Fear is Not Your Friend
Fear is a complex emotion to escape. Fear of the darkness prevents us from exploring the unknown in favour of remaining in our comfort zones. We become accustomed to warm and cozy familiarities, making the fear of the unknown even greater and more challenging to eliminate. The problem with our comfort zones is they do not lead to a fulfilling life; I can tell you from experience. During my teenage years, I was incredibly dissatisfied with myself; I lacked confidence, doubted myself constantly, and was terrified of being scrutinized. Despite being well aware of my dissatisfaction, I refused to venture out of my comfort zone due to fear of the unknown. Humans are attached to comfort and can’t stand the thought of losing it. We fail to recognize that fear is slowly killing us.
When I was finally shoved out of my comfort zone, I quickly realized there was nothing to be afraid of. At 18, I moved away from home to attend the University of Nottingham; I was away from London, away from family and friends, surrounded by strangers, and ripped away from the familiar. The first month was tough, but it was not long before I began to flourish. I made friends, went to raves, experienced independence, and had time to question the person I left behind in London. For so long, I had been afraid of the ambiguity of the unknown. However, my life improved because I became less fearful of leaving my comfort zone. Life itself is uncertain, so if you succumb to fear, you merely do yourself a disservice.
To live a fulfilling life, you must embrace your fears. Trust me, safety and security are overrated; your comfort zone may feel familiar to you, but it is holding you back. The need to feel safe and the fear of danger are incredibly palpable. After all, they are emotions deeply embedded in our DNA. How do we overcome fear? First, let us decipher what emotion we want to experience instead of fear. Instead of being afraid, we want to be courageous. Fear and courage do not exist independently; they are co-existent and co-dependent emotions. This is because of polarity, which defines two opposite emotions as two ends of the same scale. In other words, fear and courage are two different sides of the same coin. Use this fact to your advantage by observing and analyzing your fear, then push it aside in favour of its twin brother, courage.
Fear is not your friend, but it will always be with you, and so will courage. Channel a brave version of yourself because that version of you already exists, and use it to live life to the fullest.