Turning Fear into Excitement

Have you ever had that feeling in the pit of your stomach when faced with a new challenge? That gut punch and rapid heartbeat that seem to electrify you at the near mention of an activity outside your comfort zone? I find it happening more and more lately now that I’m no longer “sick”. So many thrilling life experiences were put on hold for half a decade while I found myself increasingly confined to the stability of my own safe little world.  Now that I’m really living life again I find that activities I once took for granted sometimes scare the crap out of me. 

We’re taking a family vacation to Utah in a few weeks. I’ve finally conquered my recent fear of flying (anyone with chemical sensitivities and sensory issues can understand how challenging crowded airports can be!) and the next step in my recovery is to enjoy all the adventurous activities my husband and sons look forward to on trips like this. In past years I chose to lay low at the hotel and recover from the stress of travel. This year, though, I really don’t need that crutch. So when they mentioned that we’ll be white water rafting on day one I temporarily froze. I stopped breathing. To someone without “mystery illnesses” a day of white water rafting probably sounds awesome. I can’t even put into words why this fear arose. I’m not afraid of water. I don’t even have concerns about being knocked off the raft by a wave. I’ve been white water rafting dozens of times in my life! My world got so small for awhile there that this reintroduction to real life is scary. It’s that simple.  

I love this quote from psychiatrist Fritz Perls,

“Fear is excitement without the breath.” 

The solution? TURN IT AROUND. You can do this one of two ways:

1. Breath into the fear. Instead of attempting to avoid it, take a deep breath and FEEL it. You have more power than you realize. Celebrate this new adventure with big, easy breaths and before you know it the anxiety will turn into excitement. 

2. Another approach is to start with the mind. Jane McGonigal, in her book Super Better, explains that excitement and anxiety are physiologically the same emotion. As your heart beats faster and your stomach lurches some people find it easier to get excited than to calm down. Instead of fighting to manage your physical symptoms, you simply need to change your mindset. Say “I’m excited!” a few times and notice as you become less anxious and more optimistic. 

THIS WEEK: Become aware of events or thoughts that lead to fear and try using these techniques to turn that fear into excitement!

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