Shed your fears

Why and how

Practicing relaxation techniques will help you in reducing anxiety. Relaxation tells your body that there is no danger and your body is safe

 

“Fear is only as deep as the mind allows.”

Japanese Proverb

Fear is a human emotion. In right doses it is beneficial but it can paralyse or kill you if it gets out of control. I picked this topic for the write-up as most of the students seeking counseling services share indefinite fears. Fear of not doing well in studies, fear of not achieving goals, fear of relationships and fear of speaking up for their rights and the list goes on. Often times, fear is imagined not real. Fears suck your peace of mind. There is a saying, anticipation of anything is worse than reality. Whatever the source of your fear is, you can turn your fear into your incredible strength. Nothing can hold you back in life if your start taking ownership of your fears. I have found that students having cognitive errors (errors in thinking) make them more vulnerable to fall into unending cycle of fears. The other basic reason behind fears is anxiety. How to break this vicious cycle of fears, here are few techniques.

Daily mood log

Keep a diary with yourself. Write down all the negative thoughts that make feel you anxious or frightened. Replace them with realistic and positive thoughts. Instead of making yourself worried about that what is going to be happen in future and predicting the failures, keep on assuring yourself that everything will turn out more than good. This technique will give you an idea about number of positive and negative thoughts you have per day.

The cost-benefit analysis

Worrying and fears don’t benefit you in anyway; it just ruins your peace of mind. Take a paper and list down all the advantages and disadvantages of worrying and fear. Then make a second list in which write down all the advantages and disadvantages of confronting your fears. Make a comparison of advantages and disadvantages. This will give you insight of your problem.

Don’t dwell on what others think of you

Learn to not let yourself bothered by negative comments that you get from people. Students believe that biggest hindrance in taking initiative to overcome fears is what others will say or think about them. Constantly thinking about what others think of you induces fear. You have to choose your mental peace or making yourself upset about what people think of you.

Sense of control

Most of the students believe that they don’t have control over things about which they are fearful. It is true that you can’t control what happens to you. But you can surely choose how to respond to those happenings. Learn to gain sense of control over the environment. Don’t be afraid of making choices even if you fail initially in getting positive results it’s perfectly alright. Gradually you will learn to make good choices.

Positive imaging

Imagine yourself being successful and accomplished. The more you imagine that you can overcome your fears the more you will feel calm. If your fear is making friends, imagine yourself enjoying and surrounded with friends. Imagine how your life would be without fears? How would you feel? This will make you realise that it’s all in your thoughts.

Getting in touch

Sometimes ignoring a problem makes you feel more anxious and fearful. Review your life and identify the things that are making you fearful. Tell yourself that fears are causing havoc in your life. Addressing a problem such as fear of getting poor grade or fear of rejection in a direct and open manner; a sense of calm and satisfaction will replace the fear.

Learn relaxation techniques.

Practicing relaxation techniques will help you in reducing anxiety. Relaxation tells your body that there is no danger and your body is safe. Try deep breathing exercise. Inhale through your nose, then hold it for four seconds then exhale through your mouth. It will induce relaxation in your body. Other very simple technique is, tighten all the muscles in your body for three seconds then relax them. Do this two to three times to lessen anxiety in your body.

“Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.”

(Dale Carnegie)