TAME YOUR FEAR THROUGH ROAR – In 4 Steps!
Last week was the second in our series on dealing with the FEAR that shows up in life. First, we started with that wonderful layout of Oprah next to a lion talking about beginning the New Year off with bravery. We addressed what was really stopping you from just living life – FEAR. Fear of change. Fear of not being good enough for any changes. Fear of losing something, even if it losing the “YOU” you know now! And remember, fear will always be with you. It is a matter of how you allow fear to be in your life – friend or foe.
Then we started the process of how to Tame Your Fear through R.O.A.R. We began with the R – recognition. Being able to recognize how fear shows up for you is vital to being able to tame that fear.
Did you do your homework? To identify how fear was showing up for you. If you have started this, then you can begin to make changes.
Let’s move to the next step: O – Open Up
O – Open up to how your body has been conditioned to feel in fear. Are you feeling constricted, as though you’re being choked or suffocated? Or just tired? Be open to these feelings and to the possibility of choosing to feel differently. You can decide to no longer view it as debilitating and limiting—choose to see and feel it as more powerful and enriching—because this is an opportunity for you.
You have been conditioned from birth how to feel afraid. There is nothing wrong with that as long as it is used to keep you save from dangerous situations, which are situations that happen outside of you. Knowing not to walk down a dark alley at 2 am in a not so safe neighborhood. Knowing not to approach a growling dog. The fear associated with these situations is a good thing. It allows you to respond appropriately with the flight or fight response – basically listening to the natural response your body has to keep you safe. Listening to your gut!
What has really been conditioned within you is to fear situations that are only real in your mind. For me at one time, I feared becoming “homeless”. Strange and yet true. There was no reason for me to feel that way, I just did. Instead of seeing things in my mind as “Good”, I allowed fear to reside in my mind controlling my actions – becoming possessive of things as if I would no longer have them. As I look at it now, I am sure I was coming from a place of lack and not abundance.
Don’t allow your fear to do that to you. What you think about can and will become a reality in your life if allowed to do so. So opening up to the feelings behind your fear will allow you to make a different choice on how to feel. This is your homework. Go back to the journal where you identified how fear shows up for you. Now write down the feelings you have associated with all the fearful situations. It is a process of steps … baby steps to help you to grow.
Next week: A – Accept