It is said that man’s greatest enemy is fear. Fear is behind many of our failures, ill-health, poor communication and moments in which we feel like we have hit a wall. We are all afraid of the past, the future, old age, illness, insanity and death. We can become paralysed by fear when we start believing in our thoughts. Most of our fears have no reality, they are simply a conglomeration of unhelpful thoughts and accumulated beliefs.  Ralph Waldo Emerson – the famous philosopher said: “Do the thing you are afraid to do and the death of fear is certain.”

Normal and abnormal fear,

We are born with only two fears, the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises, these are given to us as a means of self -preservation.  All other fear is accumulated, from parents, caregivers, teachers and anyone who has influenced our early years. Normal fear is good as it alerts us to danger and gets us out of harm’s way. Abnormal fear takes place when we let our imagination run riot, things we fear do not exist in reality, so do not indulge in your fears otherwise, you will succumb to them. Constant fearful thoughts, morbid anxious imagery and fearful suggestions result in, obsessions, complexes,  neurosis,  panic and terror. These feelings can subsequently lead us to make mistakes and bad decisions. At a deep level, our fear is a desire for safety and security. A way to avoid the negative consequences of irrational fear is to change your mental attitude from one of fear to desire. This change in attitude will help to give you confidence and lift your spirits.

You can overcome abnormal fear when you use the power of your subconscious mind, The subconscious mind is the storehouse of memories and keeps a record of all we hear, learn, experience and process. It is controlled by suggestion and does not differentiate between positive and negative thoughts, so it takes your fear thoughts as a request and turns them into your experience. The subconscious mind has a positive intention to keep you safe, even if the outcome is destructive and unhealthy.

How to overcome fear,

Make a decision that you are going to master your fears. Three times a day sit quietly, relax your body, close your eyes and still your mind,  Repeat these positive affirmations: I am calm, poised, confident and capable.  Repeat these words slowly, quietly and with feeling for five to ten minutes, the last time you do this daily should be just before you go to sleep. We call this involuntary autosuggestion, being still (physical inertia) relaxed, peaceful and confident, will make the mind more susceptible to suggestion. At the end of the week, you will be able to notice the difference.

Fear of failure, (suggestive amnesia) a technique you can use if you find yourself becoming obsessed with failure. Every morning and night visualise the good feeling that you will feel when you have achieved your success, focus all your attention on the happy result and positive outcome.

Overcoming fears of water, elevators, flying etc, that have steamed from unpleasant experiences as a child. The unpleasant experience has sunk into your subconscious mind and you will fear it long after the initial event. To break this pattern and master your fear so it does not master you, try this technique. You need to sit quietly, imagine you are doing what you fear in your mind, mentally project yourself into the thing you fear, impress a picture onto your subconscious mind, say to yourself I am calm and capable, feel the reality of it, enjoy the feeling, continue to do this mentally in your mind’s eye, so that when you come to do it physically the fear will be less extreme.

When you look at your fears in the face and stand up to them, they fade and shrink into insignificance. The subconscious mind has a positive intention, it is there to keep you safe. Your mind desires freedom, learn the power of your subconscious mind, how it functions and master the techniques,  Fear is a negative thought in your mind so plant your mind with constructive thoughts, concentrate on the good. Remember, no negative thought can manifest itself unless you emotionalise it and accept it mentally.

If you are struggling with crippling fear, phobias and extreme emotional states that affect your physical and physiological well being. Then please reach out and seek professional support and help. Don’t suffer unnecessarily. Counselling therapies, such as CBT, NLP and Hypnotherapy are available and can help enormously.

Stay well and safe, best Pip x