I’ve been thinking about fear lately and how to get over fear so you can push yourself to new heights. I think of the great conscious thinker Eckhart Tolle who said, “A great deal of what people say, think, or do is actually motivated by fear, which of course is always linked with having your focus on the future and being out of touch with the Now. As there are no problems in the Now, there is no fear either.” As someone who has dealt with anxiety most of her life, I am very attuned to racing, bleak thoughts and feelings in most situations.
A lot of times I don’t even know where this anxiety is coming from. Anxiety can be VERY debilitating as it takes extra effort to see friends and family, get my work done, and even know what to eat on a daily basis. Most of the time it just feels like I'm always pushing something heavy or moving through water to get anything done. My anxiety also has to do with my high sensitivity or ability to be highly aroused by my senses more than 80% of the population.
One way to combat fear and anxiety is challenging yourself in areas that you feel a passion towards. Last week my husband and I went to Zion National Park which might be my favorite National Park EVER. This is partially because of the hike, Angels Landing. Angels Landing is a 5-mile hike, ascending 1500 feet, 5000 feet in elevation, crossing a 1-mile ridge only a few feet wide surrounded by a thousand-foot drop on each side. Due to COVID-19 Zion National Park is only allowing a limited amount of people to ride the shuttle and hike the more strenuous trails like Angels Landing. Unfortunately, I was not able to secure a spot on the shuttle and we were plumb out of luck on what to do.
It is the hardships, the adventures, and the difficulties that make us stronger. We drove into the National park, rented bikes to get to the trailhead, biked 5 miles, hiked Angels Landing (5-mile round trip straight up a mountain and back down) and biked 5 miles back.
It was EXHAUSTING and so EXCITING and FUN. I want more adventures in my life in order to feel ALIVE, challenged, and accomplished. To know that I can overcome ANYTHING I put my mind to. We have to test our limits to find out what we can really accomplish and what we are capable to doing. I also believe this is one technique to free us from fear. What is fear by fear itself?
My husband and I tried this hike three years ago and didn’t make it to the top. It started raining out, and we did not think it was worth falling off a 1000 ft descent if we slipped. I was also really scared of the hike. I kept thinking, “how the heck are people allowed to do this hike?” This year was different. I knew what I was getting into, and I knew what to do. I focused on what foot in front of the other and did not look down until I was at the top! This time it actually felt easy, and I had a good time chatting and high-fiving people on the way up and down. In a way all the hikers helped one-another to overcome a difficult feat.
I truly believe we have to face our fears head on. Maybe this comes in the form of journaling about our anxiety, maybe this comes in the form of skating in skate parks, and maybe this comes in the form of hiking an intimidating trail. It is the journey of overcoming something HARD that makes us stronger people. I want to face each day as the strong person I know I can be without debilitating fear and anxiety!
What will it take for you to overcome your fears and have less or no anxiety in your life?