Mastering your deepest fears

12/03/2006

Are you facing a fear?

You are not the only one who has fears. We all have them. It is a normal human condition. Fears are not confined to any one type of person or any one country or continent. They are universal. If you are currently an expat, repatriate or have not left your borders yet, you will be facing fears now or in the future. But fears do not have to be perceived as negative or frightening.
Fears do have a purpose. They can definitely keep you safe and stop you from doing silly and irrational things. We are not told enough that fears help us to be in touch with who we are. When you are feeling fearful, stop, and ask yourself what is really going on. What is it that is making you feel fearful? Feelings do not lie, they are true indicators of what it is that is really affecting our peace of mind. Despite what some may say, it is healthy to admit our fears and anxieties. On the other hand, it is not healthy to deny them and pretend that they do not exist. When we do this, our fears do not disappear, but rather get stored away in the many files of our subconscious to wreak havoc at a later stage. When we own up to our fear, it seems that they lose their control over us.

We cannot get rid of fears completely, but we can work through them. As with many other things in life, it is what we do and how we do it that counts. How we cope with our fears makes all the difference in building up and strengthening our self-esteem, self-confidence and trust in ourselves to be able to deal with any obstacle that comes our way.

Some tips to deal with fear:

•  Make a list of all your successes.
•  Do something that shifts your perspective - take a walk, listen to uplifting music, talk to someone, watch an inspiring movie. 
•  Don't always try to be perfect. 
•  Write down your fears as they happen and come back to it when you are able to deal with it.
•  Always have a sense of humor.
• Try not to take everything so significantly.
• Ascertain what you can do right now about your fear and do it.
• When you are able to do more, take the next step.

One thing I have found to be true is that the best remedy for fear is to take action. Even the smallest of actions will help to dispel your fears.