6 steps for coping with fear

Last week I wrote about how to find the positive when you’re not feeling well, something I’ve been struggling a lot with recently. After having had two minor surgeries over the past week (one of which was very unexpected!), I’m actually feeling better than I have in quite some time. However, though my physical pain has subsided somewhat, my emotional distress has increased immensely over the past week due to the more serious, under-anesthesia surgery I’m scheduled to have this week. Having never had “real” surgery before — and also being very iatrophobic — I’ve been struggling a lot with staying positive and present in the face of fear.

I’ve never encountered a fear like this before. I’ve faced my share of fears, but they’ve always been more abstract and emotional — fear of not succeeding or having my heart broken or taking a big career risk — and much easier to overcome. This fear is incredibly tangible and forceful. It’s physical and has a deadline with a very specific date and time. It’s doing its best to trample my attempts at staying positively present.

But, scared as I am, I’m determined not to let it take over. I’m trying as best I can to make the most of the time I have between now and my surgery date without letting fear rule my life. I know I won’t be able to completely eradicate the fear, but I can learn to cope with it. Here are some of the steps I’ve been taking to cope with my fear. (Note: Though these are highlighted by my specific upcoming-surgery experience, these six steps apply to coping any kind of fear!)

Step 1: Recognize that you’re afraid

The first — and maybe most important — step when it comes to fear is realizing you’re afraid. Fear can manifest itself in all sorts of forms that may make it seem like something it’s not. Personally, I’ve found that a lot of the time when I seem angry or annoyed, I’m actually afraid. It’s not always easy to identify the source of fear, but if you spend time thinking about it (much you as might not want to!), usually the root cause of the fear will be made clear. Also, fear is something we usually want to avoid so sometimes we ignore it or downplay it in order to convince ourselves (or others) that we’re brave. Remind yourself that being afraid isn’t a weakness, and the sooner you recognize the fear, the sooner you can discover ways to cope with it (and hopefully move past it).

Step 2: Get to the heart of the fear

After you’ve identified what you’re afraid of — for example, for me, I’m afraid of having surgery — it’s time to dig a little deeper and define why you’re afraid. For me, the fear of surgery is actually due to fears of (1) not being in control, (2) not knowing exactly how I’ll feel when I wake up, and (3) not having experienced anything like this before (aka, fear of the unknown). When trying to get to the root cause of fear, it’s helpful to ask these questions:

• Have I ever been afraid of this before?
• What are you really afraid of?
• What makes you feel more afraid of it? Less afraid? 
• How do you feel when you’re afraid? (Physically and mentally)
• When are you most likely to feel afraid? 
• Does your fear have a purpose? 

Recognizing what causes the fear, when you experience it most, and what’s at the heart of it will help with the coping process. Also, sometimes simply understanding why you’re experiencing something can make it a bit easier to manage, making the coping process a bit easier.

Step 3: See fear as an opportunity

Fear is no fun to experience, but it’s often presented to you as an opportunity to take on a challenge, overcome a difficult situation, or grow stronger and braver. (Cliche, I know, but I swear it’s true!) In the midst of fear, it can be difficult to find the opportunities there, but it’s worth considering what they might be, especially because this is an excellent exercise in striving to find the good in a bad situation. For example, in my situation, I’ve spent my entire life being iatrophobic, terrified of doctors, needles, any sort of medical procedure. Though I’m currently still quite scared, I’m hoping this experience will make me braver and make it easier to cope with any medical situation I encounter in the future. I also know for a fact that this situation has made me so grateful for my health and once this is all over with I’ll have grown more appreciative of what it means to be healthy.

Step 4: Focus on your body

The way your body reacts to situations and thoughts can give you a lot of clues about how you’re feeling, especially when it comes to fear. For example, you might tense up when hearing unpleasant news before you’ve even actually processed what it means. Or your heart might start racing when you think about an upcoming presentation. Our bodies give us so much information about our emotions, and we can use that information to our advantage. For example, if your palms start sweating and your mind starts racing when you start thinking of something you’re afraid of, it might be a good time to try the 4-7-8 breathing technique. Or if you find your heart beating really fast, you might want to try progressive muscle relaxation. Paying attention to the body’s reaction to fear is useful because you can then counteract those reactions with more positive ones (deep breaths, relaxing muscles, etc.).

Step 5: Distract yourself from the fear

Last week, I wrote a little bit about distraction in my post about finding sunshine when you’re under the weather, but I’m bringing it up again now because it’s been a lifesaver for me lately. Seriously, if I didn’t have a ton of great distractions, I’d probably be curled up in a ball shaking in fear for the next few days! Fear and anxiety can spiral out of control very quickly if they’re allowed free reign in the mind,  and one of the best ways to keep it under control is to focus on something other than the fear. Over the past week, I’ve become a master at distraction, doing anything I can to focus on anything other than my upcoming surgery. Here are some of my favorite distractions: reading, writing, watching movies (especially old favorites), grown-up coloring books, jigsaw puzzles, crossword puzzles, and being around other people. When I’m distracted, fear doesn’t completely dissipate, but coping with it is much easier.

Step 6: Visualize the best case scenario

One of the most scary things about my upcoming surgery is that I don’t know exactly what kind of surgery I’m having until the surgeon begins the procedure. There are a variety of situations that could happen, ranging from not-too-bad to ugh-whyyyyy. My mind has, unfortunately, been wandering toward the negative side of things, imagining what will happen if I have to have the more complex surgery (that often involves additional surgery), but thinking this way is doing me no good. What I need to be doing is focusing on the best case scenario and visualizing that as my outcome. I read this quote recently and it’s so true: “Worrying is like praying for what you don’t want.” Instead of focusing on what’s the worst that could happen, it’s much better to take a look at your fear and ask yourself this, “What would it be like if everything goes perfectly?”

Though I’m admittedly still battling a lot of fear about my upcoming surgery, these six steps have really helped me to better cope with my fear. If you’re facing any kind of fear or change in your life, I hope these steps will help you too!

I’m not sure exactly how long I’ll be in recovery so if you don’t see posts from me in the next couple of weeks, don’t worry — I’ll be back as soon as I can sit up and write again! In the meantime, I’ll probably still be posting over on Instagram (@positivelypresent) so follow along over there for some daily bits of positivity. 🙂

Facing fears can offer up a great opportunity to reconnect with yourself. Start some soul-searching with the Finding Yourself workbook. Discover more about yourself, and uncover what you want most by downloading a copy of the e-book Finding Yourself: A Soul-Searching Workbook for Surprising Self Discovery. Filled with inspiration, questions, and activities to get you thinking about what it means to be you, Finding Yourself is a must for learning more about who you are and about what matters most to you. Learn more about the workbook here and purchase your own soul-searching copy here.