Paralyzing Fear

We all have an inner critic, that little voice inside of us that won’t go away. This inner voice tells us we aren’t good enough, we can’t do it, so why even try? You’ll only fail anyway. What results is the fear of failing that is so strong it paralyzes us. We sabotage the happiness in our lives.

There are 3 ways people approach fear. Let’s use crossing the street as an example.

• There are those that have no fear at all.  Running across the street without even looking can be dangerous. This is not safe, therefore we need a certain amount of fear in our lives or we can hurt ourselves and others.
• Conversely, too much fear can be paralyzing. You may never cross the street as the fear of failing outweighs any reward of success. Too much fear keeps us stuck. This can affect our relationships, parenting skills, even the financial opportunities that come our way.
• Healthy fear tells us to look both ways before crossing the street. If we begin to feel paralyzed on the way, we must allow someone safe in our lives to take our hand and guide us to the other side. If there is no one safe then we need to reach out to a professional or a support group to help us do for ourselves what we can’t do alone.