How To Handle Fear

Hi my dear readers!

You know that the main goal of my blog is to share information that I find useful. Some of the ideas that I write about come to me from my personal experience. Something happens, I try to figure out why, or how to react, and when I get interesting and useful data, I create a new post and a new video about it.

Here is the link to the video for this post: How To Handle Fear.

In my life I always had some fears coming from nowhere. And these fears were making me upset and kind of misarable. And because of them I used to make wrong choices. So today I want to share few tips that can help you to handle some of your fears. Of course there are a lot of other things that you can do, but as I am writing an article, not a book, I will just list few.

1. Don't make important decisions when you are scared. Usually when we are afraid of something, out sympathetic nervous system gets activated. And when it gets activated, your brain doesn't process information really well. Even your vision changes. Your pupil gets bigger and you only focus on one thing in front of you, everything else becomes blurry like on the photo taken on portrait mode. On other hand, when you are calm (not too calm thou, not like drowsy or sleepy) you can process information faster, in calmer state bigger neurons become more active. So, first of all, when you get scared, when you are highly stressed, try to wait a little bit until your parasympathetic system gets activated and you are calm. You can use simple breathing technique in order to help yourself. You probably even have done it already unconsciously. I was doing it my whole life when I was crying, ha ha, without even knowing that this is how my body and brain help me to release stress. So what exactly you need to do? You can make two short inhales, and one long exhale, and you can repeat it several times. When I sob I do it, and it always helps. That is why sometimes after crying we feel some type of relief.

2. Take a walk. Another thing you can do when you are scared is to go for a walk. And try to go to a place where you can kind of use panoramic vision. I go to the lake for example. The combination of forward movement and panoramic vision can decrease the activity of amygdala - the part of the brain that creates fears.

3. Don't use external substances. When we are stressed one of the fist idea that comes to mind is to get a drink or maybe even use drugs. It is very dangerous path. If you try to numb your pain with alcohol every time you feel discomfort, it can lead to bad habit. Your brain can get used to it and you will start doing it unconsciously. This is how addiction can be developed. So when you are scared, try to rely more on some internal mechanism, rather than use some external things.

4. Try to sit through the fear by yourself. I know that in some situations we need some help from people who love us. But if you can, try to deal with your stress by yourself first. Maybe you will be able to handle it. You can start with something small. And then you can call your friend or your sibling and tell them, "I was stressed and scared today, but I found the way how to deal with this unpleasant situation". This way you can build some confidence and in long run it will help you to overcome difficulties. And you also can inspire people you care about. It is so nice to share little victories with each other!

5. Focus on something else. If you are afraid of something you have no control about, try to switch your focus to the areas which are important to you and which you can control. Our brain likes the sense of control in general and it doesn't care too much what exactly you are managing. Last summer in 2020 my aunt and uncle who live in Russia got Covid. I was very scared, but I could do absolutely nothing about this situation. So I tried to focus on my work, my study, things that are important to me. And it helped me to stay productive and not to get depressed and stressed. There are a lot of things we can do for ourselves and other people. So don't let your fears to stop you from achieving your goals.

These are my main tips. I hope you find some of them helpful. In the end I want to say that it is normal to experience fear. There is nothing wrong with being stressed. But sometimes we don't like the feeling of fear so much, that we resist it and make the situation even harder. Fear is a signal, notice it, but don't let it affect your efficiency.

Be Strong And Love Yourself!

From Dasha with Love!

Love Wins!