Breathing Into Fear

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It took a long time for me to come around to my complete vision—the vision of starting my own practice as a psychotherapist, of doing the work that I love. I worried about branding, about creating a successful business plan, about being a working mother—these persistent thoughts and so much more got in the way and held me hostage. The feeling of being STUCK, full of doubt in my ability to pursue my goal, was largely rooted in FEAR.

Fear is one of the most powerful and debilitating emotions. Fear blurs our vision. Fear stops us in our tracks. Fear speaks untruths to our subconscious mind, which can often result in self-sabotaging behaviors.

Fear can show up as:

Physical symptoms: anxious energy, pain, GI distress, shakes, chest pain, heat, numbness, dizziness

Thoughts: “What Ifs”, catastrophizing (aka predicting the worst-case scenario), imposter syndrome, “I will wait until tomorrow” or “I can’t do it unless it’s perfect,” learned helplessness

Behaviors: avoidance, fleeing, ghosting, shutting down, shrinking your voice, self-medicating to numb feelings of fear

Emotions: anxiety, sadness, anger, feelings of powerlessness, worry, rumination

Spirituality: disconnection, inability to live mindfully

And the list can go on…

When we avoid fear, we allow it to rule our lives. The journey to face fear makes me conscious of how fear plagues my body and shows up in my mind. Fear creeps in as tingling sensations flowing through my body, starting from my chest down into the pit of my stomach, which travel to my extremities. Fear feels like fog, paralyzing my thoughts and tongue. Fear lies in the palpations in my heart.

Once I began to notice where fear shows up in my body, I was able then to give it voice and a name. This is when fear’s hold began to loosen. The loosening grip provided space to help me see where fear was creeping in.

The ability to confront fear and understand it gave me power to lean into it and release its hold, which allows me to be here with you. You too have the power to overcome the fear that plagues your life by learning how to breathe into it and transform it.

Tools to Help you breathe into & transform your fear:

First step: Allow it in by breathing into the fear.

Next step: Ask yourself and consider journaling —

  • Where does fear reside/show up in my body?

  • What story is fear telling me?

  • Is this story real or fiction?

Then: Soothe the fear. Consider things like engaging in movement, getting support, and deepen sensory awareness to ground to help you manage the physical symptoms of fear

Lastly: Release it…

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