“Never trust your fears, they don’t know your strengths.” Athena Singh
Good morning and happy Friday!
I hope you had a great week despite all the craziness that happened – remember, this too shall pass. I’m a firm believer in the phrases “Nothing lasts forever” and “Find the sunshine”. Although Wednesday showed us a very dark side of humanity, I know we can come out on top and thrive.
Which lead me to today’s quote from Athena Singh. Fear is a very real state of mind, and in some cases outside threats create that fear. In situations like this, we need to learn how to dig deep and find our inner strengths – because we all have them.
One step at a time
It’s all about taking baby steps when we decide to tackle our fears – whatever they are. Fear of public speaking, fear of leaving an abusive relationship, fear of the dentist (this girl!), fear of rejection…the list is endless and everyone is different. Fear is real – but it is totally controllable.
The process of facing your fears begins with exposure to those fears by gradually repeatedly entering those dastardly situations until the anxiety wanes over time.
Tackle Time – some easy tips to help those baby steps
- Get out of your own head. When you are constantly obsessing over whatever it is you fear – the situation grows like a damn weed in your head. Go do something else – physical exercise works for me because of the endorphin factor.
- Breathe. There’s a reason Lamaze works for women in labor. Deep breaths are calming and you need to focus on doing controlled breathing. When you begin to feel your heart race, your face flush and your palms sweat, close your eyes and take several SLOW and DEEP breaths. Inhale through your nose, exhale through your mouth. Do this until you feel your heart rate slow down.
- Consistently face the fears. As noted above, exposure to those fears in little bites will eventually ease the anxiety over time. Your mind begins to realize there is nothing to be afraid of – what’s really happening is your inner strengths have come out to beat those damn fears into submission.
- What’s the WORST thing that can happen? I say this all the time when facing something scary or new. Like my new YouTube Channel where I record my weekly musings. Seriously the worst thing is people think it sucks and leave shitty comments. Oh well – it’s not about them, it’s about me recording my thoughts.
- Go to your happy place – in your mind. Whenever I feel anxiety coming on due to fear, I close my eyes and envision myself on a beach at sunset, hiking in the woods, being the first one at the top of the mountain on a gorgeous skiing day – any place that soothes my damn soul.
- Screw perfection. Just stop – no one is perfect, nothing is perfect you don’t need to be perfect. Doing something is better than doing nothing and back to what’s the worst thing that can happen?
- Look at facts – and tackle the logical side of the fence. I do this with my dental anxiety – I know that I’ve had numerous dental procedures in the past and 99% were far better than my mind conjured up. Statistically, I know I’ll be OK.
- Get a Thunder Buddy. Well if you don’t get the Ted reference – this is about talking it out with someone during or before a fearful situation. It’s like getting talked off the cliff – or getting smacked in the back of the head with a “Wake up dude, it’s going to be fine!” Sometimes you just need a buddy.
Hope this was helpful. Most of our fears are unwarranted – so whatever your ONE Fear is that you chose for this monthly challenge, let’s tackle it head on. Remember – I’m doing this with you!!
I’m still recording my videos, I now have 4 subscribers versus 3. Baby Steps.
Have an awesome weekend, see you on the inside!
CD