Gripped by fear
A tightening of the chest. A sudden urge to freeze. Holding one’s breath. We’ve all been afraid at one time or another, yet in the moment it feels like no one knows. Am I the only one? Sometimes it’s more than a passing feeling. It’s an imprint on your body. It encompasses all your senses and holds you back. It stops you from saying, doing, being. If only it would loosen it’s grip.
This powerful emotive state once served a very important purpose. To prepare us to flee or fight in a threatening situation which would have likely been deadly. Today it is the same center of the brain, the amygdala, which is activated when a feared stimulus sets it off, oftentimes unnecessarily. The feared stimulus creates waves of bodily panic, forcing us to respond.
Fear is one of the most powerful human emotions. It can stir other powerful emotions, like hate to the surface. It can cause us to lose sight of the larger picture of our lives. The more we fear and hate, the more these emotions are given space and attention, the more they will grow and blossom. What we regularly practice becomes second-nature.
How then can we stop the feeling from overwhelming us? How can we retain control over this powerful emotion? By regularly noticing when we are in it’s grip — and acknowledging the effects. Awareness of bodily sensation is the first step. We often respond more effectively to calming the mind by calming the body — making sure we’re exhaling longer than we’re inhaling and by deliberately relaxing our muscles. The mind also has a role because of the narratives it believes. By providing alternative explanations or re-framing an event the emotion loosens it’s grip, because the mind no longer believes in a black and white thought concept. Whatever that concept might be. Accepting fear as a normal human emotion is also key.
Being gripped by fear is endemic in western society. If only we could learn to practice more awareness in our everyday lives I believe more of us would be saying, doing, and being true to our authentic selves. We would listen to what our bodies are trying to tell us, and respond kindly with gentle guidance and acceptance. We would no longer hold back.
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