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Julien Elizabeth

You don't know how good you can feel until you feel better

Feeling Through Fear [Playlist]

By

FeelTheFear-JulienElizabeth

Fear is one way we can be motivated to act.

When we are scared, we are forced to act.

It’s an instinct encouraged by our bodies: a fast heart, shortened breath, fast-twitch muscle activation, quick-thinking and hyper-focus. This instinct has helped our species survive time and time again in moments of danger over the long evolution that brings us to this moment. Our fear is our survival instinct. It’s a perfect system our body has in place to protect us from danger – it is the basis of evolution.

Except there are many, many times that fear can look a lot like inaction.

There’s so much I don’t do because I am scared. Conversations I don’t have, opportunities I don’t take, questions I don’t ask, truth that I turn away from. I see the same thing happening in my friends, my family, the people I work with, and even in interactions I have with people I don’t necessarily know. There are people I talk to who choose fear over taking care of their bodies and discovering health – there are times I do this myself. Sometimes I even find myself scared of what my day will look like if I don’t have a cup of coffee!

Fear can hold us hostage from feeling and doing our best.

When I consider some of the painful, fear inciting experiences I have had, it’s not the experiences themselves that cause me to feel fear long after the trauma. What brings forth feelings of fear is the vulnerability of honesty, or of sharing my experiences. So much fear is driven by how we perceive to be seen by others. Fear of being seen as damaged or difficult or broken – fearful that it will create distance between us. That fear, then, renders us silent and still and in this, creates the distance we may be most fearful of.
 

Here’s the challenge: recognize fear, especially when it feels irrational. Feel it. Thank it. Lean into the part that feels fear with gratitude: the part that feels safe with life that it is willing to fight against change. Feel fear, recognize the choice and then do it anyway.

Tell the person how you feel – don’t wait for them to do it first. Share what you’ve been through – the beautiful challenges that have caused you to falter or fall. Own the experiences that you have overcome.

I consider that fear to be an arrow, pointing me in a new direction. This is the growth. What lies on the other side of fear could be my greatest gift because what lies on the other side of fear is my journey through it. That journey adds undeniable and invaluable wealth to my life, my relationships and my spirit; it’s happening for me: to find greater connection and strength.

Playlist: Feel The Fear

Glacier (Atu Remix) – James Vincent McMorrow
May This Be Love – Jimi Hendrix
Paradise Waiting – Vacationer
Swim and Sleep (Like A Shark) – Unknown Mortal Orchestra
How We Be – Sinkage
Waves (Robin Shulz Radio Edit) – Mr. Probz
Habits (Stay High) Tove Lo
Hotline Bling (Instrumental) – Doc Holiday
Superstition – Stevie Wonder
Durga Shakti – Shaman’s Dream
Coming Home – Leon Bridges
Roll Up Your Sleeves – Meg Mac
Planet Caravan – Black Sabbath
Up All Night – Olive Tank
The Lengths – The Black Keys
Small Memory – Jon Hopkins
Throes – Half Moon Run