Does Fear Have Power Over You? How Fear Affects Us

Let’s talk fear. It is one of the emotions we experience every day, maybe several times a day. Fear of missing the bus, fear of facing the tough client, fear of jumping in the pool, fear of starting a new business, and more. More often than not, we let this emotion rule our senses and decision-making abilities. While we don’t realize it, fear governs most of our choices.

It is time to reflect and ask why we fear what we fear. Is it because we don’t want to labelled as outcasts? Are we too tired? Were we conditioned to question everything that is happening around us? Fear pushes people to accept the status quo, especially in situations where change is imperative. From politics to social movements, fear affects many aspects of our lives.

What is Fear?

Fear is one of the seven universal emotions everyone experiences along with joy, surprise, sadness, anger, contempt and disgust. It is one of the most basic human emotions programmed into our nervous systems to work as an instinct. When we sense danger, our brains react instantly, sending signals and causing physical symptoms like a faster heartbeat, rapid breathing and sweating.

How Mass Media Incites Fear

If we look at advertisements and marketing strategies, many of them use fear to tap into their audience. Companies selling cleaning agents and sanitizers tell us germs will make us ill. Ads promoting retirement plans and investments warn us we might die with no money if we’re unprepared. The latest tech gadget advertisements tap into the fear of not being up-to-date and fear of missing out (FOMO).

Even news channels capitalize on fear by displaying information in a way that causes panic. As a result, most people give into ‘herd mentality’ without questioning further. During COVID-19, both ads and news articles fueled people to hoard hand sanitizer, toilet paper, and bottled water. Worried about getting COVID-19 affected 7.6 billion people on the planet enough to influence behaviours. Such is the power of fear.

Drawbacks of Excessive Fear

Experiencing uncontrolled fear for prolonged periods can impact us severely, leading to physical and psychological ailments. Here are a few:

• Cardiovascular and gastrointestinal issues
• Premature ageing
• Fertility issues
• Anxiety and depression
• PTSD
• Increased risk of making ill-informed decisions

Living in a constant state of heightened fear is not healthy for anyone.

Controlled Fear Can Be Good

It is important to understand fear is not necessarily a bad thing in moderation. A basic level of fear heightens our senses and awareness, keeping us alert about our surroundings and helping us prepare for the future. Everybody needs a healthy dose of it, but too much of it holds us back. It is our inability to control the emotion that leads to unpleasant experiences. Questioning why we feel fearful instead of just reacting to it can help us channel our energy towards finding a solution.

How to Take Control of Fear

Fear doesn’t need to take power over us. Becoming aware of what our fear really is and taking action to find a solution is one way to cope with it. This is certainly easier said than done, but who doesn’t want to overcome it? Like any other habit, facing fears becomes easier with practice.

Learning to overcome fear is a life skill, just like swimming or cooking. You can try techniques such as The Sedona Method or the Emotional Freedom Technique, hypnosis, gratitude, journaling, therapy, and other methods.

As human beings, we enjoy good emotions and struggle with negative ones such as fear. We can practice ways to not let  our emotions have power over us and take over our lives.

Brave or Fearless?

We hear stories of people who were fearless in pursuing their dreams. In reality, they were probably just as scared and intimidated as we all are. They chose to overcome their emotions and act with bravery. We use the terms ‘fearless’ and ‘brave’ interchangeably, but they are two very different things. Being brave is taking action even though one is scared. Being fearless is not having any fear. When we talk about overcoming fear, we are talking about showing the courage to cope with an emotion that makes us human.

Conclusion

Fear affects everyone and many let it take power over them. We need to dig deeper and ask why. When fear affects us and takes over our actions, we become incapable of making good decisions. This allows people in powerful positions to have an upper hand over us. Let us understand what fear is and how we can transcend it and learn to believe in ourselves. At Green Schools Green Future, we believe in the power of bravery and doing what it takes to create a better world for us and our children.