this is not my motivation. I am looking for adventures and living in the moment to find the joys that life has to offer.

I am off to Corfu, Greece for my first adventure on a Yoga retreat and this is totally out of my 'comfort zone'. I have worked overseas before and on cruise ships, but this is my first solo working position entirely planned by me. I am both excited and cautious with a sprinkle of thrill for the future.

©HealthyForeverFitnessMotivation

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