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How Our Unresolved Fears May Sabotage Our Golden Years

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All of us have fears. That is almost a given. I have yet to meet someone who has lived his or her life without any fear. The question is not whether fear exists within us. The question is what types of fear, and in what degree.

One way to live our life is to live with our fears, facing fears whenever they surfaced and hope to cope with them in the best way we know. Another way is to avoid fears altogether, not facing up to them, running away instead of facing them.

I have found that those who choose to avoid or deny fears in their lives in their younger days eventually end up having to deal with these same fears as they grow old. Unfortunately, by then, they do not have the energy, resilience and in many cases even the awareness to face them in a positive way.

Some simply do not recognise the fears that they have suppressed and repressed all these years, hidden out of their conscious awareness. They cannot recognise the triggers for these fears. They become perplexed by their own constant uneasiness and heaviness in the chest. They sense a perpetual feeling of doom and gloom, and a constant anxiety that eventually leads to depression.

Not surprising then that many of them end up feeling sad, lonely and depressed in their golden years.

Knowing this, it is imperative upon us to act now – as early as possible – to resolve as many of our fears as we can. Granted, it is not easy to face fear. It is much easier to avoid and run away than to confront fear, but running away from fear only ends up with fear coming back to haunt us in our old age. It is much wiser to confront fear, to face it, acknowledge it and understand it. Only then can we learn to resolve and overcome it.

This first step is often the most difficult step for many – to face fear directly rather than to deny its existence and avoid it. Without acknowledging fear and being aware of it, transformation is not possible. Growth is the work of reducing fear and increasing love.

For more information on fear, its manifestations and causes, and how to manage fear, click here.

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