Forging the Path of Courage by Dissolving Anxiety and Fear
EP. 12
In this episode of the Mae B Mindful Podcast, host Hannah Mae delves into the concept of surrender and the transformative power of letting go. She explores the root causes of fear, how it masquerades in our lives, and the steps we can take to overcome it. Hannah shares insights from her journey and offers practical tips to help you identify irrational fears, reframe your mindset, and embrace courage.
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Episode Transcript:
Hello, this is the Mae B Mindful Podcast, and I am your host, Hannah Mae. I'm a mother of six, conscious birth instructor and educator, spiritual growth facilitator, and certified hypnotist. This podcast is about inspiring hope, expanding awareness and consciousness, and revolutionizing the way we live and experience our lives. You can expect thought-provoking episodes each week spanning a range of topics, drawing from both my own journey of transformation and healing and my work with others. I hope you find this podcast to be informative, refreshing, illuminating, and instrumental in your own soul's evolution and growth. Let's jump right in.
Hi everybody, welcome back to the Mae B Mindful Podcast. I am your host, Hannah Mae. We've been talking lately about surrender and the idea of letting go—letting go of control and letting go of that fear that is evoked, which is usually the cause of needing to control. Most likely, that fear is what's in the driver's seat because we're afraid of losing something or having something negatively impacted.
Most people would like to trust and not be afraid, but it's similar to when someone says, "Be yourself." It's like, well, thanks, it never occurred to me! If I could, I would, but if there's a fear causing you to not be able to be yourself, then there's something else at the core. So, I wanted to dive into fear a little bit. I'll try not to use swear words, but fear is a rascal—an intruder, an unwelcome visitor that has taken up residence within us, and we don't want it there anymore. But it's comfortable and has made itself at home.
Fear is a slippery little sucker. Sometimes we become so conditioned to living with it that we don't even recognize it. Interestingly, people can get very defensive about their fear, which I understand. There's the rationalization that there are rational fears and appropriate fears. Yes, Psychology 101 tells us we are born with two instinctual fears: the fear of loud noises and the fear of heights or falling. These fears are designed to set off alarms in us for our own safety or the safety of those around us, like avoiding predators or ensuring our survival.
However, there are also irrational fears, which are the ones that cause the most pesky problems. These fears are a real nuisance and tend to keep us small, blocking us from fulfilling our purpose, vocation, calling, and happiness. Fear seems to like getting in the way of our goals, often operating unconsciously and being in the driver's seat when we think we are making decisions.
Fear often masquerades as something else and likes to stay hidden so it can continue to operate. In 12-step programs, fear is referred to as the "evil and corroding thread." If you look at a piece of fabric, this thread of fear is woven throughout our lives. It can be difficult to differentiate what thread is fear and what is rational.
As a hypnosis practitioner and someone involved in 12-step programs, I've addressed a lot of fears with people. Many times, people are offended when I ask them what they are afraid of and become defensive, saying, "I'm not afraid." If fear is operative and preventing you from doing what you want to do, it will try to defend itself.
When I ask people what they are, they often respond with "concerned" or "anxious." What is anxiety if not fear? What is worry if not fear? By getting underneath these emotions and looking at them from another perspective, we can identify what the fear is. It's important to identify fear because if you want to address a problem and find a solution, you need to identify the problem properly.
Many of these fears are unconscious and come from wounding in earlier times in life. Our experiences and traumatic events, whether big or small, can cause us to believe certain things. These wounds become entryways for fear, and fear becomes a belief that we come into agreement with. This sets the stage for different parts of us to emerge, often as protectors.
If you've ever done parts work, you'll understand that the part of you trying to protect you is most likely from an earlier time. The energy of that event is frozen in the nervous system, and that part of you remains the same age as when the event occurred. It doesn't grow up or outgrow the fear.
Addressing fear involves recognizing that many fears are irrational and don't apply to current situations. There are various ways to address fear and get free from it. It's possible to completely free yourself from fear, even though it might take extra work to break the illusion.
When we let go of fear, it opens up a whole new path that we couldn't see before. Fear and love, or fear and faith, cannot live in the same room. Love casts out all fear. It comes down to focus—what we put our attention on and let consume us. We can choose to lift our gaze and elevate our hearts, reframing fear as an opportunity to refine courage and strength.
Fear can be flipped to work for us. We can acknowledge its presence without letting it drive us. By discerning correctly what's going on, we can choose to be in control and let fear sit in the back seat. Fear gives us the opportunity to have courage and be victorious.
As we continue to address underlying beliefs and see things for what they are, we can create new beliefs and step into new realities. Facing fear means confronting the energy it brings up in us and transmuting it. When we press into fear, we don't move away from it. Instead, we allow it to be a driving force towards our ultimate goals.
Wrapping up, I want to leave you with a passage from Anthony De Mello's book, "The Way to Love." He says, "You see persons and things not as they are but as you are. If you wish to see them as they are, you must attend to your attachments and the fears that your attachments generate." Attachments and fears decide what we notice and what we block out, creating an illusory version of the world. When we drop our beliefs, fears, and attachments, we become free and more sensitive to ourselves and the world.
This process of waking up and seeing more clearly is an invitation to change. When fear becomes unmanageable and disrupts our lives, it's a sign that we are ready for change. We can press into a new experience and move forward.
Thank you for tuning in to the Mae B Mindful Podcast. If you enjoyed today's episode, don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review. Your feedback helps us grow and improve. For more information, resources, and exclusive content, visit our website at maebmindful.com. Screenshot the episode and tag me. Until next week, when I bring you another thought-provoking and inspiring topic. Until then, goodbye.