Overcoming Fears

I'm feel like I'm fairly savvy when it comes to survival situations. I'm by far not the best, and I have a lot to learn, but I would say I've had good training and have some pretty good instincts. My biggest weakness is a bug phobia. It's to the point where I literally shut down if a bug comes near me. It make me cringe to think about them. I've tried overcoming this fear, because I know in a survival situation it is a deadly weakness to have. Nothing I tried works. The older I get the more afraid I get. It's an unreasonable fear, I realize this, but I can't seem to shake it.

Have you had any fears you have overcome and how did you do it?

 

My fears have to do with first and foremost, an evil man or gang passing by your embankment and then deciding to give you a bad eye or worse. Some people are psychos and sniffing life out of someone isn't a big deal. The other fear is the possibility of being located by a pack of hyenas, coyotes or wild dogs which wouldn't leave alot of options for you anyhow. I dread to mention the boa constrictor.

 

I've noticed most situations that require survival are scary. They always involve overcoming fears or disastrous circumstances. If I were in a fire I promise I'd be scared of the fire, and the same goes for a tornado, zombie apocalypse, or hurricane. I just hope I never have to face any situations like that.

 

I have to admit that I am vulnerable to fears when in a survival situation. Take for instance a typhoon which is common here in our country. When the strong typhoon causes roofs of houses to fly and electric posts to fall, I would surely be shaking in fear especially when I see people getting injured by the catastrophe. That's why I did not enrol in first aid courses because I have the feeling that I would be of no help when crisis strikes. I also have this fear of blood so you can imagine what happens when someone is injured and needing help from me.

However, things change when I am not alone. If there is someone to support me morally then maybe I can behave rationally and be of help to those in need. What I am scared of is being alone in a crisis situation because I am not used to that scenario.

 

There is nothing to fear but fear itself!

 

I was afraid of bugs for a long time and the only way I managed to solve the phobia was to get out there and spend a lot of time near bugs (it's easy when you're out in the wilderness), you have to get out of your comfort zone. Keep in mind though, a lot of bugs and spiders are harmless and they don't have any bad intentions when they crawl on you, stay calm and get them off of your body, after all you're 1000 times bigger.

 

You definitely have to over come your fear of bugs. In a survival situation there may be bugs everywhere and you can't call an exterminator. There may be natural ways to keep bugs away from you, but it will be something you have to do your self. I think one of the fears I have overcome is uncertainty and worrying about how things will turn out. I now just rely on my faith in God and do the best I can, everything always falls into place. The truth is practice makes perfect the next time you see a bug in your house try to kill it yourself.

 

I think possibly if you were in a survival situation the fear of starving/not having shelter etc would bebigger than your fear of bugs so you would naturally overcome it. The human mind is adaptable and will probably make you afraid of the most imminent threat which in a survival situation wouldn't be bugs.

 

Thanks for sharing! Both of those would be terrifying situations. I don't know which one is worse. It's sad how some people can act worse than animals. I feel like those fears are a lot more reasonable than mine.

 

Thanks for sharing! I agree, most survival situations cause people to fear. I think that is basically because you are afraid you won't survive. I am with you, I hope I never have to face those situations. But hopefully preparing in advance will make it a little less scary.

 

Wow, thanks for sharing! I think I would be super scared of typhoons if they were common in my area. Luckily, I'm from an area where that isn't a problem. I think moral support is super important. Usually that helps ease my concerns. But it doesn't help my fear of bugs. It only helps when someone supports me by getting rid of the bugs for me.

 

I live in a heavily wooded area. There are lots of bugs, but I do my best to stay very VERY far away from them. I would like to think it would help if I spend more time with them, but I can't bring myself to doing it. I'm glad it helped you though! I will try to do like you suggested and try to remain calm when I have to remove them from my body. Thanks for sharing with me! It's helpful to know someone else conquered this fear.

 

That makes a lot sense. I love studying history, and I definitely see the pattern of how the "fight or flight" instinct preserved various people groups. Thanks for sharing!

 

Thanks for sharing! I'm a Christian with a strong faith in God. It is literally only by His grace that i've made it this far. I realize worrying and fear gets me no where. I also realize it is vital that I get rid of this fear. Practicing may be a good solution. Maybe I'll try starting small and working to larger bugs.

 

I really hope this is the case for me. I hope my mind will adapt so that my legitimate needs will outweigh my illegitimate fears!

 

Thanks for sharing this! I never really thought about that before. I'm not sure if it would be peaceful or if it would make people go crazy.

 

I do have some fears. I hate being around snakes or spiders, and in the wild there are allot of them. ( shocking i know!). Although, each day i try to overcome these fears in order to enjoy the most when i'm camping. I'm learning how to embrace these animals and each day i'm slowly starting to be okay with them. It takes time, don't expect to overcome the fear in a day!

 

I am not afraid of bugs but of spiders so I can totally relate. Yet, I also think that in a survival situation you would be more worried about other stuff, such as do you have enough food to eat, do you have enough water, do you have a secure place to sleep, etc. Maybe seeing a bug would just be ignored because that fear is way smaller than your fear to not survive.

 

I know what you mean. Sometimes it is seriously hard to enjoy camping with all of these fears. It's a day to day struggle. But I'm glad to hear it's getting better for you! Thanks for the reply!

 

That sounds logical. I really hope that is the case for me! Thanks!

 

I think they're gross and terrifying. The legs and hair and eyes all creep me out!

 

Well, some bugs or insects can definitely be dangerous so I wouldn't suggest letting every bug climb on you. That being said, start slow with a cockroach or caterpillar, they're inoffensive and can help you overcome your fear. That's how I started out.

 

It's not that just that I am scared because they are dangerous. I know many are not. I guess it's just a mindset I have to break. But I can't ever imagine myself touching a caterpillar. The thought gives me chills. Hopefully one day it won't be that way. But thanks for your advice and sharing your experience!

 

I think part of overcoming your fear is to actually do it. Fear of heights? Go to the top floor of the tallest building of your city. Fear of public? Go to the mall and stay there until you realize there's nothing to be afraid of. I think that's been my mantra ever since I was a child, because I was really afraid of a lot of things, and if I did have to avoid everything that I am afraid of, then I would probably be stuck at home, and wasting away my life in front of the computer, because that is the only place where I feel secure. So that's how I do it, I would rather confront my fears because I'm pretty sure it wouldn't kill me if I went and experienced what I was fearing this whole time.

 

I have a VERY STRONG fear of spiders. If I see one (of course not that tiny, cute type, but those huge huntsman-like spiders) I froze. There is no way on Earth that I can do anything. I usually just scream and someone helps me. When we're camping, this is the same, without the screaming. I'm just pointing to the "thing" or wait until it leaves. I had a fear of bugs too, but I "recovered", because of the lot of camping that we do, and because I kind of live in the nature, so I meet them every single day. Not once, not twice. So I'm okay with bugs now, I just have to fight against my spider phobia, which is huge.

 

Fear is really one of the craziest feelings i hate, but its natural, my fear is facing a large group of people or crowd,i normally don't attend any occasion because am too scared to be looked at. But i tried overcoming it by reading some books and practicing, i decided that whenever i started noticing those feeling i should just close my eye and pray a short prayer. And its been helpful to overcome my fears of public appearance and as well control.