Embracing Fear

"The greatest barrier to success is the fear of failure" ~Sven Goran Eriksson

Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. My mom would go all out. The whole house would be decorated with pumpkins, ghosts, and other frightful decorations. We even had the fake tombstones in the front yard. Her costume of choice was usually a witch - complete with a fake big warty nose. I used to love scary movies and Goosebumps were some of my favorite books. As a child, I embraced fear. I think we all do. As children, we are so willing to take that jump or risk without a second thought. Some may call this naive, but there is a part of it that is our pure nature.

Fear is something that is conditioned - we actually learn to be afraid! The amygdala is the part of the brain that processes fear and anxiety. It is also this part of the brain that is responsible for the formation and storage of memories associated with emotional events. So you see, our brain is wired to hold on to these fears and they are stored in our subconscious.

One of the five afflictions in the yoga sutras is fear. Fear does have an evolutionary purpose, it's meant to ramp up our sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) and alert us to potential threats to keep us alive. However, the fears we face today are generally not survival based, but imagined. They are scenarios we create in our mind. We have anxiety about completing a task, a new job, or being accepted. Our fear is based in the future, not the present. Yoga can help ease our fears because it teaches us to stay present with what is and not worry about what will be. Yoga can also help us to calm our bodies responses to fear by teaching us pranayama. By controlling your breath, you can control your body and mind and reduce the physiological and psychological effects of fear.

I think Halloween is a great time of year where we all can embrace our fears. There are so many things we avoid or put off in life because we are afraid of what could happen.What is something you have been putting off and why? Is it because of fear? Ask yourself "what is the worst thing that could happen?" Chances are it is not that serious.