Now that we better understand the term energy – our internal state – we can name what most often disrupts it: fear.
Knowing how to appease that dragon becomes your first practical tool. And doing so builds confidence for whatever comes next.
Fear is often seen as something to eliminate. In truth, it serves an essential role: protection in the face of threat.
Fear is not weakness.
It is biology.
When something feels threatening – physically, emotionally, or relationally – the brain activates its survival circuitry. The amygdala signals danger. Stress hormones rise. The body prepares to fight, flee, freeze, or fawn. (In a “fawn” response, we seek safety by appeasing or mirroring the person who feels threatening.)
Blood flow shifts away from higher reasoning toward immediate survival. Digestion slows. The immune system pauses. The brain narrows its focus to deal with the perceived intruder.
This is not drama.
It is design.
The problem is not fear itself. The problem is when fear becomes chronic, when it remains switched on long after the original threat has passed.
In that state, we narrow.
We brace.
We anticipate loss.
We protect ourselves in ways that begin to shrink our lives.
Fear can be crippling because it convinces us that movement is unsafe.
But here is the quiet truth: courage is not the absence of fear. It is the decision to move while fear is present.
Courage does not roar.
Most often, it whispers, “Take the next step.”
Over the years, I have learned that fear loses much of its power when we name it, breathe through it, and refuse to let it dictate what we do next.
Fear says: Stay small.
Wisdom says: Stay aware.
Faith says: Move anyway.
When we regulate our nervous system – slowing the breath, grounding the body, steadying the mind – we regain access to higher reasoning. We are no longer reacting; we are choosing.
And choice is where courage lives.
The Fear Reset
Fear will visit. It always does.
The goal is not to eliminate fear. The goal is to respond to it wisely.
Over the years, I have practiced a simple reset when fear begins to tighten its grip:
1. Notice
“Fear is present. So am I.”
This returns me to my body. No denial. No panic. Just awareness.
2. Reframe
“Fear is information, not instruction.”
My nervous system is alerting me. That does not mean I must obey it. I pause. I assess.
3. Choose
“I can feel fear … and still choose my next step.”
Courage is rarely loud. It is often one measured, deliberate movement forward.
Fear narrows.
Choice widens.
When I regulate my breath, steady my thoughts, and act intentionally, fear shifts from dictator to data.
And that changes everything.
“F-E-A-R has two meanings: ‘Forget Everything and Run’ or ‘Face Everything and Rise.’ The choice is yours.” – Zig Ziglar
