What is a fear that you have and how has it limited you? How do you plan on letting it go or overcoming it in the coming year?
Fear of failure, fear of anxiety... I continue to fight them by trying to practice realistic thinking.
Fear of not making enough money for a decent living and for a kid in the future. I'm limiting my expemses as much as I can, I'm being more opmistic about the future and I'm developing new skills for a new career:when an opportunity comes around, I'll be there to take it
The only genuine fear I hold is that my children might die before me. Thankfully I remain a positive person and this has not limited me.
Fear of how powerful and limitless I can truly be. Try to stay in the present and remember to ask the question "what would someone who loves themselves do?"
I have a fear of not finishing things. So I'm wound up about getting projects done. I want to be more calm and in the present.
I have a fear of heights. There are some repairs that I can not make myself because they require getting on a ladder. The power of the check book continues to work.
Biggest fear is aging and adjusting to it. Plan on being more proactive for my health, and getting more educated on aging.
I am afraid of getting a divorce
I am overweight. I fear that my oldest daughter who is now 3.5 years old will be embarrassed by me and I fear that I will pass on my food issues to her.
PUBLIC SPEAKING. Taking a mentoring course on planning a workshop. Graduation is upon completion of the event. If I don't die from fright.
My inability to change jobs comes from a bunch of excuses. I need to find a direction and follow it with all my strength, even if it means risking stable income.
Fear of rocking the boat -- but sometimes it needs rocking, and I need to be less concerned with or stymied by the handful of ostensibly motion-sick folks, since the health of the entire maritime community requires the rocking.
Of being judged. This is making me more temperamental, anxious, on the edge. I want to believe in what Im doing is right and be open to criticism without being overly affected by it. I think I'll do it by working on things that are justifiable..to me, by me
The fear I have been coping with is that I am not good enough and due to it I am not succeeding on projects where I should. To overcome this I am doing projects and if I fail, I will learn and when I learn I will get ahead!
i am still very fearful and very conscious of this. i'm scared of my body failing. i'm scared of my marriage failing. i'm scared of living for five more years in a half-life, feeling stuck and unfulfilled. i don't think that is what's coming though. i think something spectacular is coming - think i am already creating it, and that it will help me move away from fear.
I have no fears, not for the dark, not for death, perhaps i would like to overcome the fear of not being good enough.
One of the biggest fears that I have is not being independant financially. I didn't even realize it was a fear until I went to close my bank account and transfer to a one bank account family. I was a mess! Having my own income was very important to me, and I hope that I can learn that it is okay for Matt is support me. That it is our money and not mine/his. I am going to help myself get through this by keeping my part time job while I am here. I am also going to get more comfortable talking about money. I think that will help.
I often think that I have a fear of success. A lot of times I have great idea both personally and professionally, and I tell myself and sometimes even others that I am going to do them, and I just never do or I don't follow through. I am planning on working on this in 2014 through pushing myself out of my comfort zone, talking through some of it in therapy, and setting strong goals and rewards.
Why the assumption that I plan on overcoming or letting go? Maybe I'll just embrace it.
I will get incapacitated
Maybe fear is a very strong word, but I sometimes worry that I won't find somebody as captivating as Sus, to love. And that, knowing me, I'll spend my days, any days, alone. Lacking the power of love and its magic to empower me.
Fear of driving the highway I am not convertable and I will have to do more with Herbie and he will have to direct me.
I have a fear that I would not work hard/smart enough, or get enough opportunities/breaks, or even make proper use of those opportunities, and that this will lead to my not being independent in the next year. Not sure it has limited me in any way, but I plan on taking more risks, being more diligent in seeking out and following up on leads. 'Leads' could be for anything...jobs, relationships, businesses, etc. An example of a risk I'm going to take is to begin a drop-shipping service for people in my home country. I might have an opportunity to be a committee member in a school organization, I plan to grab that with open arms too.
Twin fears: fear of failure and fear of illness. I feel like I can't do anything right, and it becomes self-fulfilling prophecy. I see others zoom ahead of me in so many of the areas I want to be good at, while I sit and fret. I worry about my health, and waste more time than necessary trying to self-diagnose. I don't do things I probably would enjoy because I'm afraid I'll give myself a heart attack or stroke. Starting today, I want to forge ahead fearlessly. Flip a switch and do, and accept failure as a learning opportunity. Give myself permission to fail in the cause of advancing and look only forward. My health is in my own control. I know what to do for myself to improve my health, and have started doing those things - eating vegetarian, taking time to de-stress, meditate, exercise. I need to trust that my peasant's body is stronger than I think it is, and keep taking good care of it.
I have a fear of writing: because I am scared of what I will find when I write, scared of how it will change my life, and scared of failing if I really try. I'd love to do NaNoWriMo to conquer it and get back in the habit - but I think more realistically, if I just start to journal more often, it will come back to me, slowly.
Fear of losing control, of impermanence. I plan to continue practicing with it, being present with my life as it is, as I am.
As redundant as it is, my fear is to be trapped my insecurities and not conquer and rise above them. Recently I have felt and inner lack of self-confidence, a step back to where I had been before. I had been making improvements but I don't know what set me back. I have decided that in order to achieve what I want to achieve, and live and love fully, I must gain mastery over myself. Books helped a lot to get a clearer world-view and understanding of the human condition. But now I want to shed the last of my fears and feel I have strong foot on the ground, that I may build upon strong foundations and that those I hold dear may stand with confidence besides me. I will seek therapy and hypnotherapy as part of this process. Constructing a mind is a lot like constructing a building. You need scaffolding to rise. And I intend to begin constructing that.
My fear is that I won't pull off these gigs, that we bit too much to handle. I am stubborn and a trooper though and so if I say I will do something then I will. I conquered my fear of going to long distance places such as Canada and America and so glad I got to see a lot of these awesome places. I actually enjoyed these plane rides more than the little plane ones here to other states, guess I got spoiled LOL! And no was right at the back in economy!
Way in the back of my mind is my fear of death. I want to be around for a long while...But when I read obits of people my age, it kind of freaks me out. To overcome it and/or let it go, I have to get healthier; not that I'm in bad shape, just get in better shape, lose weight...have to...I think also, once Phil and I put together a living trust, I'll fell better...I guess being in control will help!
I ended the summer feeling so full of family -- and my fear is that I'll never be able to create that for myself, that I'll always be on the outskirts of others'. A temporarily welcome addition. So what can I do? Find a partner and build the next stage of our lives together. Okay.
I have a real fear of my children's increasing independence, and the parallel decreasing time we have to spend together. They are still very young, and I cherish the closeness we have. As they grow older and enter school, I have to let go a little bit. I want to make sure I fill them up with my love so they can carry it with them on their life journeys. I know what it is to be unwanted, unloved. I never want my kids to feel that way. I have to reign in my impulse toward over-attentive mothering and learn to celebrate the individuals they are becoming.
I've always been afraid of taking my helmet off in space. I haven't been to space but when I get there I know I'll be ready
I fear reaching for my goals and discovering that I am very limited in my potential to achieve. This year I will focus on using hard work and prioritization to extend that potential. I will also work on keeping my goals focused on my own needs and interests rather than a false sense of what I "should" have or do.
Like someone in a sample answer said, I'm definitely afraid of failure. There are a lot of times when I would rather stick my head in the sand than strike out on my own. That's not to say that I haven't conquered this fear somewhat in the last year, but I still have a long way to go before it's fully conquered.
Not taking risks and pursuing my career. Of being ineffective. Of making mistakes. Of lacking self confidence. Being forgiving of myself. Taking the risks and swallowing hard! Working harder and finding more evidence for what I'm doing.
I don't have many fears in life. I've found that if something is causing me to feel trepidation, I find myself confronting it head on. I plan on staying this course...
Fear of completing projects. I have a lot of dormant ideas. I liked what Zuckerberg said the other day, he has a company motto of "move fast". It encourages an environment were lots of things are produced without the fear of imperfection.
I have a fear of doing something which might either embarrass me or get me into trouble - eg asking someone out, saying something which goes against the party line. This is probably one of the biggest things holding me back. I wish I knew how I could get over it.
I have a fear of not becoming a teacher but I'm now halfway there because I passed my Numeracy TDA test this summer (the Literacy one, I passed in January)! So now I need to focus on my last year at university - my dissertation, placement and try to have as much fun in between that I can. My other fear is not being able to move to New Zealand but I'm going to start looking into it properly and start saving as I set my self the goal to move there before or when I'm 25!
My fear is that I will remain in a cycle of one step forward and two steps back in my self acceptance. I fear that I will make efforts to be happy with it all to fall apart. To overcome, I would like to maintain focus on myself and doing what is best/I want to do for me. I want to be healthy and happy all at the same time.
Fear of failing, of not being good enough. Fear of rejection. Fear of not being loved. I have no idea how to overcome it. If I knew I wouldn't have my fears to the extent I have them.
That my happiest years are behind me and that it only gets worse by the day. We'll see. When you have not much to lose, maybe you try out new things that would be considered a risk by your former self.
I'm afraid of being alone. I have a history of staying in relationships much longer than is healthy because I would rather that than being alone. My most recent break up was difficult but much less so than others in the past because I've been working on this fear, but I still have a long way to go. I think I need to not enter into another relationship until I get some kind of handle on this fear and find a path to feel confident inside my heart.
I'm afraid of not being loved, or of being abandoned. I try to bridge gaps between myself and others with myself, and end up destroyed. I don't think whether the relationship is one that I want, just that I have to preserve it. I don't totally know how to fix it other than being aware of this and thinking about its origins.
I'm afraid of being selfish or self-centered. It keeps me from standing up for myself, or from asking for the help that I sometimes need. I've had to confront it while I've been pregnant--between sickness and migraines, I've needed more help than I thought I would before the baby comes. I have this constant fear of imposing on people--though my mom said, "we're your parents, you're giving us a grandchild, you're allowed to impose".
The fear that I have right is not be able to get over my past failures and let that take over my life completely. Maybe theorpy will help.
My greatest fear is that I'll regret my life decisions, that I'll look back and wonder why I didn't make more of my life. In some ways it is very healthy and is pushes me to do more to strive to make my life more fulfilling and meaningful. Doing this fuels that fear making me reflect on what I have acheieved in my life.
i have 2 pervasive fears. one that i am not a desirable person .....the other is that there won't be enough resources to take care of me when i am old. both have a deeply unsettling effect on me when i get caught by them. i work to come back to the moment, realize i cannot do anything about it and that i would prefer to live NOW and not lose the moment to the egos rattling in the night. the letting go is in the moment over and over.......being as kind , open, loving, accepting as i can is somewhat of an antidote. the limitations have been great.............a hidingness, a shyness, loss of presence to self and other.
I am not aware of my fears but I know I have a very hard time following through on my ideas. I will plot out a concrete plan of action for at least one idea that I have.
oof. Fear of being vulnerable, fear of not doing well enough, or being up to standard. I'm working on staying present, that vulnerable is ok, and leaning into discomfort. The only way out is through. There are lots of specific fears tied up in that, and each has its own specific action steps.
Even after 40 years of successful ministry I still fight a fear of failure. My only solution is to take it out of its box, look at it rationally, and minister out of my best self.
There are times I believe I live in fear constantly. Will I be able to make the bills, pay the rent, or have funds to save. These are large concerns. The worst fears I have however are for my children. Will my children live comfortably in a world of peace? or War? Will there be work in their chosen careers? these nagging thoughts and worries are always there. For these reasons, G-d and I communicate regularly. May we all find the right path to peace and happiness...
I have a fear of taking on too much and then not being able to get it all done. I plan to overcome it in this coming year by "just jumping in and doing it," by not thinking too much about it - and by having fun doing the work that I am doing.
The fear of being 'unloved' has always been a big one for me. Not necessarily friendship love, or family love, but real passionate soulmate love. With all my friends announcing engagements or babies and my birthday coming up, it almost seems to amplify it. Unfortuantely, most of the ways to 'put myself out there' cost significant pocket change that I don't have. I'll keep doing the free stuff, but I'm honestly scared.
This is going to sound silly but I think I have a fear of being thin. I've been over weight my whole life. It's who I am, "the chubby girl". Who am I if I am not her anymore? It's horrifically limiting and I am going to let it go in the coming year. I have to.
Fear of letting my depression get the best of me and killing myself.
There has been an underlying theme of fear in finding my perfect life partner. I have already started to overcome it by being on a few dating websites and connecting with different men. I have to be in action if I am to meet my partner.
I have a fear of taking chances and failing, especially economically and with household projects. For the economic piece, I will find a career goal and figure out what I need to do to meet it. For the household project area, I will simply start doing and not just walk by the things that need to be done. This fall weather today is making me more optimistic. The heat lately has been oppressive and I'm glad it's over.
A fear that I have is more of an insecurity that I have. I think I am regularly looking at my relationships and deciding if the people in my life are good for me. I know that I often give to much and want to be there for people who aren't necessarily there for me, and sometimes I worry that I am being taken advantage of. On the flip side I sometimes worry that my big heart might land me in a relationship down the line where I am not being treated well. The good thing is that I am aware of how great of a friend I can be that I hope if I am ever in that position I can make the right choice and remove myself from the situation. I guess I hope that I wouldn't choose love over myself.
I fear being out of control. Feeling helpless reduces me to tears. But I must let go. I am trying it with my son, to allow him to find his own space and motivation. This holds true for the people I work with, my romantic partner, my daughter, even Taekwon do. It's like loosening the leash on the dog. Don't hold so tight, and you can communicate better and both flourish.
Fear of change has paralyzed me for too long. I need to realize change is the only way I can move forward.
My biggest fear is failure. I hate not being good at something...I hate not being the best at something. When I am presented with something that I haven't done before or believe I can't do, I shut down and don't really try it. It has limited me beyond belief in my life and I am tired of missing out on things because I tell myself I can't do them. I plan on changing my mindset--I want to see things that I haven't done before or that I can't do well as an opportunity of learning and growth.
I'm afraid that Rory's insurance coverage will change, or lapse, or go away and that we won't be able to afford to procure his catheter supplies anymore. The thought of having to come up with $750 a month for things that we throw in the garbage is terrifying to me. I have no idea how to overcome this. How do you stop worring about your child's life?
I've already answered this one earlier. I'm going to try regular counseling, along with pushing myself out of my comfort zone. Say yes to things more often, not complain, do more things on the spur of the moment, attend social events more often, etc...
I am afraid of disappointing people, not meeting expectations, letting people down. I feel this way particularly with love... In terms of the next year, I am just going to work as hard as I can to meet expectations I guess, to be the best person I can be and try not to worry too much if my best is not perfect, because that's all I have got and no one is perfect and the imperfect is good enough.
I still deal with this fear of love. I feel inadequate as a lover, in virtually every way, and it keeps me from pursuing a relationship on a level I'd greatly appreciate. The only way I can think of to overcome it is continue to date and be consciously aware of this fear, so I can be rational about it.
My biggest fear is not living up to my potential. I have a great life, but when I look at some of my more successful peers, I get down on myself. Most of my friends make a lot more money than I do, and although I am comfortable, I sometimes feel as if I'm not their equal because of their professional success. I work in a not for profit world, but my spending habits do not match my income. While I have investments, I worry about not putting away enough savings. Most of my worries revolve around money. My plan to overcome my financial worries is to finally come up with a family budget so we're saving for what we want rather than purchasing it and trying to pay for it later. I need to get my wife on board with this however.
I have a fear of making a lot of money and then making poor decisions with it and then being broke again! I am letting this fear go and releasing it from my cells and replacing it with the following mantra! I am free to create massive amounts of wealth and I attract money and financial abundance quickly and easily. I also trust myself and make wise investments. I am confident in my ability to discern where to make my money work for me and I know I am valuable and worthy of managing large amounts of money. I am rewriting my DNA to magnet financial freedom and I am shifting the message I share with my son Max and my generations that follow him.
I fear people getting upset with me. It keeps me from being honest in my relationships. In the long run, that does more to damage the relationships because I build up resentment.
I really don't have any big fears
Fear of being discovered as a fraud. Fear of beaing a fraud. Last year brought a few surprising examples that I am not a fraud but still.. The inferiority complex is stronger than evidence of professionalism and accomplishment. A fear of losing my job. I can only imagine how bad I would feel and how strong my innermost belief in being a fraud will become. Plan: keep calm and carry on.
I have two contradictory fears: one of success, the other of failure. The result is that I'm often paralyzed and remain stagnant, because if I don't try then at least I don't have to worry about whether I will fail (scary) or succeed (in some ways scarier). Over the next year, I plan to just start walking, metaphorically speaking. It's all just one step at a time, which I need to remember, and it's perfectly acceptable if I can only see the stair that's right in front of me and not the top of the staircase. The point is that I'm going to focus on moving forward with less conscious awareness of what may or may not happen as a result of my actions. The actions themselves should be reward enough, no?
Fear of saying what I want to say, for fear that I'll embarrass myself because my feelings will not be reciprocated. But I'm also afraid to let this fear go, because it would mean dulling the intensity of my emotions, and I so rarely often love someone as well as this. I already dull the bad emotions. I don't want to go completely numb. I will just have to be proactive about creating circumstances in which the time is right. Make them happen instead of letting them come to me.
That people will not like me. Therapy. And working with people that I actually want to like me.
I am afraid of missing out on being a parent. It has led to anxiety and stress in pretty much every relationship I've had, and it's caused me to "round up" all my partners into presumed suitable co-parents even when they're not. This is the year I promised myself I would make a decision - I will either be on the path toward children with my partner or I will decide to have children on my own. Luckily I am finally with a partner who values starting a family as much as I do, so I think it's likely we will chose to do so together. But if for some reason that doesn't work out, I will stop waiting on a partner to make it happen and I will become a single mom.
I've developed a fear of public speaking over the years for some reason, but I'm in several classes where it's required that I speak up so I hope that does the trick!
I do have a fear of losing my partner. When we were broken up for a few months I was in constant and intense pain, that it scares me to imagine losing him again. Of course I know I have to be ok in myself and with myself no matter what and I was able to do a lot to take care of myself during that time. And yet, it does seem very possible he could be lost to me again, and I don't know how I would go on. T he only way of letting it go ( some), is to continue to bring my attention back to now, to take care of myself and live my fullest life, existing in the present, not the possible future.
I fear losing control of myself, in my search to find myself. I fear that I've never amount to anything significant. How do I plan to combat it: keep faith and continue forward.
Fear of being/dying alone. I'm not sure how to overcome it.
I have a new job and its been a really hard adjustment to more intuitively understand the goal, mission, vision, organizational culture, norms, personalities. I feel useless at work, and that scares me - that I could lose my job, that I am not fulfilled, this is crazy! I hope to fix that over the next year.
I fear cockroaches n pain. I doubt I'll ever get over roaches but I need to endure pain to fix my injury so ima have to learn to accept it as development
I fear chaos and mess. It limits me because I am busy all the time organizing, planning and structuring. I am working on letting go and resigning as general manager of the universe. It is scary and hard, but I have to do it because otherwise I stress and that it no fun.
fear of trusting and letting go fear of feeling happy so happy that it makes me feel guilty for feeling happy fear that when you are happy it is a fleeting thing, that you love and thus open up your heart to feel pain, to getting hurt fear of not teaching my children to be the best they can be to strive for the moon and land among the stars oh G-d! so many fears, but what the heck I am alive well and happy and yes I feel love and am open to receive love too.
I am afraid of how people will judge me, either by how I look, or what I say, or what I do. I really don't like that I even care about what other people think - I want to be the person *I* want to be, the kind of person who behaves in ways *I* would respect and admire. Frequently I will avoid doing things (swimming, going to parties, applying for jobs) or going places (the beach) because I'm embarrassed of how I look or how I think others will judge me, or I'm just afraid that I won't know what to say or I won't have anything even worth saying, or I'll come off as trying too hard (because I'm trying too hard!). I'm going to work on chilling out, being myself, and being ok with that. Also on doing what I want to do (e.g. dancing, swimming) regardless of what anyone might think about how I look.
Anxiety is a constant struggle. Fear of anxiety seems redundant, doesn't it? But it has the ability to limit my health and happiness. I am going to try to get it under control by exercising as much as possible (at least three times a week), reading to relax before bed (to unclench the jaw), and trying to do deep breathing when I can feel myself getting restricted with breath and stress.
My biggest fear is failure. I don't want to disappoint anyone. I have big ideas but I am deathly afraid that they are the wrong ideas. I would hate for people to say, oh boy... another idea! This year, however, I'm putting everything in God's hands. I truly feel that I am going in the direction He has chosen. So, I'm letting go and letting God take over!
I tend to Chicken Little when it comes to money. Last year, I spent entire days, sometimes weeks, in a state of frozen panic. Which doesn't help a thing, and only serves to make me and those around me miserable. While I have greater control over our finances than I did last year, thanks to a substantial bump in my income, things are still tight. We do okay month to month, but have nothing in reserve for emergencies. In the coming year, I'm going to work harder to proactively reduce our debt, and streamline our expenditures as much as possible so as to speed up the process.
Daily set aside time
I have this big fear around sex and money. I was just tapping on it this morning. I hate talking about both and I hate dealing with both, and I think I carry a lot of anger and resentment because as an adolescent, no one taught me about either and I've carried that burden of feeling like no one was taking care of me and I was forced to take care of myself for years. I jumped into a marriage so that someone would take care of me, when now I know that I'm projecting his not being able to take care of me (because I "have to do it myself") onto him and putting us both in the exact financial situation I don't want to be in! There is this great distances between us now, and I know it's my stuff, not his. I'm glad I'm finally dealing with it. It feels very empowering.
I fear that I am getting too old to start a family and that I won't find someone to spend my life with. I think that this fear made me hang onto my recent relationship longer than I should have and now that it is ending I am terrified that I won't find anyone else as wonderful as him.
I don't believe in crossing bridges before I come to them so I take each day as it comes.
I sometimes allow my disease to limit me in what I am able to do. My fears of the future of my illness give me permission to play it safe. This year I have begun to reach higher than what I think my body is capable of. Zumba? who me? Yes, me.
I have a fear of getting into a romantic relationship which is strange since it is something I want badly! I think I am afraid of the disappointment, not looking forward to the work, the emotional toll but ignoring all the happiness and love and good times that happens as well. I plan to work on this in therapy as I feel like it is a HUGE block. I don't know how to get past this without help and I don't know how to bring a relationship into my life.
public speaking won't do any
I have a fear of completely being who I am because I think a lot of people would abandon me. (Then again, I'm usually wrong when it comes to thinking people are going to not love me.) I have a fear of not being able to support my family and letting them down. I'm in therapy working on all of this right now - I'm going to look back at this in a year and be so proud of how far I've come.
One of my greatest fears is chance because if if try to change for the best and it doesn't work out then I have failed. The result of this fear is limitations in who I am being. I hope to challenge this fear in the coming year and hopefully myself doesn't get in the way.
I am afraid that I am not happy. I am afraid that the decisions I make will come back to bite me in the butt and make me miserable. The only thing to do is to just keep trying to make the right decisions and do the things that make me happy as much as I can.
I am afraid of how alone I feel sometimes, I am also afraid of letting myself down. I feel like there is so much more I should be doing and achieving and I often hide away at night evading myself and then I will wonder why I feel so much like I am getting nothing done. Having said all of this it is only me who sets these expectations of myself so I am unsure of why I am so fearful. I guess I want to leave a mark like anyone and not just fade into obscurity when I pass.
I have a fear of failing to appropriately deal with my depression, of being a burden to others, of becoming my mother. It's limited me a lot. I think too much about it and it prohibits me from allowing myself to emote. I've started to think all emotions are bad, so I ignore them, which isn't healthy. This year, I'm going to acknowledge all of my emotions including anger and sadness. I'll keep control, but I won't automatically discount emotions either. I also plan on getting some therapy and working through my issues once and for all.
Fear that I will not find "the one" and not have children as I don't want to have children if I am not in a committed relationship. It has limited me by staying in a relationship for too long. I plan on finding peace with that possibility by looking at others who have a fulfilling life without children and the joys that life would bring.
Although I've been working on it, I still have a fear of crowds and new situations and travel. As my daughter moves into the scary world of institutionalized education (starts preschool), I'd like to be able to be more open to interacting with parents of her school fellows and the people who come along.
Fear of not being able to accomplish everything I want to in my lifetime. Overcoming it? I don't know-there are not enough hours in the day.
Well, I did manage to overcome most of my fear of drowning - it took all summer of long swims to realize that the lake was the lake and I could just swim and not take ever current as a personal sign of my own impending death. I feel like I work at not being fearful all the time -it's a personal mantra of sorts. On the other hand, I do not easily roll with things so instead of working on fear, I could work on being more flexible, relaxing into the free fall a little more gracefully....
I fear dying before I've had a chance to really live. I fear someone very close to me dying. I also fear the unknown which is usually what stops me from trying new things. I want to start being open to a lot of things, but I also hope that as I branch, I remain true to myself and how I was brought up.
I have a fear that my chronic illness will become debilitating and I will not be able to contribute to my family's survival. It's very hard and it causes me to risk taking potentially dangerous medications in the hopes of a remission.
My fear is my children not finding their 'calling'. I need to trust the Most High to reveal their purpose in His time in their lives. My fear is also being hamstrung by the cares and burdens of 'this world' and not being free to live my calling, and being true to myself, as opposed to doing the paperwork and working 'the grindstone'.
Fear of future stability. Whether it be my relationship with my wife, my job, my home situation or something on a larger scale that I have no control over (natural disaster, economic downturn, war, etc). I'll work on the things I can control (like perhaps, not answering this at work next year) and try to not worry too much about bigger issues.
I have a fear of exercise and moving my body. I have had a lot of illness and exercise is painful and scary. But not exercising is now compounding my health problems. I think I will overcome it by starting slowly with reasonable attainable goals. I think I need to listen to my body and pay attention. To be quiet and mindful. I need to find the balance between pushing myself to do more and not hearing my limits and making my health worse.
I fear that I'm not a good writer, that my plotless stories are replete with clichés and that all that unusual thinking that I've been teased for (which I wore as a badge) is gone and that I am, in fact, mundane. Learning to edit is the key. I need to be able to look at my work objectively to judge its faults, but then still revisit it and instill my passion and creativity even after the critique phase is over. I find it difficult to go back and forth.
A fear that we 'can't afford it' frequently holds me (and therefore my family back). We have booked a holiday for the first time in 3 years - but even now I have days when I regreat making the leap! We are not having a second child at the moment because we can't afford it - even though my husband and I would love to start trying. And as well as holidays, we don't go for days out as often as I'd like - because we can't afford it. There are two ways to overcome it - one is to be less frivolous on things like buying sandwiches when we are at work - convenience spending. And the other is to worry less and make the leap a bit more. You only live once and you can't take it with you. Perhaps that should be my mantra more often!
I have a fear of not planning far enough ahead, or making a mistake with my choices. I would like to take more spontaneous decisions, and "go confidently in the direction of your [my] dreams".
I am afraid of not being a good enough mother. I am not sure how I can overcome it ---
I have a continual fear of losing those around me. This is a deep seated fear whose basis is unclear to me. It manifests itself in insecurity and low self esteem, and no amount of positive comments or public comments on my behalf seem to subside or eliminate those fears. It is limiting me in my relationships with my core family members - and that makes me very sad. I will try to internalize the positive comments and stop acting from fear of loss and acting from gratitude of community.
Fear of failure, and fear of loss of career. I know they're both unrealistic on a logical level. Now I need to know it on an emotional level. Although I think some level of fear is healthy, mine is too much and needs to be toned down.
The fear that I have is being alone and of people leaving me. I hope to let it go by being more trusting of my husband and of myself. I hope to let it go by being more of my own person and pursuing my own passions so I can love others without being afraid.
Such a good question! Fears often limit my actions. I am afraid of not being good enough and letting myself down. I take too much responsibility for the uncontrollable. I am afraid of taking risks on those things I really want. I always automatically say "no" to them. Then I sometimes go back and question that. I am going to walk through fear this year (col ha olam kulo gesher tzar meod). I am not going to let fear of not having my dreams push me out of the fight before it has eveb started. I am not going to let my fear of not getting really unconditional love preclude me from wanting it and asking for it. I am going to be my oen kind of Jew, one who walks w Gd, despite the vast array of other beliefs in the world oe in the room with me. I am going to LIVE. I am going to acknowledge when fear of facing my faults and poor choices isolates me and keeps me from living al anon and getting support from people who really offer support. I am going to ask for help rather than live in fear of rejection. It may take more than one year to build these skills. :)
Fear of being broke and generally unsuccessful. It has prevented me from traveling more, taking time off work, living life more fully, experimenting with new careers, planning a near future. It has also kept me feeling stuck in a vicious employment cycle, feeling trapped and unable to leave; For fear of having nothing, I settle for less and lose my self-respect.
I fear that signing up to 10Q was a bit of a waste of time. More interesting questions please... :)
I have a non verbal/spatial reasoning disability and get lost easily. This limits my driving. I am letting go and admitting I have these problems and asking for rides or treating myself to taxis. So rather than force myself to do some things I am working on being ok with what I cannot do,
My panic attacks and never knowing when they're coming on freezes me. I've been running to try to keep them in check and its kind of working but not really
The fear of being humiliated, exposed, found out...an abstract fear that extends in disliking books, movies, theatre -- and gossip -- in which exposure occurs.
Fear of being an orphan. I have already lost my mother and my dad is still alive but I fear not having them as support. Really no way to avoid it just learning to cope would help.
I have a fear of having to let go of my boyfriend of two years when I go to college. I love him but if he is going to stop me from achieving my dream, I have to let go.
I have a fear of being alone. I just have so much love and care for others, I just want to be shown the same in return. Sometimes we expect more from others because we are willing to give such to them.
I have a lot of fear. I'm afraid I'm never going to be ok and not struggling with depression. I'm afraid I'm going to fail at school and have wasted my time to only have debt I can't pay back. I'm afraid that my friends will realize what a mess I am and won't want to deal with it. I'm afraid I will never learn to deal with my fear. I think God is the only way I will ever overcome any of my fear.
I fear letting my mother down by not going the direction she wants me to go in life (be a lawyer). Law isn't as stable as it used to be (nor is a job guaranteed with the way we're churning them out) and I'm not even sure I want to be a lawyer anymore. I'm going to try and move in my own career direction this year, whatever that may be.
I notice fears that come up that whatever my flaws are, they're somehow worse than everyone else's. I consistently work with this one. If someone is mad or upset with me, I go into this space of feeling like I've done everything wrong--like they don't do things wrong, just me. I completely forget, in my fear, that relationships are 50/50 and that while I do make mistakes, my heart always wants to fix them. I don't know that I can let this go within the next year because I've been working on it for awhile, but I will continue to notice this and work on it where I can.
Fear of success. I dwell happily in mediocrity. A safe warm midrange space between failing and never doing anything. I need to embrace success and be willing to fail if I don't reach it this year. I want to make more art, and get a solo show at a local gallery.
I have a fear of failure AND a fear of success. It is a horrible combination that has kept me at a mediocre level in my work life, my personal life, my weight loss goals...even my dreams have become mediocre. Like I am afraid to dream big any more. I am not getting any younger. I have the support of a wonderful man and I plan on making this the year that I jump off the mediorcre train and really start making my life the great, exciting, successful experience I deserve.
I'm afraid of taking a stand for myself and living in my truth. I am going to do the thing that I fear the most; being true for me. Expanding my world beyond shitty relationships, career and where I live. I'm going to lean on my friends, my outdoors and yoga communities and really fly!!!
I have the fear of losing my job and not being able to support my family. I also have the fear of being caught at festivals with my extra-curricular activities. I think it is a healthy fear. It keeps me safe and I don't plan on letting it go.
Fear of the future and not having it be what I want it to be. I focus too much on this and it limits me in that I don't enjoy today. I am always uneasy never relaxed and this it going to catch up with. I am at a loss on how to deal with this because that's just it, I need to deal with this. I need to relax and enjoy right now. I have tried therapy already and it helps for a bit but then I fall back into my old habits or patterns. I am missing out on the world as of right now and for what, trying to prepare for something I can't control. Over the next year I will try and remind myself to enjoy the present and see if that helps? It's all I know to do.
I'm afraid of leaving the house. I am fat and disabled, and there are many people who look at me like I'm everything that's wrong with America. Yet I still have many things to offer and a life to lead. I hate that my own fear is blocking me from living that life to the fullest extend possible. I want to work on this. I'm not sure how I plan to do it.
1. Fear of failure or of confronting others in a positive way to work through issues that affect me. At work... a micromanager that uses many opportunities to dig in on people and knowing that I need to be out from this persons direct control and move up in the organization as was promised to me At home... deciding on what I want and communicating it to my family and loved ones (like Jade) in a supportive way. 2. Fear of being rejected After the end of my engagement, I was really unhappy. I don't want to be rejected again. That said, rejection in ways both big and small is part of life. I need to overcome both of these things by becoming more acquainted with it. Let them occur and get comfortable in the situation and hear it. Experience it and then breathe it out and let it go.
LOL what am I NOT afraid of?!? I have become more and more fearful. I think since daddy died, it's as if all my security in the world is gone. I feel vulnerable to everything. Not just my emotions but my physical well-being as well. I get scared easily. While I'm driving I'll think, "What if I crash?!?" "What if I'm killed?!?" I can see how people become agoraphobics. It would be much safer to just stay at home and not ever leave. And I'm afraid of letting people down. My friends and family. And I'm afraid I'm losing my memory. I swear, I keep forgetting things, if I don't write them down. I had a meeting 3 days ago about some graphics, and today the project manager emailed me and said, "So will you be able to replace those graphics?" and I have no idea what file she wants me to replace the graphics in! I didn't write it down anywhere! I'm embarrassed to ask her what she's talking about. This is only one example of not remembering. It seems to be happening a lot. It's been happening for several years now, but it seems worse right now. Maybe it's just stress. Anyway, I'm scared all the time. And it keeps me from venturing out. I told someone, I feel like my life has gotten smaller. Like, I do less and less. Challenge myself less and less. Afraid to try new things. Afraid to put myself out there. Afraid of failure? Afraid of rejection? Afraid of being injured? Afraid of looking stupid? Afraid of making a fool of myself? Afraid of trying? Afraid of succeeding?!?!?
I am afraid of losing focus and of proceeding without a plan. I'd like to be able to live more freely and not be so tied to a budget, financial restraints, and fears about the future. However, from a practical standpoint, I can't just let go of these things without eventually facing the consequences. I wish there was a way to better balance this tension. In the coming year, I'd really like to develop more of a long-term plan to address my professional and financial situation without compromising my values.
I think my depression tends to get in the way of so many things in my life. I am very proactive when it comes to working with it. I take medication and I go to therapy regularly. I am honest with myself and my feelings. However, there are days when I have trouble picking myself and I fall into a hole. I guess that's life in general. I get scared knowing that depression is something I will always battle. It's like constantly climbing up a mountain, but never getting anywhere. I try to keep fighting the good fight and maintaining a positive attitude. That and taking my meds and seeing my therapist. I do all I can, which is a lot more than I used to.
I have a fear of bugs crawling on my face and head. It might limit me from crawling under houses. I plan to overcome it by wearing hats when I go out.
I think I have a real fear that my past will somehow come back to haunt me and keep me from moving forward, whether it's my credit rating (which I totally haven't even looked at) or my past grades or my past employment record. I feel like somehow the wreckage of my past will keep me from doing everything I always wanted to do. The only way to work on this is to remember that I can't change the past I can only change how I am going forward and work on my feelings of regret and fear in therapy and aa. I have to recognize that right now I am living a life I never could have imagined when I was 22 and that's amazing.
I fear "the plan" ... I fear that I don't have the energy anymore to see it through and I fear just letting it be one more thing that I failed at. I plan on following through as best as I can and at least finishing up the first step (my associate's degree) ... and then taking the next step, transferring to a four year school. I plan to face my fear, one step at a time. And that's all I can do.
my biggest fear is spiders and it is impossible to overcome
I have a fear of taking time for myself, as I am a devoted single father to 4 great kids. I took one day for myself this summer, and it was liberating. I need to do more of that in the upcoming year.
I sometimes fear that I have chosen the wrong profession. I KNOW that I have chosen the wrong place to work. I am going to focus on doing the best job I can with the resources I have so that I can move on to a better place with new skills.
I think a big fear that I have is of not being liked. I understand why I feel like that, but I think it limits me in that I never feel completely comfortable in social situations and necessarily doing them and I think it limits me is finding deeper friendships and I also think it's why I don't say no more often...fear of not being liked. I guess the way I would or should overcome it would be to realize that I am a good, kind, likable person and believe in my self more and jump in and work on the friendships that I wish had more.
Moving forward professionally. I have not wanted to disappoint those who have become so reliant on me, but I think it is time for me to move forward professionally, to a position where I can utilize my skills.
My biggest fear is that I do not find myself. I do not find a living space, a life here in the holy land. The second biggest fear is that I do not go back to writing. The third biggest fear that my sister stays my biggest sadness. The fourth fear which is the first as well is the life of my parents. The fifth fear is my future and hereby the circle ends.
I have a fear of dramatic heights. I can prevent this by not thinking about how high I am and not to look down. I can over come this by going on zip-lines and other free fly activities.
With the BIG 6-0 approaching in less than 3 months, there is just so much I want to see, so much I want to do, but unfortunately the person I currently share my life with has no desire to do anything at all but sleep, answer emails and play video poker. I'm too YOUNG to be feeling this OLD. 33 years married and I feel so alone because we just don't have anything in common anymore, except the one most important thing.. .we are still very much in LOVE with each other!! So, I have no way of "overcoming" the fact hubby is 7 years older than me, retired and has no interest in travel or wine or food or socializing or much of anything outside of his 5x9 upstairs office. Thought of getting more involved with the local Temple, but they're all "rich" Jews with families and history I'm not. I'm also working a LOT, even if it is 90% at home and feel that I'm shouldering most of the financial responsibilities...but that's a story for another day.. Fear has never limited me at all..never has, never will.
Has to do w/$. Not making enough focusing on what I really want to do. Devote more time /energy on the business side of being an artist.
Not sufficient funds for retirement. I'm actively seeking a full time position with a firm I can remain at for many years.
Always the fear of not earning enough money, although that might be more of a routinized than real fear. Fear of success AND failure, although that, too, might be more of a routinized than real fear. Really real fears? Of getting and staying stuck. Of no longer hearing from or listening to God. Of staying when I should be going and going when I should be staying. How to let go or overcome? More prayer. More writing. More less.
My biggest fear has always been my parents dying. And now that my dad has, it was both as bad and very different than I imagined. I did not crumble and fall apart like I thought I would, but I didn't expect the memories to be so painful. I guess I had imagined he would come back to me, that I could feel his presence. I rarely do. I have had only bad dreams and nightmares of him. I didn't realize how much the relationship between my mother and I would shift. This coming year will be full of the implications of his death. I will meet them the best that I can, but I can't say that I know how.
I am afraid of beginning things. I always feel like I don't have enough information. I have started deciding to be ok with feeling like I'm clomping into something I don't understand, and that seems to be working so far. I will continue! I am also afraid of answering my phone when it rings, even if it's someone I'd like to talk to. That is odd and unreasonable. I'm hoping as time goes by my cold chills from various work situation call-ins will die away and I'll be able to pick up the phone.
fear of letting go of the past. i had an amazing run. a boss who loved and got me. somehow over the years i have lost that self-confidence when bosses were supplanted. i lost contact w valued clients when others overpowered me. i chose to step aside rather than step into it. i want to re-engage. re-ignite. re-envision. re-emerge.
I fear the declining health of my parents and my husbands' parents, and the changes that accompany that decline. It hasn't limited me yet, but I fear that it could (e.g. that we may have to provide extra physical or emotional or financial support). I don't think this fear is something to be overcome as much as accepted, and worked with. I want to try to remain supportive and compassionate and available to these people who are so important to my life.
I'm afraid of losing control and I'm afraid of insecurity. It has never occurred to me to overcome these fears, as they seem like relatively good ones to have. But they do tend to ruin relationships. This year perhaps I should try to focus on the Right Now in relationships, and not worry about what will be down the line.
I am afraid that if I let up for a second on my fitness or career goals, I will become fat, ugly, lazy, unfocused, useless and depressed. Aka: I will become my father. It's a terrifying thought, and I think it causes me to go into overdrive and be really hard on myself, to not trust/believe that I am good and worthwhile and lovable even if I am not constantly working really hard to be amazing. I think I will have an easier time developing close relationships with others if I'm not working hard to be perfect all the time. I think I do an ok job of this, but I just need to remember that I am NOT perfect, never will be, and that is the best part about me. It's what helps me to sympathize with other peoples' challenges and have compassion. Accept imperfection! You are not your father! Be proud of yourself.
As an oldster - 85 - afraid of being alone - in case of a fall - or other crisis - with no-one around to help or call for help - and this fear has kept me tethered to a living situation that is constricting - where I am always "marching to the beat of someone else's drummer."
I think I am okay. Even though I have experienced many difficulties and long term challenges,I don't feel limited by them. If anything- many of these experiences are empowering. Usually there is a way to make things work, and if not, I do my best to accept or find other alternatives.
I fear disappointing people. I really took it to heart when I messed up an analysis at work, and I even felt terrible when a crazy realtor sent me a nasty response on Yelp. I need to not be so people-pleasing, and be self-pleasing instead.
A fear that I have is natural disaster hitting our home. Here in Colorado and even in our County there have been major wild fires. And literally just today there is major flooding in Boulder County and we have friends whose basements are flooding. There are roads caved in, etc. This isn't a fear that limits me because I can't control mother nature. But I can take steps to be prepared. We have made sure our home owners insurance is sufficient. And I have been meaning to make sure our computer will back up to the cloud and am going to go do that right now!
ha! same as always fear change fear new things i need to make friends i need to explore i doubt i'll improve though :(
I have a debilitating fear of people hating me or making fun of me so I isolate myself and act accommodating even if it's not honest. But I am trying to remember that there will be people that don't like me no matter how nice I'm being and that all I'm doing is inviting ill treatment by not being myself. And I'm trying to embrace my weirdness and let it show because I love weird people. Embarrassment and apology for being myself are no longer desired qualities. They are a defense mechanism that only serves to make me more isolated and ashamed.
Fear. Sometimes it's fear of failing. Sometimes of succeeding. Always of being ignorant about something and having people find out. Terrified of losing my job and not being able to support all of us.
That I will end up very socially isolated and poor if I take bold steps like selling my secure home and setting my sails I have taken a couple of baby steps I have posted my house on zillow I sitting in an airport waiting for a flight to Portland oregon Have a lottery txt sitting on my dresser I want to complete the cycle if building a new art center Keep painting Keep my channels open Move smart
I have a fear of getting old(er). I see some of the very old, have seen my parents failing before their deaths, and I'm afraid of being weak, sick, or incapacitated. Death doesn't scare me - it's what may come before. I want to let it go and just live each day to the fullest. I'm just not sure how.
My biggest fear is that I will finish the program I'm in now, jump through the hoops for becoming a recorded chaplain, and at the end of this I will not have reasonable employment - just go back to the retail job I was working before. I'm not sure that there's anything to do about it except continue onward and hope for the best.
I have a fear of making the wrong decision when it comes to my daughter's education. It's hard to know how to balance priorities. We are so happy in our bubble right now, but the school decision looms large and times are very tough when it comes to the available choices.
Because of a fortunate and sheltered life, there is not much that I'm afraid of. I need to take better advantage of that: actually to _do_ more things that in principal I'm not afraid to do. A good one to concentrate on is getting close to new people. Maybe a complicated one is about giving advice: I'm sometimes reluctant to give advice to students or younger colleagues, for fear of treading on their independence. That's to some extent a good and reasonable fear, but not always. I'm not so good either at hearing when people actually want advice, or at understanding those rare occasions when it should be offered whether it's wanted or not.
Fear that my dad will need to move in to our home after mom dies and that it causes our marriage a lot of stress in our lives. Knowing that we love each other and everything will be ok no matter what happens.
I always have had a fear of escalators for some strange reason. I would like to get over that fear.
I have been afraid of not being worthy enough to have a strong voice and do something really big with my life. I am writing and exploring ways I can step into my role of connecting women and helping people to heal. I also fear letting go of certain roles that I have that provide me with some financial stability. I know that when I let go of one thing, it creates space for something new. I keep reminding myself of this. By 2014 I will have let go of some significant parts of my past that have been holding me back from stepping into the role I feel called to do and be.
I fear disastrous failure, that I will put my energy into the wrong place, investing myself where I am not ultimately capable if excelling. I also fear that I will remain paralyzed, dallying in this or that but remaining overly committed to my safety.
I am consistently afraid of risks, pushing myself, and making mistakes. The fear is paralyzing sometimes. I think taking a small risk everyday will help me get over myself and these irrational fears.
"Fear not, for I am with you...." is line from the Old Testament prophet Isaiah. I can honestly say I have overcome fear in the classic sense of the word. Anxiety? Still working on that, but virtually 99% of my anxiety relates to the futures of those will leave behind some day. I also can say that I am contented that I was born when I was (right after Pearl Harbor), for I am troubled by the new world emerging all around.
What can I say- I fear getting old and getting old alone. I see my parents, with their beautiful 40 year marriage, and how they've aged into it so organically. They were both married by the age I am now. I'm afraid that as I get older, I'll get less attractive, and will not find a partner to raise kids with and get old with. This hasn't really gotten in my way. It just sits there on the back burner. I'm on dating websites, I go out, I try to flirt and stay in shape. But it's a fear. Perhaps unjustified. But as Rilke says, we have to live in the questions. So it's a question I'm living in.
I fear fucking up. Making mistakes that cannot be corrected, words that cannot be taken back, not doing my job right... all sorts of fears. TS Elliot: "I will show you fear in a handful of dust". Man, I understand THAT. I just try and take each moment for what it is and live my life....
Many times I have been fearful that I won't come up with anything to write about for my blog for the upcoming week. I don't think this has limited me, and every week something worth writing about has presented itself.
I guess I have a fear of staying alone forever. I really want to get married and create a life with someone but I just can't seem to get over whatever is holding me back. I'm not even sure what is holding me back, just that something is there and not fair.
I fear going to a psychologist. I probably really need to go to explore why I limit myself but it scares the shit out of me. I have someone in mind and am going to explore starting.
failure. plain and simple. I'm not good at jumping. that's part of what causes me to hold onto things too long and too tightly.
I fear that, with age, I will become less of a participant in the world and more of an observer. I fear spending to much time renting a room in someone else's life (a child, a grandchild, a friend's) and not living my own and having my own experiences. I fear it has started already... I plan to engage with events and opportunities and say yes more than no this year.
I fear being interested in too many things. I spread myself too thin. Perhaps it's a fear of commitment to fewer things. I plan on really prioritizing body wellness, stillness, meditation, and listening to my body more fully.
I have a fear of being myself and of being rejected. I think, no, I know, it holds be back in everything i do. My goal is to love myself more this year. Embrace myself and let me do me. I just need to stop acting a certain way because I think people expect me to. I need to be true to myself.
This question is impossible to answer. Period. I don't know what I fear, I don't fear fear itself, which is what they say you fear when you don't fear something specific, but I fear being a failure. Financially, professionally, in my love life. I fear not succeding when it comes to being an adult. I plan on working hard on the finances this year. Not having money to do what I want is frequently my biggest fear.
fear, other than worthiness issues? that decrease as I age, so.. I keep reciting the lord's prayer in my head whenever I notice my brain having anxious thots. fear... that I won't be loved, accepted. meanwhile I spend a lotta time ensuring others feel loved and accepted. another good line to say to myself... "Bet on yourself. ALWAYS."
The fear of never succeeding I want to go forward and up all time so how do you stay true to you and not be stagnate. It's the hardest thing but my plan is to remained faith filled continue to trust GOD and everything that HE has for me, knowing HE wants only the best for his beautiful daughter.
first and generally it's the fear of failure, which stops me from writing and publishing and getting money for it. well, write, publish and ask people how i can get more professional with it - within my fear. letiing the fear be as it is - but let it stop me from writing. second: very often i fear that i will not get pregnant anymore, or that the child won't be ok. i hate myself for wanting a healthy child. but just now that i am writign i realize, that it is ok, to want a healthy child but it is not ok to want JUST a healthy child. and i wish health for my child, but health don't have to be the gatekeeper of my dreams.
My primary fear is that I will die as a diminished version of myself, without having accomplished anything new. I lost a lot of myself in 1991, and another part of me in the early part of the 200's, when life circumstances changed; I've never regained the energy or the creativity that I used to have. All my young life I was told, over and over, that someone with my gifts basically owed the world, big-time, to accomplish overwhelmingly great things. So, I've lived most of my life feeling guilty, and as though I will be called to account (like Niggle in "Leaf by Niggle") for never having, as it were, finished my painting. Nowdays this is an unpopular attitude and no-one (except me) takes it seriously. I do, though, and the trouble is that right now I'm damed if I know what I could do to pay off my indebtedness.
My fear of failure. The fear that it isn't good enough. The fear that I will never truly meet greatness. That I won't ever find enough balance, enough happiness. The fear of never living a life of passion and keeping the coffers filled with money. The fear of never finding the right one to be my life partner or missing the window for children. It all ties back to my fear of failure. I' m making steps all the time, I just need to push through. It actually feels more exhausting and painful then liberating, it really is all work. I just need to work on my perspective and tune the voice of failure or hesitation out.
I fear that I don't know how to laugh and have fun like I used to.
Fear of the unknown paralyzes me. I don't make big decisions well, and in the past, I've been pretty lucky to have people around to help me recover - but that won't always be the case. I need to really figure out what I want to do about moving/changing jobs, and hope I consider all options to truly make the best decision. I think that knowing there are people who will be hurt no matter what I decide is the hard part - but I have to know that that's the case, and just make the decision based on what is best for me.
I have an irrational fear of being ridiculed and humiliated in front of people. I am even afraid of being judged by others. I believe that this is the reason why I tend to fall into the background, get shy, and even keep the weight on me so I don't get noticed as much. I want to shine, and kick this feeling once and for all.
I have had an intense fear of being judged (and found lacking) by others. I am now learning that what I believe about myself is far more important than what others believe about me. It is so easy to fall back into that trap of being concerned or afraid of how I'm perceived by others. I am working on letting go of that fear, bringing my focus back to myself and what I know to be true. If I am living by my values, living with integrity, living a life of love and respect, then it doesn't matter what others think. I'm the one who has to live with myself, after all.
I often fear that my new marriage will not work out in the long run. But time, and time again, we have worked through any difficulty that faced us and we've already been through some once-in-a-lifetime stresses. I think we have to just keep facing each obstacle as it comes and wanting to make it work.
I have a fear of making decisions that turn out to be wrong, that require a lot of resources, including time, and effort to fix. I will use that emotion of fear to explore the issue introspectively and be careful when I make decisions that might have huge negative consequences.
fear I am unlovable. I don't know how to let it go other than meet new people that think you are okay just the way you are.
I have a fear that I will never have another relationship again because I'm transgendered and I have had to choose between being authentic and alone or being inauthentic and living a lie so I'm not alone. I can't go back to the lie but the solitude is daunting at times. And I like my solitude. I also fear I do not deserve good things in my life. I plan on continuing to work on these fears in therapy and continue to take positive steps to counter these fears such as taking classes, reaching out to others, throwing dinner parties, performing, etc. But I don't ever want to discount the very real feelings I have about being too alone as I age.
My fear of letting go of control. It cripples me while giving me a false sense of security. I want to be more open, more loving, less of an enabler, less critical. Again, being more present in the present.
My biggest fear is that I will be unable to have children. How can I overcome this fear? This is a big and difficult question. As the months and years go by without getting pregnant, it's difficult for me to tell myself it's just a silly worry. Perhaps I should focus on the love I have with my husband. Perhaps I should remind myself that there will be other options if we decide to pursue them (though to be honest, that's not very consoling). Perhaps I should focus on all the good things going on in my life. Perhaps I need to plan another big project that I can enjoy and see results in.
I have been afraid of being alone... not moment by moment... but ending up growing old alone... not having a partner to share my life with. I have learned how to do more things on my own (and enjoy my own company) and how to make more friends. The most important thing, however, that I have learned is to not be in an unhealthy relationship just to have someone there.
A fear that I have is being criticized by others- having my views, my hopes & dreams, and my intelligence criticized. This fear limits me because I am afraid to speak my mind or my views. I need to have more self confidence in myself.
My biggest fear is that my life is ordinary. I got a job right out of college, and I've been with the company ever since. I have slowly acquired things that have cemented myself in my position (via debt) - buying a home, having a dog, car payments. I am happy with the life I have, but at the same time, I worry that it's passing by unremarkably, and if there were any changes to my employment, I'd be in a whole lotta pain. I miss the flexibility and the proximity of all the options I had right out of college. How do I plan on letting it go? Pay off the car, spend less on shit I don't need, and save money for the grand experiences. The 'experiences' don't even need to be grand though - just memorable. The thing I need to remind myself is that adventures have to be created - I can't expect them to happen to me.
I don't fear much. But when I think seriously about, I'm really afraid that I'm going to be alone forever. Mostly, I think that because I've never had a significant other, and I have so rarely ever wanted one - it seems like I'm just not programmed to connect with people like that. I'm not sure how to overcome that - I don't want to casually date, or anything. I guess I need to work on becoming okay with the fact that I may never find someone, but at the same time fostering some "positivity" around those thoughts in my mind.
I don't really have a name for it-- it's an interpersonal fear. Ultimately, I don't know if it's of hurting people, or awkward situations, or a general social anxiety-- but I'm reclusive, and avoidant. It limits me in my ability to do my job-- I hardly ever answer my phone. I prefer to get messages and call back when I'm braced for the interaction. Given that recruiting for research is a huge part of my job, it makes me a crappy employee. I'm constantly telling my son that life is full of things we don't enjoy doing. That you have to just grit your teeth and get it done; that's never as bad as you think it's going to be. I believe that 100%. And yet. So I'm going to change that. Just pick it up, say hello, and start talking.
I am afraid of my mom and church being right about everything. It keeps me from fully committing to anything outside the church and keeps me from feeling good about decisions I make that my mom wouldn't like. I plan to keep exploring my faith and finding ways to implement it in my life in a way that eases my fears and yet allows me to stay true to myself.
Failure. This is common, I believe. I need to trust God to see me through, and that failure is not final. It may be a setback, but I need to trust Him to be with me as I try and try again.
My biggest fear is failure. Many times I've lost opportunities beacuse I was afraid not to succeed. Many others, I've failed and felt miserable for it. Now I'm trying to seize each opportunity life gives me, and whenever I fail I know I should learn from it and keep on trying.
I fear death. For myself and for others. I used to think that becoming a mother would make me not care about my own death, since I knew I would go on in my children....but I've found that I still fear it, in a different way: dying would mean missing out on so much with my wonderful family. I don't know how to conquer this fear. Thankfully I seem to be healthy and I make safe choices, so God willing, I won't have to face this fear anytime soon, but I don't know how anyone ever overcomes the fear of death.
Fear that I'm one of those people who's always looking over the next hill and isn't satisfied with what's present. Fear of failing. Fear that other people know I'm not up to the task. Fear of not saving enough - fear of losing my job (unlikely) and a) of being unmasked and b) of not having enough to get by (thank heavens for in-law safety net). Not sure how I plan on letting go of these in the year to come. Have started on the "what's over there" vs "what's present" issue in therapy; will probably continue to explore my basic lack of confidence in therapy as well.
I have a terrible fear of not being good enough. I am working with a therapist to bring myself to a point where I feel competent and can be brave and not afraid to fail.
not being good enough and of being hurt; that the hurts I've encounted keep me from wanting to become emotionally vulnerable again. Manifests in doubting myself which others feel/read. Feel is reason am not as socially normal & maybe why have had hard time developing a relationship - that I will fail. I will meditate on being perfect as I am to develop the confidence I need to go and meet others and be more emotionally vulnerable.
I always fear something happening to my family. I know that I have little to no control over this, but I plan to be better about always letting them know how much I love them and making the most of life. I don't want to dwell on the what ifs and instead appreciate the loving boys and husband I have and enjoy our time together.
I feel like I'm afraid of everything, mostly of being wrong and failing, yet I don't really know why. I am currently digging deeper into myself and forcing myself to do the things I am reluctant to do, building my confidence and ensuring I don't stop no matter what.
I'm afraid of exercising too much and bringing on a heart attack which means I don't do enough. I don't know.
I'm afraid of failure, of judgement, and of shame. I hate showing weakness, so I avoid situations that require me to be vulnerable, when, in fact, I should be embracing those opportunities as chances for personal growth and development. I will push myself, calm myself, and try.
Oh so many - fear of reaching 30 and regretting how I lived my life, fear that I'm not taking enough risks, fear of getting hurt by the ones I love, fear of not reaching my potential and fear that I don't really actually have a lot of potential. Fear that I won't lose weight. Fear that I will always be disappointed in life. Fear that I won't find that elusive thing I'm seeking... Whatever it is.
A fear? *One fear?* I believe the fear underlying all my topical ones is fear of letting go and accepting that what comes is what's best. —Kind'a in the vein of "let go and let G*d." I'm very much a Type A personality. I make things happen. "Let go and let G*d" isn't intuitive. To me. It provokes anxiety; an anxiety so constant, it's almost a personality characteristic. Seeing this in writing's sobering. I'm starting by trusting the impulse that compelled me to rent a car for a trip rather than take my own car. —Day to day decisions like this. And as for near-future things, trusting that the impulse compelling me to reach out to specific uni department heads will lead to my next open door.
Fear of losing friendships and relationships and not being true to myself. But I need to realize in order to be happy, I need to only be true to myself and not worry about what people think.
I have the fear of not being "enough". Strong enough, pretty enough, smart enough etc. I am constantly trying to prove to everyone that I am actually "enough" but it does is run me ragged. I hope to let go of this and to realize that I don't always have to be "enough" and that the only way i could be is through God.
I fear The Big Fail. it's a nearly illogical horror and it is crippling. it makes me tentative when i approach things, and the more the thing matters, or the more i want it to succeed, the more tentative and fearful i am. The oh-no-what-ifs are the worst part of it for me. oh, no, what if i screw up, what if i don't get the support i want/crave/need. on, no, what if i'm not good enough to do this thing justice. on, no, what if i'm too old/too fat/too distracted/too disorganized/too insufficient in some crucial way. it's so much easier just to go straight to the fail, and skip the agonizing process of trying to succeed. saves time. but what if i identify a desire or need and then stay present in the moment while i am working at it instead of living mentally in the middle of a future failure that doesn't exist? what if i am sufficient? what if i can succeed at something? i plan to meditate. I hope that meditation will help me to see my own sufficiency. I hope to learn how to narrow my focus to the moment i am in, and find my success that way. i have some (more than a couple!) huge, non-negotiable, lifechanging decisions and events looming. it's a terrifying time for me, emotionally, unless i learn not to make assumptions about the future. i have to say, right now, i need to (read this. write this. think about or study or learn this. clean that. cook something. communicate with/take care of someone. do something... on and on, just pick ONE. only ONE.) and the moment after this, when the need changes, that's when my thought can be different. RIGHT NOW'S thought needs to stay with RIGHT NOW. Not with the "ohmigod" of the future collection of potential disasters. they haven't happened. all i can do is manage RIGHT NOW. oh, and in the "i need to" list? i have to HAVE TO HAVE TO include taking care of ME. have to. Haven't been. must now.
I fear really going for what I want. I fear that I don't really know what I want and I'll "get it wrong." Fear keeps me small...stuck at that exciting place of just about to leap off the edge...but never really leaping. Excited by the possibility, with none of the worry. I want to let it go over the coming year by taking the leap. I feel I might just pack a bag and go!
I think the fear of rejection - socially, romantically, professionally - has made me complacent. I think it's time throw caution to the wind and go after the things I'm scared to have (or at least scared of the process to get there).
Some strange combination of impostor syndrome and feeling like I'll never finish my PhD or be able to live somewhere I truly love or start a family and have an authentic, community-driven life with a great faith community and lots of eco-conscious public resources. Whew. So far as I can figure, the best way to overcome this or let it go is to really focus on my research and craft a sane timeline for getting my PhD. I have no idea what I will do professionally after that, but I'm strangely not worried, because I know my husband is very employable and we could pretty much decide to move one day and he would find a great job within a few months in the new location.
I am completely paralyzed by the fear of failure. I feel like a complete and total loser. I feel as if life has past me by and I am stuck in my miserable job not doing what I really want to do. I need to let go of my fears and start loving myself a little more.
The main fear is fault to my children. And I'm afraid it will go letting next year. With the children, this fear is always present.
My anxiety. Fear of failure. Sending emails and making phone calls. Not sure how to work on that, but hopefully it'll get better next year.
Fear of failure and the fear of embarrassing myself. These are my two worst fears and they hold me back constantly. I plan to just stop letting them bother me. Simple as that. Just go for it and don't worry about failing, everybody makes mistakes, we're all human. The most important thing in life is to enjoy it and to not have any regrets.
I fear imbalance. I don't want to miss a moment of my kids' lives, and I don't want to put my life ambitions on hold either. Balancing out all of life's roles is a real challenge that I need to work on.
It's not even fear of failure; that would inhibit me from doingwhat I want to do in the 1st place. I do the thing, but its that I am not good enough, that I'll never be good enough. And good enough usually mean the best. I'm not sure how to overcome it. I'll work on it.
internal connections for fear in being overwhelmed again, overcoming by facing it
I fear the amount distaste I have for going back to work. On the other hand, I fear making a decision that I honestly will not go back. I'm in limbo and it is of my own design. I honestly feel that if I made the decision to return to work, I could do so. The real fear, I think, is making any decision.
Fear of not making the right decisions with my career. I'm about to make a big jump to a new position, basically taking over my bosses job for another organization. Is it wise? Will it be good for my career? Am I walking away from something really good that I should not be walking away from? Too many choices...which is much better than not having enough. I am really blessed in that regard. My other fear is not doing all that I need to do, and in the right way, for my kids. I have no idea how to overcome either... other than just keep doing the best I can.
My greatest fear was losing my son. The worst thing that could happen did happen. I must face a future without my boy, my heart. I will forge ahead and try to continue to find a happiness in everyday.
I fear that I will not have a stable job, nor a stable place to live, and therefore I fear I will remain stressed out and in unhealthy relationships and situations. These ingredients fuel my fear and my fear further perpetuate me ending up in these situations. This must change. For years, I have struggled to put myself first long enough to gain the upper hand. I have not disciplined myself to fight hard enough for what really matters to me - and as a result, I find myself in one undesirable situation after another, exhausted with desperation, and fooling myself into thinking that the very next place I escape to is where I actually belong. I put so much effort into trying to fit into other people's lives, around their schedules and needs and environments, taking the very next job that comes to me, and fail to remember that all along, I've been trying to get to a place where I can build savings, self-respect, space, and the confidence to create a life I can thrive in. I must remember that I need to live alone, that I need to be in a place where I can handle obtaining and keeping a full-time job with ample income and benefits. I need space and time to focus. I need relationships that respect what is important to me. I plan on cutting out anything in my path or in my life that does not align nor support me achieving the stability that I seek. No more unhealthy relationships, distractions, environments, activities, beliefs or attitudes. I will not let my fears be bigger than my desire to change.
I have a fear of being myself around a lot of people because I don't want them to judge me - which could limit me in my ordination process. The flip side of that is the limit on letting others see some truly exceptional pieces of me. This next year, I will continue to improve balancing what I let others see and what I keep hidden so that no one misses out on what I need to share with them.
I still have the fear of never finding someone. But now I know it's not me that's at fault, it's simply not my time yet. I need to remember that often.
I'm sure that lurking somewhere in my psyche there's either a fear of success or a fear of failure or both. Something has to be responsible for my not "living up to my potential" (along with out-and-out laziness). I've always been anxious and good medicine plus excellent (finally!) therapy have helped me deal with many of my (understandable yet occasionally crippling) anxieties. I still get scared when I fly, I still worry about the kids etc., but I am living my life with a better attitude than I've ever had. So what is it that keeps me from working as hard or as well as I think I could? And does it really matter? I'm now trying a kind of cognitive/behaviorist method (popularized by Nike, unfortunately) -- just do it. Every day. I'd like to keep that up this next year.
I am afraid of being fat again. It scares the hell out of me. More frightening, however, is the feeling that I will not be able to overcome it again. As for a plan to in fact overcome this decline ... exercise?
my greatest fear is that I am not lovable. As I write that, I know it's untrue, but it is the message I grew up hearing every day. I have begun to counter thoughts of being unloved with the simple reminder of my husband. He loves me, and I adore and respect him. SO I am practicing actively rejecting the message that I'm not worthy. Here's hoping...
I'm not sure I have limiting fears anymore. After so many hard things happened, I think I've learned that I can handle just about anything. Money still wigs me out, but I'm not sure that's a fear; I'm slowly taking back control and things are steadily improving. I'm awfully dismissive of online dating, but I'm not sure avoiding what I think will be disappointment is the same as fear. (Plus, I'm currently ON a site, so it's not like I'm not open to it.) I still hate to fly but I don't let it keep me home.
I fear being alone - not lonely. Alone. Limited? Not really. Led me to make bad choice, stay in place rather than let loose and fly. Otherwise, I have the opposite problem of not having enough caution.
My fear is being in personal spaces and having to be more interactive. I also fear being out there in the world and having to be honest and real in the world. I am scared about that and both being turned down and not being desireable.
Fear that my partner will cheat on me or otherwise lie and betray me. Fear that I'll be a "fool" for not catching him and wasting my time with someone who isn't focused on our relationship. It happened once before with a previous boyfriend, so I'm a bit jaded. It's limiting because I have shots of fear, anger, and suspicion from time to time. I know in mind he's loyal, but I can't help but occasionally get "all up in my head" about it from time to time when I'm feeling vulnerable. I think I can overcome this by recognizing it, talking myself away from those thoughts, maybe getting reassurance from my partner if I need it.
Fear of working only freelance and not being able to keep up financially. I'm overcoming it by applying for a full-time gig that may allow me to work from home. Best of both worlds!
I have an insane fear of losing everything I've worked so hard to get. Not material items, but the relationships I've forged, the personal progress I've made, and of course my loved ones. I'm learning that just because I worry about something doesn't mean that I'm stopping it from happening. I used to believe that. Fear less - enjoy more. Not going to happen overnight but it's something I continually work on.
My Mom's death is my biggest fear. It is just she and I, and when she is gone, I will truly be alone. While I am not afraid of the aloneness, I am afraid of the loss of support. She helps me in all ways, even though I am an adult. I fear that she will get Alzheimer's. I can't stop either of these things. I have often thought that once my Mom dies, I can finally kill myself and be rid of this monstrous anguish I carry. Alexander McQueen was not wrong. I also fear rejection from the schools I want to apply to for my PhD. If they don't accept me, I am truly boned, b/c I really will not leave where I am. I fear that I will never be rid of this aching heart. I could fix some of this by going to therapy and taking meds, but I am beyond poor and I certainly to not have insurance. But the most important things, I can't fix. Ever. I wish I knew how to let it go.
One fear that I have is that I will not be able to do everything that I want to accomplish because of the mental and physical limitations that I have. I have certain psychological disorders that get in the way of my social life, creative life, etc. I am always living in fear that I will not be able to date, have an awesome social life, have a successful professional life/college life, and just live independently because of these particular psychological disorders. In the upcoming year, I plan on really pushing myself to know my limits. I have limitations, but I cannot let them rule my life. Little by little I am going to take baby steps in all aspects of my life so that I can be ultimately happy. I know there will be setbacks, but how can I know/gain experience without trying.
Fear of being rejected in relationships has kept me from finding someone to spend my life with. I can overcome this by accepting myself as I am, and stop worrying about not being good enough/perfect enough/pretty enough.
I am afraid of heights and I have no plan of letting it go. I don't feel I need to. People who fall from great heights often die. I prefer to carry on in this world that congratulate myself in the next for 'giving it a go' when I really don't feel the need to. I don't feel limited.
I am terrified that I will fail to do good work in the world. I need to know that I am not the next step in the 'cycle' of abuse, that I'm just not that person. I need to open my eyes to the good that I do in the world and to my potential.
I have no fears what so ever.
My biggest fear is not having money. I worked hard all of my life because I love feeling successful. I love having money to spend and I thoroughly enjoy sharing what I have with everyone! The challenge is that we over spent because we believed the investments, etc., would continue to grow - WRONG!!! Through the recession, we lost one third of our net worth and the investments that we were able to keep, stopped providing any cash flow. That meant another third was spent on living. I am now going back to work which is both scary and exciting. I am 73 and I look great and have loads of energy. BUT, what if I don't "make it"? What if I can't be successful again; what if I fail??? So, I will just put on my hat and try - Scary, yes!!!! Could it be rewarding, YES!!! I will just keep on trucking forward and see.....
That I am loosing my intellect. I also worried that my bipolar could be affecting my ability to practice medicine. I am worried about my malpractice lawsuit and my ability to stand up or myself. I am going to go to counseling to help me though these fears
Fear of the unknown always prevents me from taking any leaps forward. Sometimes, I just have to trust that the net will be there to catch me, or that if I fall, I can pick myself up again. I need to get into the habit of asking, "What's the worst thing that could happen?" and face it and move past it.
Staying away from my bunny. I'm going to hold onto him in my heart but let him grow independent and prosperous in green fields 2466 miles away from me while I simultaneously work on going to college, growing up, finding strength in myself as an artist, and strength in myself and those around me to both get hella wasted all the time and make a positive change in the world bring awareness to injustice.
That old shyness raises it's ugly head far to often. It's hard for me to go into new places alone. It's something I should have overcome many years ago, yet it still haunts me. I'll make a valiant effort to go more places and do more things on my own over the next year.
I'm very afraid of driving, and I should've already gotten my license, but I still don't even have my permit. I don't have the freedom most of my friends have because of this. I'm just going to have to get over it and just go.
I get afraid of speaking in public sometimes, but this is getting better. I often worry that what I say does not come out as clearly and as forcefully as I wish. It hasn't limited me much. I still can express myself well enough. Also you know it would probably be super if I could let go of my need to ritual, and stop flipping the fuck out if I don't have socks before bed. But I don't really care. I am doing fine. And I am really not afraid of much at all anymore. So this question isn't really all that applicable.
My biggest fear is that my dad feels betrayed by me, by me taking part in so much Jewish community/cultural stuff with my mum, that he feels like I've taken her side. This fear has so far stopped me from formalising my Jewish identity and becoming a more integral part of the community.
Fear of being so worn out by being perpetually poor in pocket that I will end my life. Even as I write this, a part of me says NO! Don't let the bastards win.
I have a severe fear of missing out, of being alone. I find it hard to be by myself (just throughout the day and in terms of being in a relationship). I find too much worth in my relationships with others and not enough worth from myself. I hope to find more hobbies and ways to fill my time that make me feel productive, valuable, and interesting.
getting over talking to ppl and being confident that i can get things done, that i can do something even if i am scared and know that i still am capable of overcoming it...speaking to new ppl and not being scared if i think they think im not interesting or have no redeeming attributes
I am terrified that the people in my life will leave me, so I sabotage my best relationships so that if and when they do leave, I will have an expalantion for it. I need to somehow figure out a better way to express my feelings and emotions, especially to my boyfriend.
I am afraid of failure - that my work, my effort, will not meet the standard. This makes me cautious. I do not have the confidence that I would like to have - for sometimes that is all that it takes. Confidence. Women. Not only me, but my issue nevertheless.
I believe my fear is that I am never good enough, smart enough, skinny enough etc etc. I think that these are simple human emotions and that they are always a battle in our lives and over time the batter becomes smaller and smaller but these insecurities are always there.
I've been afraid of everything my whole life, and just realized it this past year. So I'm letting go of fear, replacing it with faith that everything is possible, that I am enough, and that life is good. It's an everyday affirmation, so my plan is to do it every day. Can't wait to check in next year and see where it's taken me and those around me. Peace out.
I am afraid of cheating. I keep myself from forming new relationships even when the relationships I currently have are not commitments. I plan on being more willing to try new things, meet new people, and work on my social skills, bolstering confidence in everyone I know.
I have been full of anxiety this year, but for what end? Worrying about my health--although I eat right and do my yoga. Worried that people don't like me, but the ones who do are the only ones who count. Fear of illness when I am in health. What a waste! I will continue to relax my mind during yoga, see my therapist if I need to, and deepen the relationships that are important to me.
Interesting to think about. Try to think of what I was afraid of. Not really scared of anything. Thought maybe whatever I would not matter, And it probably doesn't but why should I be afraid of that? It's all been played it's already been decided. Just Enjoy the ride
I have a fear of losing myself to this college atmosphere. I remember last year that I expanded myself like I wanted but I don't want to lose who I am truly inside or the girl from high school. I don't want the innocence to melt away and the light that I used to shed to fade. I try to be friendly every chance that I can and am myself with my sorority but with me being pulled in so many directions with conflicts this year I hope I don't lose my smart girl image and I hope I can still make my parents proud no matter what I will go after in life. I will work on this by every day taking a step back from everything and ask myself, "do you know who you are right now?" Also my fear of rejection from the theater program for a third time will be devastating to me and if I don't get into the major by the end of the year, I have to give up the dream of being a theatre major for life. :( But I won't stop acting: just because they say I am not good enough for the major doesn't mean there is something wrong with me. They just don't see the potential that I hold.
Fear of going out in public, large groups and crowds. I plan things then find a last minute excuse to back out. Making and keeping committments is very hard for me, resulting in anxiety and panic attacks limiting what I can do. This has been a life long problem. I don't think I will ever overcome it but I keep trying.
I have a fear of developing Alzheimer's disease. My father died from it. I believe if I educate myself, and keep a health lifestyle, I might be able to overcome the fear, but its difficult. My father was very healthy, before it was trendy, and he still passed.
Fear of unfamiliar things. I have a tendency to ignore things that I don't understand or that causes me excess stress. But ignoring them doesn't make my problems go away. I... really need to work on confronting problems immediately even though it may be stressful or involve some extra brain power. I also fear being alone, that often renders me useless because I feel compelled to be with other people either online or in public, which often overcomes me BEFORE work I need to get done gets done. So many things fall between the cracks because I can't function in solitude. I honestly don't know what to do about it.
Right now driving is making me nauseous. People are careless and spiteful. I have to get over it and think it's just a car. I worry about the red tape of the insurance companies etc. I worry about my safety. My mom could have been killed if she was with us that day. It makes me want to stop altogether.
Fear of being lost, being forgotten, being unimportant. Being all of the negative things I fear I am. I fear I have no good qualities and am not worthy of love or care. Fear of being along and being left. Fear of being the self-centered narcissistic person these question answers sound like. Fear of not overcoming my obstacles. Of not doing well, of not succeeding, of not making my mark. I have a lot of fears, but I think if I can make any self progress in the way I've mentioned in these answers, than perhaps some of these fears will dissipate. Or I'll learn to live with the unknown... we shall see.
My current fear is not being able to let go of something that may not be good for me. Of being in love with someone who cannot return the feeling or commitment. The goal this year is to live my life to the fullest for ME and no one else and to follow my heart regardless of the consequences.
I'm scared to fail and scared to succeed. At times, my self confidence is shot and I don't believe I fit in anywhere in the career world. Other times, I know I can be successful and have a career I love. I'm scared of being rejected and criticized. I need to get over my fear of failure... and perhaps I will, just by doing: completing work, graduating, internship-ing, interviewing. It'll all be fine; I believe that, but I am still scared.
I'm afraid of the work it will take to get back in shape. I dread it, but I think I need to just do one day at a time--not look at it monolithically.
I"m afraid that my life is slipping away and I haven't really started living yet. I'm over burdened with financial debt and restrained by fear of taking the risks I need to to move forward in life. My job pays wonderfully, I have very removed bosses, My schedule is pretty flexible for what it is and yes its not for me. I have no passion for this job. I want to quit, get the education I need for certification and become a Natural Healer. but I can't with all this debt and responsibility on my shoulders. I'm scared of going broke and having to ask for money help. I mean, I CAN. I CAN do this. it will just take longer, less sleep, and busier days for me to do this and continue to claw my way out of debt and pursue my passions.
I have had a fear of elevators forever. It limits me in so many ways. I show my weakness on a professional level so quickly. Sometimes I don't go to a dance class, a professional meet up, or a friends apartment. Its stressful, esp when I know an elevator looms in my future. There is so much I have done already to overcome it. In reality it won't be a thing I think I can ever get over totally. But I can practice dealing with my fears and reminding my self its just uncomfortable, that I won't allow a phobia to limit my life, to get in that elevator and keep living life, and to call my dad when the going gets tough. I went to therapy for it in the past, and if it ever becomes as limiting as it once was, I am sure I will go back.
I'm afraid of failing and wish that I could overcome this - not sure how yet...
Prior to this last year I would say my fear was travel. Now that I went to Israel I feel that my biggest fear would be letting money or the fear of failing at work stopping me from enjoying the life I want. I plan on overcoming it by e willing to make mistakes - even BIG ones in order to have a GREAT time.
Ha! I'm laughing because my crazy irrational fear is my fear of being alone at home (at night) when my husband travels...and he's currently traveling. But amazingly enough, leading up to this week, in my daily Bible reading, God kept showing me through various verses that He is always with me, He is my protector. I kept note of those and have re-read them at night, praying for God's protection and peace while I sleep. In the morning, I wake up thanking God for watching over me. My plan is to keep doing that as travel is going to continue.
I fear success. I have no idea how to overcome it. I fear rejection, I fear ridicule. I fear losing what I have. I fear for my family. I fear for my reputation. I fear other people. I fear a lot of things. And again, I have no idea how to overcome any of those fears. I don't know that overcoming or letting them go is as important, in the long run, as just getting things done despite them though. I fear success, and too many times I've let that fear keep from finishing what I start. I've left too many project half done,efforts halted before they ever really took off. I might not ever be able to get rid of the fear, but I can at least finish some projects. That would be enough, I guess. Let the fear stay, but remove the power it has I hope?
I have no fear, except for G-d. I have concerns. But, I have faced every fear I once had and have conquered them.
Singing in front of people. I want to become more confident with my voice, even if it is not an absolutely breathtaking one. I want to be able to sing as loud as I do in the shower.
I have a fear of not confronting my sister-in-law about our relationship and how I feel about her connection (or lack thereof) with our family. I have a fear that my girlfriend will never fully trust me due to issues she has had in the past.
A fear of stepping outside of my comfort zone. It had definitely limited me throughout the years, restricting me from doing things that I've dreamed of doing but didn't have the courage to actually do. I hope to overcome that fear this year and do more things outside of my comfort zone in college so that I can accomplish my wildest dreams.
Fear of being seen as selfish--either by myself or others. I want to be of service for others and that is an important value of mine but sometimes I get confused about when I'm being selfish or just empowered. I don't think I can't let it go or "overcome it," but I do want to pay more attention to when this thought shows up to differentiate when it's legit and when it's a misperception.
I am always afraid of something happening to Brian. Especially now that baby is here. His accident really scared me. I think about that day often. Thank God he was/is ok. He is my best friend, I could not be the person I am without him. I am so grateful that he chose me. I suppose having a passion or at least something that is exclusively mine will help me not feel as lost without him. It is something that I need to do for me.
My only true fear is my health. I am 51 yo with a history of CHF, HBP and A-fib even when living a healthy lifestyle. I go to bed every night wondering. Every time I work out at the gym, play tennis or snow ski I wonder if this is the last time for me. Luckily, I love life, so, this has not yet become a limiting fear.
I think my biggest fear is rejection or failure at this point. In some ways, it has limited the things I will try, because if you don't try, you can't fail. I'm in therapy right now, to try to deal with some of the problems it causes. Hopefully that will help. I'm also trying to put myself out there more.
I fear that my abusive ex husband is going to kill me or have me killed. I will continue to expose all on my blog "Until You Say Uncle"....it offers me a small bit of safety.
I fear that what I want to write about are things that would embarrass my partner. I think about it all the time. So, instead of writing, I do nothing. I suppose I should talk to my partner about it and ask for limits so that no one I love is injured by what I say.
The fear that I won't finish college on time. I was supposed to finish it a long time ago and now I've got a really short amount of time to do it. I've written the thesis, and I've passed all the exams, I've done the paperwork, but my mentor is nowhere to be found and she's the only person who can allow me to graduate. If I don't do it in time, I have no idea what my life will look like. I will probably have to start from the very beginning and I'm afraid I'm too old for that. My whole world will fall apart. That's why I can' t plan anything because I just don't know what can happen.
The fear of inadequacy. Of being inadequate in school, too inadequate for applying or being accepted to a highly selective college. Too inadequate for premed and too inadequate for relationships or playing forward on varsity.
Sort of two pronged. I have a fear that the guy who is processing our trust papers will go out of business before I get my stuff together and complete it. It has dragged on for years because I am overwhelmed by having to gather all the information and get it in one spot. Letting go is not an option. I started again by working on financial records in general, pursuant to Prong #2. I have a strong fear of dying before I get all our financial records in order so my husband or someone else could figure things out. I'm not sure how it limits me, except that it weighs on me and is like THE item on the To Do list that no matter what else I accomplish, I feel like I'm failing because I never get to "the big one." Letting it go is not an option; I have begun sorting files. I've done a rough sort and isolated the current year to focus. Then I will work backward and see what is no longer relevant and can be shredded.
I have a fear of us not being able to have children. It's definitely started affecting me, in that the lengths we're going to in order to try to have our own kids are being stepped up, at a decent personal expense. It's resulted in me having major emotional breakdowns as the months pass and I'm still not pregnant. In the coming year, I hope to adopt more of Ty's "let it be" attitude. He's able to look at it with the view of if it's to happen, it will, and getting stressed or paralyzed with worry isn't going to change that.
I am afraid that I will never find my place in academia. It is so hard to fit myself in to any one camp, but I also need to keep reminding myself that the fact that my work falls between cracks in the discipline is precisely what makes it interesting. I just need to overcome the fear that I am too much of a dilettante -- it seems the answer there is just to apply myself and get expertise in all the literatures I am seeking to address. Sometimes I wish I chose an easier path, but I must just keep working hard and trust that I will find my place even if it is just by sheer force of will.
I'm not going to live up to other's expectations of me- that is one of my biggest fears. How I will let it go is to do my absolute best without holding back, knowing that it is my best and they can either accept it or move on.
The fear that I will never meet again a girl who is at least as awesome as Marta was is stopping me to forget about her and move on. The fear that I'm going to get bored again with new "project" stopping me from starting one. The fear that I'm not gonna sort out my life is freezing me up and holding me from sorting it. Limiting believes are producing fears and keeping me in the comfort zone until I will explode. Hopefully meditating will help...
If I'm truly honest, the fear of not being liked is pretty high up there. I think it can limit me professionally - I probably don't push as hard on people as I should. Personally, it manifests itself as a fear of letting people down - I really do my best to make sure everyone is happy. I'm not sure how I will overcome this other than by continuing to be aware...
I've said this every time I've done 10Q so far, but the problem still remains the same. I have social anxiety disorder, which means that I have a crippling fear of being judged by other people. As a result, I have trouble going up to people I don't know too well and talking to them, because I'm afraid of looking or sounding stupid. I plan on overcoming this fear by trying to go outside of my comfort zone this semester and talk to people in the fencing club that I don't know as well. If that doesn't work, I'm going to start making appointments at the campus counseling center again. They had some very helpful advice the last time that I was there.
I fear not moving forward. Professionally, socially, spiritually... I fear stagnation. Especially in all three of those things. Overcoming it means recognizing and embracing change when it happens - and recognizing that same-ness for some things is a blessing and necessary. (Change in all of those aspects would be stressful! But could also be liberating.)
Fear of feeling discomfort. This holds me back in innumerable ways, some of which include: being forthright for fear of making other people feel things I don't intend, expressing my needs for fear of feeling weak/fragile/limited, and trying new things for fear of physical discomfort. Fear of being disappointed in other people. This hold me back from getting to know people better and truly connecting with people which limits how I express my interest/needs from others. This also hold me back from dating and ultimately realizing I don't want to date someone. These fears are huge, but my finding them and naming them and feeling them out, I hope to gain better awareness and insight.
I think I have way too many fears to overcome. And that's my problem. I'm scared of letting go of control. This may be my greatest fear. Not being able to predict things and then not being able to fix them or control them. Maybe that's why I'm scared of new things or meeting new people or going new ways. That's maybe the reason of me not getting a boyfriend. I finally have to learn to go into situations without being able to control them and being fine with it. You can't predict everything and that should be fine too. I hope I can overcome that.
The fear of being rejected because I am a recovering individual, formerly addicted to sex and pornography, has kept me from being aggressive and taking risks. I plan to be up front about it and not be consumed with worries about others' thoughts and reactions.
A domestic terror attack that will cripple the infrastructure. Stockpiling necessary supplies and means to defend them. Guess that mak kes me a kook survivalist. Maybe, but I and mine will be among the last to die.
My continuing fear is that my country is being destroyed and my children will be the first generation to have less than the one before. I can complain, write, send money, but there's not much I can do about it. My biggest fear since having children has been not having enough money to get them thru college and started on their own - like my parents did for me. To fix that- I can do only the best I can and keep doing it. My newest fear is that I'll be old and alone. I keep seeing little old ladies at the store with helpers who are paid to take them there. Or the old lady at the old folks home who never has visitors...
I am very afraid of not succeeding in meeting my goals in life. I want to help people so badly and if I don't do that I feel as if my life won't be complete at all. It's not something I want to overcome because it's good to have goals and I'll always be afraid of my future.
I am afraid of ending up alone. I love being in relationship, and feel most myself in a partnership with someone I love... And I'm terrified of the person I love leaving. I want to do more work on being ok with the possibility of this relationship not working out while still putting everything I've got into deepening and strengthening it.
Not having a satisfactory religious community. Back to shul shopping
I have a fear that I will not be adequate enough and a failure. Realise there is no failures, rather just opportunities for growth.
Constantly worrying over family history. Everytime something happens in that part of my body i get anxious. I truly believe that im not going Home until He calls me, i intend not to look back when im called, i dont know the day nor the hour and it is pre_determined. While im here i can praise, worship, and serve Him. When i go Home it will be a glorious occassion because i will be completely with Him. What He said is true, worrying doesnt add a single moment to life. Therefore to worry is a waste of precious time.
I have a fear of cancer/death and not being healthy enough. Though it has led me to new healthy ideas that I hope become habits (eating balanced organic meals, meditation, mindfulness, yoga), the worrying itself isn't helpful. I need to work on letting go, doing what I can and patience. I plan on working on that this year (and for the rest of my life--it's an ongoing thing!).
I fear getting old and becoming sick and having health issues. There's a history of various diseases in my family that typically come on as one ages. I'm a healthy person now, eat right, exercise and take care of myself but I worry that won't be enough for me to overcome my bad genes. It doesn't really limit me in anyway right now...other than it makes me very mindful of what I put in and do with my body.
Failing, letting people down, not doing a good enough job, losing my love, losing our home, being old and poor and homeless... Actually, I think I'm pretty brave because I can be very fearful and I keep on keeping on. Only I might have t crawl back into bed now they've all reared their ugly heads.
Fear of people disliking me. It's silly, because what's most important is whether I like me. I want to focus my energy on being who I want to be.
I fear bad health and don't really have a plan for preventing it other than eating well, exercising plentifully, and avoiding accidents. We'll see what happens.
Currently I am worried because I get medi-cal and food stamps for my kids. I have stated that I have the kids 80 % of the time but its really 50. Also, I received $3,500 for taxes in 2011/12 And that is partly due to some income i received for feather party and notaries which I did not claim and I had those benefits the whole year. It has limited me in that I have it in the back of my mind as a fear. I do not think it will limit the benefits I receive, because it is just slightly more than I would have made if I did not have the summer off. But the fear does not make me feel good. I'm not sure how to overcome this, I await a phone call or a letter asking for more info. When the fear does strike, I put myself in te mind frame that I have everything I need now. God is looking out for me and above all that I do not need state services anymore. I feel what it is like I have a car in my name. A 2014 ford explorers specifically. And what it feels like to be financially independent with the means to care for my kids' medical needs, educational and food. I look forward to manifesting that now. And being able to help people in situations where they just need a little extra support. : ).
my biggest fear is that of not being able to break through @ my job and take things to a higher level, both positionally and financially. I plan on digging in, and really kicking ass @ what I'm currently doing, and just letting the cards fall where they may. it turns out where I live is very competitive work-wise, and all things considered, I'm very talented. I should probably stop comparing myself to others in my field in terms of how to gauge 'success'.
Oy. I am afraid of not having enough money & of being caught up in just trying to make ends meet, much less go on vacation or have a retirement plan. I am also afraid that my big dreams are different than my husbands. I hope we will have time to share this openly on Yom Kippur. I'd like to come up with ways not to live in fear... how? Remembering that all there is is NOW... maybe next year I'll have a better method
I often fear that I won't be taken seriously because I'm retired. I plan to produce some serious photography in the coming year and be more of a social activist - write more letters, go to more demonstrations/events.
The aspect of life which causes me to fear most is the drift away from God and the loosening of moral fiber in this country .I see so many young people adrift on the sea of life without an anchor , they have no hope for the future and not much prospect of a happy life in any case .There is no stability. This is because their lives are not valued much by anybody , even their parents in many cases . Mom and Dad are both scrambling after the elusive chimera of wealth and the toys it can buy, to take time with the young people . The schools no longer teach values and in most cases teaching is just a job with little care for the students , so what do they have ? They seek drugs to ease the pain of living and often commit suicide .It is so sad . What I hope to do is to continue teaching values and faith in God as long as I am able .What good it might do only God knows . I don't see a lot of results but there are some.
My stuttering has limited by progress by creating such a fear of public speaking for fear of ridicule. I will conquer this and be a clear and engaging speaker.
Fear that it's safer to stay in a cruel and unproductive workplace than to take the risk of leaving it to do my own work. I must either change the work I do and stay there or leave, and leaving is the real option. It's all about money and that is evil!
I am scared of looking dumb when I don't know something, especially around Judaism. I am going to ask: "I don't know/know about X. Will you teach me?"
Fear of believing I'm beautiful. Specifically accepting my wrinkle and things that I consider flaws. Taking artistic risks. Photographs, photoshoots, picture blogs, daily video journal. Saying positive things to myself and about myself both internally and externally.
I was afraid to love after my most recent breakup with a person I thought was going to be the love of my life. Now I'm in a relationship that surpasses it. I was afraid to leave Los Angeles because I didn't want to lose the myriad opportunities for employment and success there. Now I've committed to moving to Petaluma by New Year's Day 2014, regardless of the consequences. I was afraid of the pain involved in getting a tattoo (a heart on my chest to protect it), but it barely hurt at all. Life keeps teaching me over and over it's redemptive power. There is nothing to fear.
I have a fear of most things but at the moment my main fear is of losing my boyfriend, he is my life and the only person who really keeps me going. I'm scared of failing as well and that's stopped me from doing so many things that I could excel in. I think in order to get over it I need to just worry less and i think i will be a lot less tense and more care free.
i recently confronted an apprehension of traveling alone this year. my SO usually makes all arrangements; i help out by supplemental packing, navigating, etc. but am happy to trail along in his wake of savvy and confidence. this time, i proved that i could manage the bulk of it on my own without dying of nervous palpitations. thankfully there were no hiccups, but that may come later, to further my experience in seat-of-the-pants plan-changing and adapting to the ever-evolving circumstances en route that travel brings... i hope i'm up to it.
I can be a bit of a perfectionist, which we all know is paralyzing. My head will go straight to worst possible outcome - being hated, socially ostracized, ending up poor, becoming a crazy ungrounded bag lady. These neuroses are funny writing material but they are stopping me from really living and taking risks. I want to work on cognitively changing my thought patterns to support risk-taking, bigger goal-setting, and fully embracing life's joys and challenges---- and fully embracing ME.
My greatest fear is that I underestimate myself and don't go for the things I want, deserve, and can achieve. Fear in love is that I don't choose based on want and need, but based on duty and obligation. Fear in career is that I am too humble and don't strive for ambitious things, including recognition of my success. Fear in life is that, even as capable as I am, I will find myself with the feeling that I sold myself short. Next year is all about big jumps, risky leaps, and leaving cozy, comfortable, underachievement behind.
I am still afraid to make phone calls. I really want to let it go. I have a ritual for letting go of things but have not used it for this one yet. I have improved on it -- two years ago, this was the same answer I gave so I have worked on it some and made some progress, but not enough. Next year at this time, if I'm still around, I hope to have handled this.
I feel limited by a fear of offending other's sense of personal dignity. The fear that sets my limits for me is a fear of committing an offense, a fear of hurting others' feelings, a fear of wittingly or unwittingly doing a misdeed for which I would later feel deep regret and remorse. I plan on keeping those limits as long as I find they serve me, and when they seem to me no longer to serve me, on letting them go. Above all, I wish to take action to avoid havine a guilty conscience, for, even when I've been struggling in the the darkest rut I have feared no harm as long as I have been able to feel that my conscience is clear and G-d is with me; as long as I allow what inspires my enthusiasm and absorbs my attention to be my guide and to lead the way for me, I am able to feel continuously nurtured, supported and reinfored, ways open up for me where there had appeared to be none and I feel secure instead of feeling anxiety. I just want to keep on doing what I believe to be kind and good and if that takes guts and lots of hard work, so be it - rather guts and hard work than a misdeed and remorse that would distance me from the company of G-d.
My biggest fear is not being able to succeed at what I set out to do. My entire life, I have been very selective about my endeavors, and commit myself only when I am certain that I have the appropriate skill set to succeed. Rowing was the first thing that took me significantly out of my comfort zone, but ultimately, I approached it as a function of effort than innate skill. There are so many things I want to be able to do that I don't know if I will have the time to develop, so I never actually *start*. The plan? The plan is to stop being so careful with how I budget my time, pick something I"d like to do, and make it happen. It's off to a good start. Built the loft, practiced a different style of handwriting, and have started building that drywall. I guess none of these skills are particularly applicable to the rest of my life, but hey--keeping it interesting.
Don't know if it's a fear - but a compulsion I'd like to tame is my tendency to hold grudges. I tend to have a long memory for people I feel have caused me trouble in my life. It's a suck of psychic energy and I need to use that energy for something more productive.
I am scared of my future, of commitment, of failing and of my anxiety. I have been anxious for a few months now and it has been affecting my health as sometimes I cannot eat for periods of time. It has also affected my relationship with my partner of 5 years as I get anxiety about our relationship and what will happen when we finish university. I am scared of making decisions. I am going to try and overcome it by being more open with my partner about how I feel so we stay close and can support each other through every situation.
Fear of failing my friends. When a friend drifts away or abruptly vanishes from established shared ways of spending time together AND does not openly acknowledge that there is a rift, I can become preoccupied with fear of what went wrong. This fear can grow into fear of people. Fear of loss. Fear of change. I want to be a good friend. I want to assess what friendships I want to nurture and put the time in to those friendships so that they flourish. I want to let go of friendships I have outgrown or people I see less often. I want to accept the distance or change that has led us in different directions. An example is my concern about what led one person to end contact with me and my concern about another person judging me for being less available than I think she wants me to be. Mainly I want to stop globalizing from one friendship to all friends. I know I have been successful in friendships and have been investing well in attention to several people. The ones that are weighing on me as "failures" are the ones I need to address in some way. The guilt (or shame?) is bogging me down like excess fat. It is a drain. Unhealthy. I want to be more proactive about letting friendships grow and accepting change.
A fear I am grappling with is entering the work force after I graduate and needing to support myself on a nonprofit salary, and starting to pay my loans back...everyone keeps telling me I'm not going to make very much and that scares me that I won't be able to sustain the kind of lifestyle I want. I plan to think critically about this as I move forward in the next year and make sure to set myself up in a position where I can keep up with paying off my loans and still have a lifestyle I enjoy.
Lifelong - I fear that I don't have something of value to offer another person in a social setting or casual relationship. Therefore, I hold back. This prevents me from creating or deepening relationships. I'm going to try to remember that what I have to offer is letting people know I am interested in them. While I realize that there is a chance they might not want or welcome my interest, for most people, demonstrating interest by reaching out/initiating contact will probably be perceived as a good thing.
I always have the fear that I won't be good enough or am inadequate before I ever really try something and it limits me and hinders the outcome of whatever it is. I don't really know how I can change or fix it considering I've been this way for most of my adult life.
I don't believe in fear; fear holds you back from everything I try to lead my life through discovery & even when it gets tough I discover joy anyway.
Fear of other people judging me or losing respect for me stops me from doing what i want to do all the time. I've realised it takes me longer to know what I want than the average person and I can be easily influenced. I need to listen to myself more and respect the answers that come. I need to flex my muscle of self belief and trust that my truth will reveal itself to me. whats right for other people is not right for me.
My fear if of letting those close to me down. Instead of being afraid to disappoint, I want to embrace this fear and pursue something that is truly meaningful to me, even if it hasn't always been in my grand scheme. I think they will respect me for this.
Fear of not having enough money to last our retirement and that we will have to move away from our friends and life here, or become dependent upon our children. I am working on a practice of knowing I have enough in this very moment and that is all that matters as I don't yet have a future--just this present moment--and in this present moment, I have everything I need. This is hard but I am practicing.
Change. Fear of change has limited me in progressing. I plan on letting it go by breathing deeply, committing to a meditation class, and leading with the heart.
I don't really know what I'm afraid of, anymore. I mean, I fear being alone, but I also don't see that happening. I fear failure, but generally, I'm not actually worried about it. I guess I am mostly afraid that I'll stop progressing. Moving forward. Being more. That I will peak. And I don't want that to go away. I want to keep pushing myself in that way.
I don't really know what I'm scared of anymore. I used to be scared that I wouldn't make the right kind of friends but I know I have the best friends I could ask for. I also used to be scared of the future but now I just live in the moment and not worry about it. So I'm really not scared of anything, life's to short to be scared.
Fear that my husband will die. I can only continue to work to embrace the impermanence that is inherent in all of life and hope or diminishes. I also am afraid that he will NOT die but that he will have a serious health incident due to his health habits. Having written that second sentence I see that is it a much greater source of dear and anxiety. I know much about worry as a waste of energy and so forth but I experience his on a very deep level. I must endeavor to understand and live the notion of "letting go" -maybe to understand what holding on to this anxiety is doing for me.
I still deal with my anxiety every day, but every year it gets better. I fear that my anxiety, especially when it comes to social situations, is going to keep me from building the relationships I want to have in my life. But the fact that I am better than I was even two years ago is promising and helps me move forward. I will deal with anxiety for the rest of my life; I know that. I know simple little things like meeting friends at a new restuarant will always have me asking a million questions and cause my heart to pound. But the advances I've made keep me hopeful.
fear of getting bad grades has limited and continues to limit my ability to focus on actually learning material in classes, rather than just doing what i can to keep my grades up. i hope to really break the addiction to good grades by a combination of better class schedule structuring, and caring less.
I have a fear of social rejection, that prevents me from introducing myself to new people. Every month, I will go to a professional event and a personal (social, religious) event, and introduce myself to two new people at each.
I don't want to be a failure. I don't want the rest of my life to be as unsatisfactory as it has been to date. I want to be at peace. I will have to keep slogging on and try to find time to do the things that I love.
I have an extreme fear of relationships and commitment. I am hoping that this will be something that I can overcome in this coming year. I plan on letting it go by trusting or attempting to trust in the current "friendship" that I am in right now. I want to be able to love and commit without restraint or pure fear. It has limited me because I tend to run away and then wonder why I am alone.
I fear not ever getting on our feet financially. It's been a rough several months and it seems like every time we think we are getting there We reach another set back. We need to just keep moving forward and trying to save more and more
Fear that I won't amount to anything. I've gone through a few major changes in my life these past few years. Each one seeming to be bigger than the last, leaving me more at risk to fail. I have always just wanted to have a job that I enjoy and that can keep me comfortable. I want to make me friends and family proud. Then I will be proud of myself.
That I'm still holding on to unfounded fear from childhood and it's keeping me from reaching the next level in my personal growth and development. I hope to look to G-d to help me remove that last bit of fear from me, because I need His help with everything. I hope that over the year I'm able to get to a place, BE"H, where I won't have that residual fear, and I'll be a whole, complete, person.
The biggest fear I have is failure in my business. Now that all the pressure is on myself, I have an overwhelming desire to give up before I allow myself to fail. It's easy to have confidence when you are a part of a team, receiving praise and affirmation, but when you are alone...you are your only source of motivation, passion, and confidence. But, I am going to push through this and keep trying my best until someday the tables turn.
My only real fear is losing my job. My husband is now semi retired and I am the main breadwinner. We both sacrificed so that I could change careers. I would be devestated if I had to start again from scratch.
Fear of the future and all that it encompasses- aging, bad knees, not enough money to make it to the end. But, I can't let fear dictate my life and there are positive things I can do for my health, finances and mental attitude. I can turn these fears into motivational tools to move past them and continue to grow as a person in the next year!
I have a fear of speaking or reading in public. It has impacted my personal and professional life, and influenced my job choices - I refuse to speak in front of a group and this disappoints some managers. I have tried to work through this fear by volunteering to do a little public speaking in familiar, comfortable venues - like church or in volunteer organizations. It is usually a disaster that I "replay" over and over. I hate it. I'm quite ready and content to let it go. I can live the rest of my life happily without overcoming it! :)
I have a weird fear of making decisions. It's not an outright fear, but I am always hesitant to make decisions, because I don't like to disappoint others, or bring others into a situation they won't enjoy. This usually manifests itself in deciding where to eat out or something trivial like that. It may sound too trivial for Someone as big as God, but I need to trust God that everything will work out, no matter what decision I make. He'll keep me from making the big mistakes, or will pull me through any mistake, so what should I fear? "So we say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?' --Hebrews 13:6
the fear that i might have complications from eye surgery or that i will have chronic problems with it and will be limited in my daily activities. i plan to focus, meditate and be hopeful that everything will turn out fine and if there are issues, i will deal withthem then.
Fear of embarrassing myself. I am often afraid to speak my mind in certain situations, even though I know I am right, because I fear that I will be laughed at. I want to be able to tell other what I think and take responsibility for what I say.
I'm afraid that I'm just not good enough, which impacts my confidence and my ability to find a new, more satisfying job. I'm going to try acting more confident this year, and seeing where that takes me.
I've never realized consciously, but I think this year I discovered I am afraid of failure, and I do not know why. I have so many ideas of things I could do or want to do but then find something that prevents me from doing it. I'm the thing preventing me from doing whatever and I think it's because I'm scared I won't be able to do it. I have no idea how I could overcome it. Just to be accepting of myself and to get a plan that I am happy with and just go for it. Stop thinking so much. You damn fool!
i seem to still have a deep fear surrounding money and its easy flow towards me... other fears revolve around being "good enough", being successful, etc. old stuff. i continue to work on my ease in the world, accepting myself as i am, and working towards my goals even when the steps i have to take are hard for me ( like public speaking, introducing myself to people, networking, etc)
I have fear of having my heart broken again. My last serious relationship was over 10 years ago. We were together for 12 years. I was madly, deeply in love. It ended - we occasionally are in touch. I have been unable to move on. I know I should at least try. My rationalization is that none of my friends are in quality relationships-- I'm better off on my own.
My fear is that I will end up alone. How I plan to let this go is by acting in a loving way in my relationships with men. To not get as angry but to realize they are doing the best they can. Also, to jazz up my sex life more and not feel I am too old for fun.
I am scared of looking stupid while exercising, I have started to work with a trainer and in a small class, and intend to continue doing so, until I feel confident enough in myself to do so more publicly.
Fear that I may never be totally comfortable with my son and his family because he has grown so different from what he was -- and I guess I have, too. It limits how I interact with them. I plan to keep pushing the boundaries of my comfort level, slowly, inch by inch.
I am terrified of being poor, of letting my family down, of trying and failing, discovering I will never be smart, competent or good enough, that there are glass ceilings and class barriers that I can't break through - and also that maybe the last two things are just excuses for personal inadequacies. I'm going to to try to overcome these fears by starting over in a new country where I can represent myself and define myself however I choose with the gleaned experience and wisdom of my years instead of the burden of a history..
I have trouble opening up to people, like I have this sort of ingrained fear of vulnerability. The second I feel embarrassed or even vaguely uncomfortable, I clam up and distance myself from people defensively, to sort of shield myself from rejection. In this coming year, I'm hoping to get over that at least a little. One of my favorite quotes is "Why not try it all if you'll only remember it once?", and I'd like to start living by that.
Probably the fear of discussing in class topics, fearing that I will be incorrect. I tend to be a really shy person when it comes to talking in class, but is definitely the 1 major thing I want to overcome in the coming year. If i keep this fear with me, i wont get anywhere; just because an answer may be wrong, doesn't mean anything bad comes out of it.
Being a mediocrity. I don't want to settle or just be average. I want people to remember me as if I was something special, not as though I was something forgettable. As Winston Churchill said "History will be kind to me for I intend to write it."
I'm afraid I'm not loveable. It has stopped me from looking for real true love. For if I search and don't fine it that will confirm my fears. I'm trying to look, anyhow.
Fear of success in that maybe ill rise high & then fall. My career is going better than ever, and in the coming year I want to embrace my new role & thrive instead of flying under the radar.
Fear of not being good enough -- even tho I paid to self-publish my book a year ago -- I didn't send it in until last week. My new affirmation: Just do it!
I have a fear of not being able to quit smoking. I need to change my mindset. I need to think positive and give it 100%.
I don't want to admit it but i think there are times I'm afraid of being alone, going it alone, and ultimately becoming homeless and having no place to go. I have no children (i have step children) on whom I feel I can rely if i am in need. My own mother who had two children ultimately died alone (in a nursing home). If and when my time comes , I often wonder who would or could take care of me. Who will say Kaddish for me? The fear of being along and being penniless does drive me to seek ways to increase my income. To add to my social connection. To adopt soul children who have actually adopted me. To create and maintain friendships with people younger than I and to also be engaged with communities which are like families. (Grace and family of choice). I take steps and great care in nurturing myself and my well being. I'm dedicated to being healthy and vital for many decades to come. I'm involved in work in which age is an asset not a detriment. I nurture my relationships with my grandchildren. And with children in my family of choice. I focus on what I can control and let go of anything which is outside if my control.
I'm afraid of confronting others even though I know I'm right. Fear of failure, and fear of being alone. I'm going to try to let all three of these go this coming year. I'll say my mind in a gentle but firm and understanding way. I'll plan more, and worry less. I'll also make myself more available to others, and in turn keep from being lonely.
I fear failure, which often leads to me quitting things before I finish them. I have many half-completed projects around, most of which reached a point where I was no longer sure of myself and decided to just stop rather than risk failing or messing up. I hope to start finishing (yeah, I know) some of these projects; even if they aren't perfect, at least they will be finished.
hmmm this is something I really need to think about. Ok if I really really think about it, the place that I still let fear in is when it comes to relationships with the opposite sex. I don't put myself out there enough, I keep my guard up. I'm not afraid of rejection, I'm afraid of not being accepted for me. I need to challenge myself to play the field, to go out there into the world and find that person for myself.
The main fear that has limited me is the fear of conflict. This has me often agreeing to things I don't want to do or has me not standing up for myself when I need to. This is a lifelong issue and consequently has its roots in my early life e.g. my father. I think as I get older I am less worried about other people's opinions but I still don't like the feelings that come over me when there is a risk of conflict or angry feelings, particularly directed at me. I am fine handling sadness and grief and lets face it that's part of my job as a social worker. I would like to think that by this time next year I have managed, at least in some small way, to overcome it. I suspect that practising mindfulness will help me to do this. I would like to be able to experience strong emotions without letting them hijack me. Lets see what happens.
Totally committing myself and giving it my all, on a consistent basis to something. It has limited me in several areas: relationships, career, passions, etc. It's definitely a pattern and a behaviour deeply ingrained that is almost unrecognizable to me - if it weren't for me being totally honest and admitting that I typically have the same results/outcome in most areas. For instance...if I had truly given it my all in committing myself to my business I started in 2005 - and the one before that in 2001 - I would have succeeded. I'm pretty sure of it. And, I know for a fact that I'd have been married or at least seriously with someone on several occasions if I were totally committed to them and the relationship, at the time. So...I suppose I plan on letting some of my "old ways," go - by recognizing the pattern and identifying why I am afraid to totally commit and give it my all. That is a good first step. And, then spring into action by choosing something...anything, and devoting myself to it, heart and soul. (Cali, my kitty is the only thing I've done this with in the last 7 years :)
Failing in my coaching business. I think I'm past worrying about succeeding. I have enjoyed the coaching I have done so much, I want to keep on doing it .... and make money doing it. I'm worth it.
Fear of failure was a serious limitation last year in my job. I have a new job and a new opportunity to be successful in the coming year. I plan to let go and let G-d take care of the big picture while I do the daily work of tikkun olam on a local level.
I fear going to hell, that's why I have to work on and maintain my relationship with God.
Fear of trying to hard. Fear of failure. I'm very self protective- fear of being injured physically, emotionally and mentally. Fear of not being treated fairly. In many ways, I haven't lived as fully as I could have.
My fear is that I really have not an ounce of talent and that it will be discovered. I know that is not true, largely because others have told me, but I need to prove it to myself. I just have to focus on painting and drawing more and work on it. What happens happens. Have some faith in myself!
What am I not afraid of??? 1.) fear of people 2.) fear of failure 3.) fear of driving on highways 4.) fear of closed in spaces So, these various fears limit me in different ways -- the fear of people makes me anxious when meeting new people for therapy, for dating, for doing well in a sales type position (I'd like to be a nursing home liaison, or screener, which is basically a sales job). Fear of failure affects everything; fear of highways means I don't drive to visit far-flung friends; fear of closed in spaces means I avoid elevators whenever possible, and possibly jobs which might involve my having to use an elevator. Living in a high-rise building is out of the question. Some of these fears (of people & of failure) have been with me since I can remember. But the highway driving and elevators are relatively recent.
I am fearful of talking in large groups. Career wise it limits my advancement. I plan to do more one on one speaking as well as small groups.
Funny this would be a question...so timely. It has really only very recently come to my attention that I have actually been letting fear rule my life for the past several years. I was widowed a number of years ago and have allowed my grown sons to live here with me since that time. It was easier for me to continue in the function of 'mommy', even though they are both adults and it did not serve them either...it is what we all know. And so very, very recently I became aware of the fact that I am staying in this pattern because I am afraid to face the rest of my life alone. It is not what I planned and I am not sure how to do it..I'm scared. Since realizing this, I have had 'the talk' with my sons and explained my sudden revelation, yes, there were tears....I am so unsure of my own future. But I want to face it head on and now, I'm actually excited to see what this new life will end up being! (just hope I can get the sons to move out w/o too much drama)
I am letting fear of being rejected again stop me from being serious about a job search and taking a job. In the past two years I have applied for about a dozen or so positions and have not even gotten an interview. I plan to make an appointment next week at the Women's Center and try to focus my energy on applying, networking and getting a position. Even more, I'm worried that it won't be the "right" job and I'll have to start again. I'm giving myself a deadline of Nov. 1 and then I'm going to get a temporary part-time retail job until I find full time, satisfying work.
only that my ex husband will somehow manipulate my daughter and have access to her and "mess with her mind"...I'm just going to keep trusting G-d and know He loves my daughter even more than I do. He has plans to prosper and not harm her (Jeremiah 29:11)
being alone
I fear I will never have a close relationship and be happy again, Its the self fulfilling prophecy ... I need to let it go.
We have a lot of debt. I am afraid of losing everything becos of it. Next year we will pay off our mortgage. We hope to roll that payment into our equity line to pay that off. We hope to "snowball" our extra money into paying off our cards, the car and anything else. It would be so awesome to actually start adding to our retirement accounts.
I'm afraid of never finding love again and of being alone. I try to overcome it by living life to the fullest because I don't want to have regrets. Being single has allowed me to have freedom and independence to live a different type of life than my friends who have responsibilities to a partner or a family. I intend to make the most of the opportunities I'm given and take advantage of not having obligations to a significant other.
I've had trouble putting myself out there and selling myself as an employee. It's taken me 9 months (of inconsistent searching) to find a new job that I like that wants me as a full time person and now I'm afraid that I've lost my confidence and that something will happen and I'll loose it. I need to learn to trust that I am employable, that people value me, and I am not a replaceable cog in a machine at work.
I think a fear that I have is not being able to figure out a passion of mine. Another fear is that I won't succeed in the tests and grades that I need to get into the schools I want. For the first, I must make sure that I really find what I like to do and not what my parents expect of me. I truly don't know what field I definitely want to go into, but that will develop over the year. As for the tests and grades, I need to focus on everything I do, especially AP Chem, and make sure that I try as hard as I can. I need to work to get a great ACT score so I can get into any college I want.
Fear that everyone will find out what I truly am. Fear of being honest. I'm so sacred to be everything that I am. So scared of being rejected. I used to be so scared of being alone, but then I met that fear last year. Now I think I fear not being good person. I fear the bad person that I know I can become if I get lazy or am not paying attention. I'm scared of losing everyone's love as soon as they find out. I want to work on this year, being more honest with myself and loving myself. Only when you have that power within yourself can you love and relate honestly with others. Writing like this helps.
I fear not making sense in the world. I have put my real self aside in order to fit in to the world. Job depends on it and since I am not independently wealthy I need to keep my job. Being closeted is difficult though.....I do feel the need to be more assertive in being true to who I am (especially since that is what makes me successful in my job)....
My fear has been that my emotional sustenance could come only from my Mom and that I would never get it, there could never be enough of it, it is unavailable to me. Now I am letting this illusion finally go because my emotional sustenance can come only from me AND I KNOW WHAT IT IS AND HOW TO HAVE IT. I am no longer dependent and fragile but sturdy and very resourceful.
Fear of rejection. I anticipate and do not risk social interactions that I should pursue. I want to let go of this and will work on initiating interactions.
I think my biggest fear is getting to the end of my life and realizing that I didn't appreciate it enough. I spend so much time thinking about how I want to live more comfortably and have more financial freedom, but really, I want to learn to be more in the moment so that I can appreciate and enjoy my life instead of missing it as it passes me by.
I am too attached to stuff! I have trouble letting go and I think that it holding me back from letting go of unnecessary stuff in my life! I need to keep what is important and let go of the rest.
Fear of losing my health and not being able to care for myself. Fix it by getting more healthy and exercising my mind as well as my body.
I fear failure, and it limits me from trying to reach my peak. I don't know how to overcome it, because I'd rather keep what I have than risk losing it all.
I'm still in excellent health, but as I get older I worry about developing a serious illness that limits me. I'm not always preoccupied with this, but I find I am going to doctors more to check on minor ailments (arthritis, etc.) that are petty annoyances and not major concerns, so the fact that I'm going to more doctors more often is a factor in my worry. I guess the only thing I can do is stay healthy and active as long as possible and enjoy each precious moment I have.
I'm jewish! There are SO MANY. Not living up to my potential is a nice umbrella for all the little neurotic things that limit. I feel like I keep stabbing at things to make a meaningful career trajectory, law wasn't it (thank you 10Q: last year's overarching fear was that law wasn't right for me, which I decided it is not), and tech is so prevalent here I've been gunning toward it, but I need to think seriously about what makes me tick, what I'm good at, what I could work on (and would like) and make a plan. I think the way I overcome this fear of not reaching my career potential is to self reflect, self observe, talk to people, and try try try. I am also fearful of not finding a meaningful romantic relationship. Less than the career thing because that consumes me, and I know I could get sex if I wanted it, but I sometimes have that soapy question: why am I single? What's wrong with me? People are married! I need to be EVEN MORE discerning when it comes to dating. I've done better, but I need to trust my instinct and go with it earlier on. I feel I am pretty open but being realistic and sticking to my instinct are skills I plan to hone. even mas. Uebung macht der Meister. I think I'll be ready to stat fresh after this break up in a few weeks. I hope. It'll be my birfday. gotta go write the copy for the FB invite
I am always afraid of something. I feel often that it will pass, but fear is with me constantly. Sad, but true. I would love to happen across someone who would listen and help ease me through them. It gets lonely in here!
I have a fear of being wrong. When I make mistakes I am very hard on myself and when people disagree with me I become immediately defensive. I am not sure where it comes from, but it makes it really hard for me to take constructive criticism and still stay positive. It also leads me to tell white lies or exaggerate so that people don't know that I was wrong or don't know something. I think to overcome it I have to admit to myself and to others that I was wrong more often instead of trying to rationalize so much why I think it is OK that I was wrong. And I need to give myself permission to make mistakes by reminding myself that almost all mistakes can be repaired with quick fixes, apologies, and a little elbow grease.
That I cannot keep up and in this I will dissappoint. And so I think that this makes me obsessive at times. I have to let go of my not good enough self opinion
I am afraid to let go and trust. I'm afraid of things not being in my complete control. Instead, I need to say "Haboteach b'adonai chesed yesovivenu" and just trust that it is true.
One fear I have is the fear of what other people think of me. As I have worked on myself and become clearer as to my own principles and values , the is fear has been replaced more and more with courage and faith. However, this fear has not disappeared altogether. In the past, this fear kept me from being honest about my own wants and needs, and it has kept me from following my bliss and perhaps even from being at peace in my life. In the coming year, I plan to continue doing the work and maintaining the practices that enable me to feel secure in my own principles and values, thereby allowing me to follow my bliss and be at peace in my life.
I was reading a Terry Pratchett book the other night... One character is a greedy child who loves sweets. In a certain scene, he bawls in frustration - STARVING for sweets. And the reason is that he is surrounded by simply too many of them - all enormous and delicious and just oozing with artificial colors and flavors. He knows he could never finish them all, and he just can't choose, so he sits there hungry and wailing. His sister says someone needs to put a bucket on his head so he can't see, and take away all the sweets but a small handful. The baby could cope with a handful. I feel a bit like the bawling child when it comes to achieving interesting things in life. The downside to being a polymath with an active imagination is a crisis of choice. Time is dished out just so. Ideas don't heed the constraints of time and capital, and even make rude gestures at them as they whiz on their merry way past our world of day jobs and housework and call-waiting and paying exorbitant utilities bills. (This is pre-kids, by the way - yeah, I know, go ahead and laugh. I deserve it.) I am afraid of sitting surrounded by sweets and crying in hunger. There is too much choice, and I fear I'll not grasp any one of my worthy ideas fully and help usher it into being. This year, I would like one of two things: either make peace with this human limitation and choose a small handful of sweets, and accept temporal and financial constraints, embracing the day job as vocation and not merely habit or slavery; or conceive a plausible plan for liberation from day jobs. I grow bored of dreaming only. Wish me luck, lol.
I have always been afraid that I am not prepared...that somehow, everyone else has more information about any given situation than me. It makes me very anxious to begin something new, and can create a lot of social anxiety. I am learning to trust that I have everything that I need, that I really do know what I need. Part of that is happening naturally as I get older, but I am also actively working on it. We are sending our five year-old daughter to an alternative school that encourages and nurtures a child's self esteem and ability to think for themselves. So that even if they find that they don't know something, they are not afraid to ask, AND they know how to go about finding the answer. I am hoping that giving her better tools than I had will help me to let go of some of my own stuff.Maybe I will learn a thing or two myself! It is, however, bringing up all those very same feelings as we set out on uncharted territory...
Fear that I'll never find a partner. It limits me in that I'm always wondering "Will I meet him today?" and looking around when I go out to places. I spend too much time on OKCupid trying to meet and date new guys. I think if I could let go all of that, and have faith that either I will meet him, somewhere, someday, or at least if I don't ever meet anyone I can still lead a fulfilled and happy life (a la J. B. Fletcher on Murder She Wrote) I would be able to be more present in the moment. I think it would also help me be more confident in myself. By not having someone in my life I find it hard not to think that it means there's something wrong with me. I'd like something to be different in me regarding this topic next year, but I have no idea how to go about changing it. Maybe just putting it out there is the first step. :)
I have this fear that my future won't pan out. That I'll be stuck in a life I don't want to live. I'm fearful of always being alone to the end of time. I'm fearful that I've put all my eggs in one basket. I'm fearful that I've spent too much of my life not taking risks.
My fear is of not being the best person i can be, of not reaching my potential.
My greatest fear is being in a horrific car accident. We travel a lot and there have been some close calls that have not alleviated my fears but have increased them. I have recently started driving again after a 6 year self-imposed driving ban due to the fact that I would not drive our 2 ton truck that we needed to pull our trailer and did not have a second vehicle. Hopefully with increased driving experience I will feel more comfortable on the road.
You fear you will fail. You fear you won't make any money. You fear people will look down on you for making a mistake. You fear you will lose what you have built - your reputation and your credibility. People talk about embracing failure, but you like to think success drives you. You have come to realise that you fail in little ways every day - you're not reaching 100% conversion rates so something is failing to some extent. Don't worry about failing. You fail all the time and you never even blink an eye at it. Continue to work hard, hustle, talk the talk, walk the talk, and you'll realise you've never ever failed, you've only ever learnt.
I've always had a fear of losing my friends/that they didn't like me. So many self-esteem issues. I always try to believe them when they tell me they enjoy me and my company, so I just need to keep believing them and reassuring myself that being me is good enough. I think that it is.
I have a fear of rejection... A fear that can paralyse me at times. I often stop myself from taking risks that could result in some form of failure or rejection. I have recently begun to overcome this and have tried to take more risks. I will have to continue to do this.
Getting married - sharing my life intimately with someone else. To let it go, or better: to overcome it by putting it in perspective, I will understand that it's worth it to have the opportunity for spiritual work that marriage will bring. And I will understand that in the marriage that I want, both of us will have the privacy we need.
I have a fear of getting insulted and getting beaten. I don't fear failure, I know its part of life. I am just going to try not being fearful and facing the situation without thinking too much. I want to see how I am and other people are going to do.
Fear of change. Fear that if I change something today, I will not be as happy tomorrow. The result is that I don't change until change happens to me, like other people choosing to change, or things outside of my control changing. Fear of change produces a very passive way of living life. I am not certain how to let it go, but I am aware of it, and will hold on to it daily. my life coach and I have already started on this issue, and I hope that someday soon I will be able to make changes, deliberately, even those changes that may sacrifice some current happiness for greater joy.
That I will say or do the wrong thing. That all my decisions will be the wrong ones. I re-wrote this answer three different times because I didn't want to write down the wrong thing lest anyone judge me for it - and it will be me doing the judging. I am not good with being judged. This fear does not stop me from making the wrong choices but it does stop me from at times from making the right choices. And so I sit, not choosing anything. I don't know how to let go of it or overcome it. I'll have to think about that. I wouldn't want to say the wrong thing.
Fear of running out of money. Get over it!
That I can never succeed. That I will fail no matter what I do our how hard I try. That I will always be alone and no one would ever want to be with me. That what I do doesn't matter. That I am ugly. Honestly I don't know how to let these go. I try not to give them to much time in my head, but whenever I start to think that I might actually be moving away from them something always happens to knock me back down again. I may be getting better at not staying down so long each time. That's progress I suppose.
What fear do I have that limits me? Given where I have found myself after the difficult journey in the past year, I have to say that I currently feel without fear. It feels immodest to say so, and I'm not comfortable with that answer. But I think it is correct. For so many years of my life and for most of the two years leading up to my cathartic breakthrough in June, I was driven by fear. My primary fear was around how the people in the world and community and my life might judge me. I spent so much life energy trying to satisfy everybody, trying to friend every body. I was terrified that I would not be accepted, I would not be appreciated, I was terrified that people might not like me. My youth was defined by a general sense of being an outcast, and this persisted until I was 15 years old or so. Once I figured out how to be an active and embraced member of the community, I grabbed ahold of that and made it an important part of my life and identity. This of course came to ahead over the past couple years, when I found myself in an affair and was unable to leave my mistress just as I was unable to leave my wife, in part because I was paralyzed by fear of losing acceptance. Of course, as usually works out, when you fight hard to satisfy everybody, to be everybody's friend, you end up satisfying nobody and driving everybody away. During this journey I even found myself making decisions that were meant to satisfy people I barely knew, rather than working to accommodate the people I cherish and love. And yet here I am, a couple months after suddenly discovering who I am and what I need, and realizing that everything I ever needed was right in front of me in my wife and family. Suddenly, everything else seems less important. Suddenly, I no longer care as much about all the people out in the world may not approve of me or actions I have committed, especially those people who have chosen to step out of my life, our life. I have found that by ejecting all these people and expectations of satisfying them, stepping away from all the potential negativity out there, my wife, my family, and I have found happiness. Suddenly, all the things I used to fear no longer seem to matter. I have all the acceptance and love and family I need, and I no longer feel this deep urgency to build something bigger and wider. I am happy and I am satisfied and I am connected to those people in this innermost circle, and all the things I used to fear I no longer fear. So I have no specific answer to the question of what it is I fear that I might address over the coming year. I have no such fear in part because I have spent so much energy over the past two years looking at a lifetime of fear, and addressing it (although that was not my intention at the outset). As I have said, as I look forward to the coming year, I am not thinking about fear but rather about happiness and family and building a great relationship with my wife. That is what matters to me right now.
I fear being someone and doing something that feels significant. It is both a fear of failure and a fear of success. But giving into this fear means limiting yourself and falling into apathy at the expense of passion. I have given up so much and isolated myself to the point that I had nothing left of my professional life. In one sense this was a blessing because I found mindfulness practice. I have been working on being present in the moment but in the coming year I want this to be the foundation of bravely taking risks and finding my way.
I fear my mother's inevitable physical decline and my ability to cope with it. I need to try to detach myself a certain degree to enable me to remove some of the emotion from the issue and deal with it in a rational and constructive manner. I know this will not be easy but it's the only way I can see of getting through this, particularly if it goes on for an extended period.
I think one of my biggest fears is that I will never know it feels like to be "in love." I'm only 25 years old, but I can't think of a friend who also has not been in love with someone. Maybe this fear has limited me by making me very cynical and pessimistic about love. I think I can overcome this "fear" by just accepting that it may be true. Perhaps I will never fall in love with someone, or that someone will not ever fall in love with me. That may seem extremely pessimistic, but I think its partly realistic.
My biggest fear is not having enough money. “Enough” means paying our bills, keeping up with our current, comfortable, but not lavish lifestyle. I plan to deal with it with 2 and a half ways. First, I want to make more money. Second, I want to examine the fear itself. What would happen if I wouldn’t be able to pay the bills. What would be my choices. What other consequences need to be considered. Right now my fear is a bit irrational. Make it a rational understanding. Turn fear into a concern, which I would have less emotional attachment.
Losing loved ones, it is keeping me from wanting to work and keeping me from pursuing new opportunities
I have the fear of confrontation . I have a big personality so no one ever suspects this. I want to have more confidence in my abilities so I can say what's needed. My goal is to start small and build up to bigger issues.
I think my biggest fear is not making a mark on the world. It's kind of a paradox with me: on the one hand, I don't want fame for my accomplishments. but on the other I would like to know that the things I do make a difference somehow. By difference I mean inspiring and bringing joy to others by my creative endeavors and also by my scientific achievements. I often feel like I was born in the wrong time...if I was alive during the renaissance or early Greek times (as a male, of course), I would have fit in perfectly. In modern times we are measured by our accomplishments based on how well-known we are or how much money we make, NOT by our personal achievements or what we have to offer the greater good. To overcome this fear I just need to live my life and not worry about being famous or making a lot of money from my work - enjoy the process and appreciate the moment!
I have a fear of not finding a person with whom I can spend my life. I've always wanted it and looked at what my parent's have had for so long and have wondered if it just may not happen for me. I plan on enjoying being young, having great friends and a job a really love. Hopefully, the right person will come when the timing is right.
I have a fear of being seen. Of opening my heart again to a lover. Afraid of being hurt, rejected. I want to learn to love myself so I can not ask something from someone that I can't give myself.
I fear that I'm not going to find something to do next year, or that I'll find something that will be hard, or lonely, or unfulfilling. It's made me uber-sensitive to how my resumé will look on the job market in the spring. I think I just need to have fun and trust that everything will work itself out, because it usually does. There's just too much to lose by stressing out my senior year of college.
I have a fear of the unknown, of the point where my plans end and chance enters. I plan on overcoming that by embracing the present more thoroughly, by being wonderfully aware of the present and thinking less about my plans.
Fear that I'll never get past these medical problems I'm having. That I'll never get to a point in my life where I feel comfortable financially/health-wise. Fearing I'll never get to live my dreams of traveling to places around the world. All I can do is take things one day a time and keep pushing forward.
I continue to worry about many things ...the world, the environment, my children. I have learned to sometimes look at the here and now...acknowledge what I know, what I can change and what I have no power over at all.
Whenever I debate doing something "for me", I fear under-serving my family, and so short-change myself. I will trust that they will be just fine, while I help myself for a while.
My biggest fear is that my husband will have a heart attack due to the excessive weight he's gained in the last three years. So I'm going to change our diet in the hope that we both become healthier in the next year.
I fear money, or rather, lack of money. I don't want to throw all caution to the wind and spend maddly; but I would like to relax and just come to a place of acceptance.
My great fear is always that of rejection, being left behind or disregarded as unworthy "by the crowd". This leads to the reaction-formation that I've built up, of moving away from the herd, while secretly wanting to connect with the individual members of it. Finding the balance between autonomy and relatedness is what my old fears make difficult, but I've realized that a big part of getting over this fear is paying more attention to the individual experiences of other individuals, whether isolates or group-members, and realizing that they too are working on finding this balance for themselves...and thinking more clearly about how my interactions with others potentially can help others manage their own balance...stepping outside of purely seeing it as "about me" in other words, and realizing the common humanity in this feeling, and honoring it sensitively, both within myself, and others.
The fear of never getting out of our financial "hole" and attaining the level of financial stability/success that I desire for myself and my family. It impacts me in subtle ways, but primarily in how I view my world - not in a spirit of abundance but in a spirit of lack. I plan to continue to take charge of my finances, find a job I love earning enough to allow my husband to stop working OT after 3 years and allow our family to get on track, start saving and even take a vacation.
I'm afraid when I climb the stairs and I try to fight with; I have an improvement.
My biggest fear is that of letting go of someone I love. How can you let go of a fear of letting go? I don't have a plan for this one, but I know that it's something I have to overcome before I can move forward into any kind of emotional relationship again.
Fear of being alone on some sort of permanent basis. That this dormant state of the last year and a half will continue indefinitely. That the loss of human intimacy through the end of the relationship had some finality. I am not sure how to transcend this. I think one way is not moving into catastrophic ways of thinking in general. By not idealizing or demonizing the relationship that ended. By, above all, having patience. I really hope to re-engage with the world in this way. To share myself and to feel like "enough" with whatever outcome.
I do not like a people who are angry and conversations that are commonly had with those people. I avoid conflict because I often feel inadequate when I comes to responding back to others. As a result, I have spent much time avoiding difficult social or personal situations/events. I plan to start by attending Saturday services and either Sunday Hebrew or Thursday Torah study classes as a means of addressing social problems that have arisen at my old synagogue where my ex and her anger resides.
My fears: That I am blind to my own needs. That I compromise on something that is not as good as I deserve. I hope I have the courage to choose not out of fear.
I'm afraid of giving up the security of a regular income and not being able to pay bills, etc, so that, in part, is what has stopped me pursuing my real interests - acting, writing, irregular and varied work - but I aim to be braver when I come back from South Africa next year and start to live my life the way I want to, rather than telling myself I'm being forced to live a way I don't want to (because of debt, etc) and using that as an excuse not to move forward and change the way I live.
I fear rejection. I know everyone does - but I've been rejected before, rudely, and I don't want to put up with it again. Though this hasn't necessarily stopped me from being a bit forward, I'm scared to make the first move with boys. To let it go, I need to forget about this past summer, and get over the rejection and confusion. Only then can I fully put myself out there again. I also fear failure - not doing well enough in school, not getting internships/memberships that I want, etc. There's really nothing I can do to overcome this besides simply working my hardest and prioritizing what's important to me.
I am afraid of rejection. I am afraid of someone telling me I'm not enough. Of feeling unsexy, fat or ugly. I'm afraid of believing those things and letting them define me somehow. I'm afraid of negativity and ugliness in the world. I will own these emotions as they come to me. i will watch them and invite them in and learn how to move past them. I will learn the daly grapple and it will become comfortable to be in my skin, always.
I fear my cancer will come back, and I will have to go thru all the treatments and time away from home all over again. Or worse, that it will come back and I will not be able to treat it, and that my husband will be left behind without me. I will try to have more faith in the Universe that this is not my path at this time, and try to eat more healthy to give my body the best chances possible to stay cancer free!
My fear of not being my perfect self is preventing my from dedicating more energy to my career and relationships. I need to remember that my 'self' is a whole: Not just a physical body, but a spiritual one, an emotional one, an intellectual one. I want to rebalance my energy and work to improve all facets of my being.
I am contending with several fears: the worry of being able to support myself until the end f my days, the fear I have of trusting in another that is limiting my ability to enter into a relationship of real intimacy and partnership with a man I love, the fear that my son is permanently out of my life. all of them are big hairy fears and need serious work to contend with. Counseling, reflection, and deep talks with my lover and with my friends: intra- and interpersonal communication with honesty, transparency, and hope: that is where my energies must go to repslve these issues and move forward with bravery.
Fear of not being liked or approved of by others. It limits me by filtering myself away from what excites me, it makes me quiet my voice—sometimes literally (to the massive irritation of myself and others). I plan to take more risks over the next year, putting writing out there more and living a little more "out loud." In numerous experiences (grad school, one of my previous jobs), I concluded that, if there's not someone who hates what I'm doing, I'm not doing it right. Let's test this....
I am fearful of being responsible for everything on my own. Nevertheless, if I think rationally I am handling it quite well although sometimes I choose not to do things/attend events/meet people because I feel it is all too much with a young child.
I fear not being successful, the problem is, what is my definition of success. Until I figure that out, who knows how I can measure that.
I have been afraid of dealing with my daughters' meltdowns in public (they are both on the autism spectrum), and it has made me choose to keep us home much more than I would like or than I feel is healthy. I have already been taking small steps to get us back out there, and I hope to continue trying new adventures, and also add hosting gatherings in our home. I have been afraid that those who do not know me or know autism judge me to be a bad parent. I will no longer let that fear force me to hide out.
Same as last year: fear of being alone. I have this (admittedly irrational) deadline of 50 - which I will turn in 2014 - that if I haven't found a true love by then I will never do so, and will either have to settle for whoever I can find, or never find anyone at all.
I think a fear that I have that limits me is the expectations of others, and confrontation. One thing that I would like to investigate through therapy, study and interpersonal relationships is to really take control, be assertive and be my own person... I plan to overcome it through therapeutic work, living more the moment and somehow finding the courage to stand up for myself more..
I have not ever gotten better about asking for help when I need it. I always feel fearful that people will think less of me or that I will be imposing on others. This is detrimental to my relationships, particularly with Matt. Because he gets really frustrated me when I don't communicate better. So I need to work on overcoming this feeling and practice asking for what I need and not being afraid to rely on others.
Being in new social situations. I have allowed myself to avoid them at times when I should just face my fear of talking to new people. It's limited me because I've avoided going to certain events and social gatherings because of it. I've missed out.
Probably that I will at some point realize I want kids and then not be able to have them. It hasn't really limited me, I keep doing everything I want to do because I don't have kids... but I suppose there is this part of the unknown of what am I missing out on? Baby making has been something my husband and I have been discussing... I think it might happen. But I think I'm ok if it doesn't too.
My fear is that I will become a vulnerable widow. I don't know if I can let it go, but I can help myself through the fear of vulnerability and loss of control over my life by becoming more active, and strong. See #10!
fear that i am compromising my dreams by staying at a job i do not feel good about. the company has changed, the environment has changed. i'm here because i earn a lot of money and like the freedom it affords. but, if my grown daughter settles down in her life and doesn't need too much support, i'd like to take the leap to change this, be a full time studen tfor a while, and then find a new way of earning my keep and keeping my earnings
I fear looking stupid. It has kept me from trying things I want to try. I've decided that I'm signing up for the winter term for a jewelry class at the college - I want to be a silversmith and I'm taking the first step at my "old biddy" age. Yay!
Right now I have 2 concerns. My brother Billy is going through Chemo. he just finished dose #3 and is having issues. Where now it is written and tomorrow it will be sealed, I so hope that he has time left with us. My daughter Tova has told me that she is moving to a house in Cambridge with 2 other women. I have run the numbers and it is going to be tight for her. She will have to make changes in her life style. Though I will miss her terribly ,I hope that a year from now that this will be a successful transition for her.
I fear intimacy, but also crave it. I think I'm ready for deep romance and connection.
SO many fears. The coming year holds a ton of changes and big events. With each of those there is fear that it will fail or that it will be overly difficult. I fear that Mark isn't REALLY, fully in tune with moving, and not on track with the timeline. The move itself will be hellaciously stressful and expensive, and that is scary. As well as the fear of what my income will be once we're there... The fears will remain right up until the issue is behind me, so the only way that i can vanquish them is to DO IT!
Fear of not being succesfull. I think that holds me back from taking risks and being more assertive in business situations. It actually perpetuates the situation or keeps me stagnant not taking action.
The most limiting fear is the fear of not being understood. It makes me withdraw at times, or feel distressed. I think I just need to gently keep reminding myself that things are OK, that I do have real friends.
I have a fear about managing my finances. I am scared about the future and how to create the plans that will be there when I have to retire. I am scared to say this out loud. I am scared that I have chosen a profession that will not support my family. I am scared that I will make wrong choices when it comes to money.
Fear that I am not doing enough for my family, for my community for my shul, for my friends. How do I let myself relax and know that I am doing what I can do, that people like me, they really like me?!
Fear of my body being fundamentally unable to handle training for a marathon. I want to put in the time to build a good base so when it comes time for marathon training in the spring, I'll be able to put the work in and be successful.
fear of failing, of being a bad writer, and of not having a lover who believes in me. I will do all of these things in the upcoming year. Love is everywhere, not writing is worse than bad writing, and the feeling of fear is worse than the reality of failure.
I'm terrified of being a stay at home mom. I've been avoiding making a decision for almost a year now. My fear of failure- failing my daughter, and not wanting to be with her when I quit. I'm also afraid of cutting off my options. The economy is so tough, if I quit my job I may never find another one. I just have to jump off the bridge. Commit to her, and see what happens. Then, know that things can always change. Even if it might not be easy to come back to a cushy desk job that I have, I can at least get something at Starbucks.
I fear our financial future - I hope we can get a stronger handle on it all this year. I fear my health - I hope to create healthier patterns in the year to come. I fear my daughters' developments - I hope we can help them both thrive by spending time and focus with them. I fear my own level of energy and burnout - I hope to find ways to rekindle my spirit throughout the year and bring energy to all aspects of my life
I have always had a fear of dentists and dental work. I have made a lot of progress over the last 10 years, but I still have been putting off some needed work both for monetary and emotional reasons. I didn't PLAN on overcoming it this year, but this question has made me wonder "why not?"
I just have a fear that my boyfriend and I won't work out and that my family will face a lot of hardships sooner or later financially speaking. I have saved up a lot of money and am ready for any hardships that might come.
I'm afraid of failing-- meaning not doing anything of importance with my life. I sometimes hesitate in terms of going out and taking risks for my future-- I tend to get comfortable with feeling secure. Too often the security comes with doing the easy thing. In the coming year I'm going to be out of the web of college and being an undecided college student who is swimming in a sea of opportunity; I will have to start making my own path from here on out. I don't think I'll have any other option than to go out and face what it means to make my mark. Specifically, I plan to research my interests and try to find opportunities related to them. I want to meet the right people, make the right connections, and see where I can get myself started. Edited answer: I'm also afraid of making people mad even if this means standing up for myself. I'm such a wimp!! I tend to just carry all my burdens and get upset about them rather than confronting people about why they're upsetting me-- always assuming it will be a difficult conversation rather than (what's more likely) a simple communication. I plan on having AT LEAST 4 "courageous conversations" (a phrase I used at work) with 2 people from my past and 2 people who are currently bugging me. I need to stop resolving things by just cutting off ties and communication. E.g. with Brian or Chiara. Get over it Lesley.
I'm afraid I'm too fat to love but if I get skinny then ill still be alone. I'm afraid I'm too stupid to go back and finish school. I'm afraid to open up to lovers because I am worried I do not deserve their love. I do not want these things to limit me any longer. I will not let them own me.
I don't have many fears but I sure do have a lot of anxiety... But the two thinks I am most fearful of are: - heights -- no big deal unless I plan to climb Everest... - my daughter relapsing into her eating disorder. She's been doing so well for almost a year now. But I still can't get past how scary dealing with the disorder and mental illness was for her and for me and her dad. I plan to continue to trust in her abilities and her strength. And also pay attention to what has real meaning and not get bogged down in the little moments.
My fear is that the residual paralysis of my face changes the impact of what I say or more accurately..my confidence to say it. It's hard to let go when it's the first thing I see every morning and the face I see is still so unfamiliar to me. I've made some progress in accepting it. I know God wants me to use the mind and heart that He gave me...and not to put it off waiting for something that may never happen.
I almost forget I have this fear - it comes up in arguments and weird times, and not really in every day life. I am afraid of being a stereotype. I think while this can be useful - I'm not afraid of trying new things or being different, for example - it has gotten in the way of my relationship sometimes. If I'm having stereotypically "feminine" feelings or desires - even though they are totally normal and legitimate and real - I can beat myself up for being too "lame." That's not fair to my emotions, and it gets in the way of solving problems or speaking up! I think I may need some therapy to tease this one out - it seems deep-rooted.
I have a fear of confrontation. When I have something to say to someone and it isn't completely positive, I usually just let it go without saying anything. I do that with my kids and my co-workers. I always tell my daughter to be brave when she has to say something or ask for something from her dad, and I tell her to think about what is the worst thing that could happen by asking for something or saying something. I need to start taking that advice for myself.
I think I am afraid of pursuing my true passion, which is writing. I'm afraid that "writer" isn't a real career; that it can't be a real answer when somebody asks me what I plan to do with my future. But this fall I have begun to realize that I AM a writer, and that it's what I really, truly want. I am not half bad at it, either. I hope to gain some confidence in myself and in my gift, so that one day when someone asks me what I do, I can level my chin and say, "I'm a writer."
I'm afraid of being alone - old and alone. This may mean that I cling to relationships.
Ooh wow. This is a good question. For one I am petrified of Failure. I know life is always about taking risks- the higher the risk the higher the reward. Failure is scary though. I think going after your dreams though is the most rewarding thing on this planet. About taking risks- I definitely have been paralyzed by the fear of taking risks with men. Just being open about my emotions and being myself. Its tough. And I wasnt like this when I was younger, so I'm trying to go back through my life and see when that began to change. I hope this coming year I take both professional and personal risks and allow myself to take a shot at living! YOU GO GIRL! YOU CAN DO IT!
Fear of failure is a constant. I find I'm getting better, I'm jumping in more, speaking up, becoming more of an adult, but it's probably always going to be a work in progress.
Fear of not being good enough-fear of actually being loved, of pursuing my dreams and putting myself out there completely.
I don't think it's fear that holds me back, I think it's complacency. So I'm going to let go of my complacency and push forward!
The fear I have is not being able to get the type of job I want. Regardless of the job I want, I know I will move to Nashville because I want to be close to J. However, the market in Nashville is an entirely different ball game than Atlanta. I fear I won't find something that makes me happy as well as something that I have worked hard for from an educational standpoint. I am letting go of my fear by letting God take over. I know he has a bigger plan for me and I have to trust that he will guide me to the right place.
I fear failure in my marriage. It makes me paranoid and over critical of things that happen. I need to relax, not take things personally, and help my husband better understand me and be comfortable with what we're doing and where our lives are going.
I am afraid that I am not good enough; for myself, for my loved ones, for the world. It is a challenge for me to believe that I am wonderful just the way I am, wholly within myself and without (or with less) outside validation. For so long, I crafted my identity around being smart and successful in school, and in that setting I received lots of outside validation (from teachers, peers, grades and test scores). I know that I want to let this go; it's toxic. I don't want to feel like failure because I am unemployed or because I'm not as thin as I used to be. My self esteem needs to come from within me and without strings attached or contingencies (e.g., I am worthy if I have a job). I'm not entirely sure how to get there, by I'm going to try.
My fear of heights has stopped me from going to theme parks with my friends, and I hope that I can get over that fear so I can finally ride roller coasters.
I have a fear of sharks. After I saw jaws I was just terrified. Its hard for me mentally to go really far out in the waves because a shark can just sneak in front of you and bite your head off.
Fear of what other people think hinders me a lot. I used to be fearless in what I made, wrote and said, but some success has made me a bit gun-shy now, since I'm under the illusion that there is this imaginary reputation to uphold. I'm hoping that moving to a new creative space this fall will psychologically un-gum up the works a bit. Nothing like a change of venue to rev up the creative juices and risk taking!
Fear rules my life. I fear fear itself. And it wins every time, and stops me in my tracks. I'm afraid when I drive, I'm afraid when I breathe. I fear death. I fear pain. I fear difficulty. A friend recently suggested that I am an adrenaline junkie and that the lack of excitement in my life may be the root of my habitual fear. I would like to explore this and SOLVE this within the year. I have been a slave to fear for far too long. I hate that I let it rule me, but none of my solutions seem to stick. I want to try harder and achieve this goal.
Over the years, I've learned to deal with my fears. While they still affect me, they are no longer debilitating.
I guess I have a few. The classic, and reigning champion: becoming old and poor. But right now I fear not being able to find the next, right job. I also fear becoming too much of a homebody. As to the first, I simply have to keep focused, do the work, and listen to my gut. As to the second, this might be harder. It's more challenging to find the balance between my (usual) social self and my increasing need/desire for quiet. I'm sure this is a coefficient of aging, but I don't want to give in to it entirely! I also wonder how the location of my new home fits in. I'm farther from many things, not near public transit, and certainly far from work, all factors that seem to complicate going out after work.
I don't want to die. But since that is inevitable, I don't want to die having failed to achieve my potential. Often, rather than risk failure, I fail to take a risk. All I can do is try harder to tackle the projects I've been avoiding--from cleaning the basement to finishing the book about my mother's childhood to--and tackle the most important project: self-improvement through self-control in diet, exercise and time managment.
I'm afraid of losing time. I need to make the most of my time, enjoy the people around me, build relationships, take opportunities. Don't be afraid of time, embrace it, its coming regardless. Make the most of life. Take risks.
Fear that I'm not as good as other people are. It has stopped my from progressing and showing what I can do at work. I plan on believing in myself and doing what I believe I can do.
Fear is such a strong word. I suppose I fear the unknown, I fear what will happen next. I also fear sometimes how others will see me. But, I should take a chance and overcome that fear by taking risks and pushing myself to be who I truly am. But who is that? I suppose during my whole life I am on a journey to find that out.
My fear? That I'll never find a woman I love. That I'll never reach my potential. That I'll look back on my life and see a string of bad decisions. That I'm arrogant while thinking I'm humble. That I'm selfish while thinking I'm generous. That I'm cruel while thinking I'm kind. How have these fears limited me? To be honest, I don't think they have. I'm doing exactly what I think I need to be doing--these fears all concern things outside of myself: other people, events. I'm afraid of what might happen, but I don't think that I can do anything except continue on my path and deal with what comes.
I have problems with the fear of not being perfect, of letting other people see my mistakes, of not being good enough. One thing that's a challenge is to just dive in and not think so hard.
I have a fear of being destitute (and a fear of growing old alone). I have no plans to let go of either fear because they both motivate me to keep moving, even if it isn't forward at least it isn't stagnant
I'm afraid of fully investing in my relationship. Too many times I've felt I've found "the one", put everything into my relationship, and have been wrong. Often missing warning signs and taking things for granted. It's made me question and doubt myself this time around. I want to over come this by trying to live more in the present. Enjoy our time together and not worry as much (or hope for as much) about marriage and kids.
I fear that my pugs will not be around much longer and now that my ex-husband has custody I fear that I will not get to spend as much time with them as I want and need to. I miss them dearly and plan to just visit as often as I can.
I fear I won't have the strength or stamina to do a good job teaching this year and beyond. In the year ahead I hope to go through the year of the door Dalet ד and into a double portion towards the springs of living water. In this decade of Ayin ע the eye, I will see prophetically what to do in the spirit, by the Spirit of the Holy God. Dalet is also the letter of Deborah, the bee. I want to float like a butterfly and sting like a bee! Sweetness and honey, but watch out for my stinger. (In the class and with my kids). I wonder what will happen in Syria, and how Iran will do this year. Help the Iranians and the Syrians Lord.
Over the past year, I guess I have realized that I was afraid of what other people thought of me. Especially in Israel, I was always worried that people didn't like me, and I feel like my resistance to talk to them really deteriorated our relationships. I really hope that I can let go and remember that people who are worth being my friends should not judge me and I shouldn't worry about what they think if they are real friends.
The fear that somehow I'm going to lose that which I value the most - my loved ones. For some reason, I'm conditioned to believe that if something's really good, it's too good to be true and will probably be taken away. I've lost some very loved ones to tragedy and it makes me fear that I'll have to face that again with my own family. I've always made it ok to accept the loss, but for the first time in my life, it wouldn't be ok with me to lose either my husband or child. I've never been so attached to anything ever and it's terrifying at times to me. But as someone recently said to me, "It's your birthright to be happy." I remind myself of that whenever the fear comes up and then I say, "I release all negative expectations and fears about my family." Hopefully that will start to sink in so the fear abates.
My fear has ALWAYS been for the safety of my boys; but I never let it stop them from doing anything. But I'm scared of submitting poems. Been better this year than last; next year, I hope to be better still.
I am afraid of never finding love. I spend and have spent an enormous amount of time trying to find love- unsuccessfully. In the next year I hope to let go of that and just live my life- if love comes to me, great. If not, that is okay, too.
A fear that I have is at times wondering if I am an imposture...fear of failing (and sometimes do not try...just avoid)...this is not good...it is limiting and leads to a complacent just go with the flow attitude. Time slips by. Now is the time to engage...to try and try again, to enlist the help of others as needed.
Fear of failing and actually fail because of the fear. I need to turn that around. I dont want to be afraid
Firstly, I want to find out what my fears are and then decide if they're rational or not. Then take action.
My fear is that I will not find my true fantasy and will only have my reality!
I fear losing my grandchild to his father and the effect that will have on my daughter. I plan to do everything I can, should the judge decide against us, t0 bring him back into our family. On a more personal level, I fear losing a man that means the world to me completely. If that happens, I will have to let him go and just put one foot in front of the other, day by day.
I have a fear of rejection on a romantic and intimate level. I would love to have a partner, but I don't make myself very vulnerable on a romantic level for fear of rejection. I would say that I have a fear of being alone, but I am alone - and while I would prefer to find a mate - I am okay. I plan on losing weight so that I don't feel self conscious about my body. I plan on practicing being present, listening, showing up authentically and communicating my feelings in a mature way. I plan on opening up and taking more risks.
As in other years I've answered, I fear losing my husband. He truly is the great love of my life and his health is not good. I think it's a good fear to have, in a way, though. I don't take him for granted and I let him know how loved he is on a daily basis.
I'm afraid to stand up for myself. I have no fear of standing for others' needs. I'm afraid of failing. More important, I'm afraid of making a mistake. I'm doing some career counseling and I hope to address some of this there.
I fear that I will continue to put too much importance on finding a partner. I beat myself up so much over that, and it just makes the problem worse. I want to just stop caring and let it happen on its own schedule. It will; I just need to have faith. I don't need to fear loneliness because loneliness is a choice. I have already chosen to not be forever alone, so now I just need to stop thinking about it and let the universe find me that guy. I don't need to obsess over finding him myself. A relationship built on fear of the alternative wouldn't work anyway.
I tend to fear change. It limits me sometimes in my work progression and in experiencing new things. I'm hoping with my continued effort of trying new things (which has greatly been helped by my new girlfriend Elysia) I'll grow and be comfortable with what ever comes at me.
Hm... I fear not putting my best foot forward, and not looking smart or responsible. I fear always remaining the critical wife I am now. I fear never getting past the rush to make money to survive and never having the time to enjoy my family! I also fear never moving out of where we are now. I really want to move out.
I have a fear of not fulfilling my commitments and being judged for it. I have a lot of conflicting commitments to different people and organizations, and I am afraid every time I have to resolve conflicts by moving or dropping a commitment. This limits me, because it means I am often operating off of fear energy rather than fulfillment energy. I think I can let go of some of this fear by managing my commitments more successfully, but also by just accepting that there will be conflicts and that my primary goal in taking on these commitments was not to gain approval, but to get something done in the world. Fear of disapproval should not really be center stage.
I fear being unemployed a year from now. I think money problems are the biggest fear that doesn't automatically resolve itself with time. I plan on getting employed with benefits as soon as possible. Then, I can let go of my fear.
I am afraid that someone is going to catch me out; that I'll do something and someone will say - that's wrong, you must suffer for this now! I know it makes no real sense, but I can't get around it. I can either try to never be wrong or allow myself to realize that the consequences aren't too bad. I intend to go towards the second option in the coming year.
I'm afraid of being a burden. I'm afraid that the past 4 years of working the same job, paying my rent, and generally keeping my shit together were a lie, were just a good streak that's coming to an inevitable crash and burn. It limits me because it's always at the back of my mind, waiting for me to falter. It takes a lot of energy to constantly be fighting monsters in your head. My plan is the same as always: get through the day I'm living and use fiction as a reward and an escape.
My greatest fear at this point is being let down by my body - that my pain will increase and mobility will decrease. I don't have a plan at the moment for healing, beyond continuing to try new healing modalities. As far as overcoming the fear - my previous answer: So what? Just do it anyway!
Oh that's too easy. I'm always afraid that everything will fall apart. meaning I will have failed. Failure is just a goal at improv comedy class. I would like to greet it like an old, grizzled buddy. I'm not saying I want to fail--I hate to fail. But I'm really sick of being afraid all the time. I'd like to consciously not be afraid once in a while. Or as Joseph Heller said: oh well. What the hell.
Fear, this past year definitely was related to my job. Fear of not having a job, fear of how people view you when you don't have a job, fear of the uncertainty related to getting a temporary job, fear of not doing a good enough job to get hired full-time. Fear of rejection, particularly related to work. At one point, I remember saying to my parents "If I knew that I would be able to find a new job, I would be out of here in a second." Fear was holding me back from finding something new. Or maybe just realistic expectations... Now, as the new year begins, I have just decided between two really strong job offers. I am afraid that I did not pick the correct one. I am afraid that I won't fit in, or won't be able to do a good job there, especially after having suffered in such an abusive job this past year. I'm afraid I won't be motivated, because I have been wasting so much time feeling misdirected over the past few months. I am very afraid about this new transition and how it will affect me. I am going to try to think about it less, and just fake it until I make it...
fear. oy. this is big. i fear being obsolete. i fear change. i fear letting others down and i fear letting myself down. i need to take risks and know that it will all be ok. I fear not having enough money and never being able to retire.
I have a fear of being vulnerable. I didn't realize it until this year, but I have never really dated and I'm 28. I keep on giving excuses like I have no time or that I haven't found anyone I find interesting, but the truth of the matter is that I'm afraid to let someone in and risk having someone reject me. While I'm not sure this year will be a good year to start in the dating pool, since I am back to school full time, I do think I need to start being more honest with myself and living my life fully.
I am still plagued by a fear of speaking up in meetings of more than 3-5 people. This has been a problem for me for years and years. I plan to do some research and see if I can come up with some tips.
I'm afraid of success. I know it's dumb to fear that, but I do anyway. I'm afraid of doing something so well that I'll raise the bar and then I will be unable to reach that new height I set for myself. I'm afraid that people will put their trust in me to do something, and that I'll let them down.
I have a fear of leaving medicine. Although it doesn't make me happy, it affords me a good lifestyle. I don't know what I would do if I left, and I'm afraid of making bad choices and losing all my money.
Fear of failure. Fear of letting my guard down. Fear of not fitting in. Fear of not seeing my children be successful. The fears are quite overwhelming today. And I'm not quite sure how I'm going to overcome them all in the coming year. Each day is a new one and I have to focus on that.
i'm not sure if it's a fear of meeting someone new or a fear of letting go of someone i love so much. i plan on demanding that WE come to a decision. if it means i should move on, then i will work hard at getting out there and not letting my fear of getting close to someone keep me inside.
I have a fear of change, and of letting go. The idea of moving earilier this year was a little bit exciting and mostly scary, and I realized can get stuck with the thought of leaving familiar comforts behind.
I am afraid of failure. I am afraid i will not be liked, or be able to do what i expect of myself, or what others think i should do,
fear of failure fear of asking for help fear of being weak (physicallY0 fear of really being public with my leadership I will overcome by working with a coach, writing more, stepping up & rocking out in vibrant sparkly health
I'm still afraid of rejection, although I'm much better at acting on my feelings towards other people than I have been in the past. I don't have any big plans, but I'm going to try to be more spontaneous when I'm with other people that I like: to make a move when I have the thought about making a move.
Fear of having peaked personally and professionally
I'm afraid that even if I try to make certain things better in my home that it won't make a difference- that we still won't have people over, that we won't be able to make any impact. So, I don't make the effort. I'm trying to keep baby steps in mind- to go through my own things and hopefully encourage my husband to keep going through his.
My fear? Failure. It paralyzes me. And then I find that because I can't make a move, someone will make it for me, and I never like the results. So, I just need to learn to grab life by the balls and live my life instead of letting life live me.
I am afraid of making the wrong choice. I dwell on my past decisions long after they've blown over and it gets me down. This year I'll say yes and Disagree & Commit and move worlds.
I'm terrified of failing. I got very worried around exams this year. Really, it wouldn't be so terrible. I need to be more relaxed about these things, and remember how many things in life are more important to me.
not being good enough - not being lovable enough - I know it is all in my head - old tapes and yet.... Still gets in the way in all areas of my life - love, work, self
I fear that we will never be financially where I want us to be. I'm working on letting go of that and just working hard in my current job and developing my next career at the same time.
A this moment I am terrified of failing my college courses. My GPA went to crap at the end of last year and without good grades now I will slowly start to lose my scholarships. My plan of attack is to schedule study blocks- like write them out on my calender and everything. That way I HAVE to study.
Fear of people I love dying suddenly. It's paralyzing, and I get an idea in my head and it just swells rapidly until it's this behemoth and I have to get in touch with the person. How do I overcome it? Fight the thoughts as much as possible. It takes a lot of time.
I fear that I will never become a mother, and that my life will be "less" as a result. I don't know that I can ever let that go, but I want to try to refocus on the richness I do have in my life -- a wonderful husband, amazing friends, good family relationships, and a career I love.
I have a fear of getting lazy and complacent, of not finding a passion. I need to trust that the right interest will arise and remember that it will take time, and come at the right time.
Fear of success and failure...sad I know. Being extremely bipolar and dealing with post traumatic stress disorder as a result of years of physical, emotional and sexual abuse has crushed and still does crush me inside. I want to branch out beyond talk therapy and try EMDR, practicing mindfulness, learn to meditate, try tai chi, and explore music therapy and return to art and dance therapy. I hoped that as I aged, I would grow out of the the worst of it. But instead I have only become worse. It's so hard to get up in the morning and face the day. As an insomniac, I have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep and waking up. I take so many drugs to help with my insomnia that I wake up in a fog that lasts about half of my day...my waking hours. I have no answers but to just keep going on and work my best to be functional. Even that can absorb my whole day.
I have a few fears. My diabetes terrifies me. It is holding me back from being healthy, having children, and feeling good. I need to just do it. There is no other way to get over it. I am also afraid of having my own classroom. I think that fear had a part in me becoming an assistant instead of a head teacher. I could have applied to jobs way earlier than I did. Lastly I have a tiny fear that eventually I will regret getting married. Only time will tell.
Reconnecting to toxic relationships. Truth is a multiplicity. It all can be true. Don't text him.
I have always feared failing at something I really love, soemthing I put everything into. if I fail at something I didn't really try, or that wasn't the things I'm so passionate about, it's not good and it adds to ym sense of being a failure...but I can move on. I can tell myself it wasn't theReal Things that I failed at. I want to escape those fears and go full pelt into the things I've been edging around the edges of, too afraid to dive right in (whilst making it look like I did - I'm good at that sort of trickery).
Fear of embarrassment and judgment. It becomes paralyzing, the fear that someone will judge me. I plan to overcome the way I overcome all my fears: by throwing myself at it until it becomes less paralyzing.
The fear that I have is that I try to hard and sometimes limit God in the process. I have always been successful in making things happen although I am ready to go to a different level and let God make it happen. I need to guard my mouth...be slow to speak...and quick to listen. I need to slow down...be patient...and trust in God with my entire heart. I know that He has not given me a spirit of fear but of power, love, and a sound mind and am ready to walk in that power and with His authority!!
I am always afraid that my father will stop being proud of me, it has limited me because I start to get stressed out about it and then I get bad grades. He is so proud of me because of the grades I get. I plan on overcoming it this year by getting back on track with being myself and searching for only my own approval, I hope that this will help gain my father's as well.
Fear of intimacy, both emotional and physical. I now finally understand where this stems from, but I haven't moved forward into to figuring out how to change this about myself. This again is something I need to have a reason or impetus to tackle. I understand it, I know what it does, and know how it affects me. But does it need to change? I know it does, but I think I fear the road of going there and facing the truths and ugliness that have been left on my soul from what happened to me.
I'm afraid that others, especially my friends, may not like me as much as I think they do. Essentially, I always have a nagging fear of being judged and left out. I hope to realize how ridiculous that is. I'm great, my friends know it, and most importantly, I know it too.
I am so afraid of being called "needy" that instead I'll hold back, frozen, coming across as cold. Or, I'll over share, over communicate (probably because I've been overly therapy-ized) I love people, I need to just keep on loving, and show it more readily - even when the love isn't flowing as freely back. Be afraid, and do it anyway! <3
I have a fear that being wrong will lead to violent reactions by others. The ultimate fear is that of physical violence which used to follow verbal expressions of anger both at home and by school bullies. This leads to people-pleasing, which if I set aside too many of my own needs, I feel resentment for doing what they want rather than happiness for helping them. This resentment is then turned inward, and builds up along with a fear of letting others down while forgetting about myself. I need to trust myself to be able to say no, and others to not hurt me. When I don't trust others, I choose being alone so that I have more control and thus, more peace, but isolation to paraphrase genesis...it's not good for human to be alone.
I spoke in a previous question about my fear of intimacy. It certainly limits the relationships that I have with people and the way in which I navigate the dating world. I certainly need to be more open and less judgemental. I also need to put myself out there more. Perhaps if in a year's time, I still feel as if I'm treading water, I should invest the time, money and energy into speaking with someone professional about it.
As I've lived with my chronic pain, I've started to fear it more and more. That's actually a little strange to me, as I would think one would begin to accept the pain. Instead, I sometimes almost cower from it now, where I used to push through. Also, my fear of people is growing as I spend more and more time secluded in my home. I already had a very healthy fear of car accidents, and living in Florida compounds that fear, due to the absolutely dismal driving of the residents and visitors of this state. But my fear of people, my fear of car accidents, and my growing fear that I am unable to defend myself against aggressors (again, rampant in this hell hole called Florida) is leaving me almost agoraphobic. I suppose the only answer to this is what all phobics need to undergo: exposure therapy. Perhaps getting my CCW card will help with the self-defense side (I'm disabled, so I can't train in martial arts, etc.), but I've no idea what to do about fearing the horrible drivers. Or maybe it's a healthy fear, as long as I can drive when I need to?
I have a fear of not accomplishing my goals. I plan on fighting tooth and nail to accomplish all of my dreams and live the best life possible.
I have this fear that I take up too much space in the world. I feel too much. I eat too much. I take up too much room in a lecture hall. I have too much. I just am too much. And that's such a terrible fear to have. I've been given a functioning body and a brilliant imagination and it's time that I allow myself to take up space in the world and do what I can with the opportunities I've been given. I'm not sure how I'm going to change this in the following year. Maybe I'll stop saying 'sorry' so much and just let me be me.
At the moment I fear forgetting those I loved who are no longer hear, not completely, but the nuances that made them who they are. I think I am keenly aware of this at the moment because though my grandmother just passed, the dementia makes it such that it is already hard to remember who she was. I'm starting to keep lists to help me remember and I hope this will help. I think all of my life I have feared not being good enough and in some way doing more harm than good. I hope to find ways to be more true and honest to myself in such a way that I might lessen this fear of inadequacy.
I have a fear of not being good enough which often stops me from trying challenging or new things. I will follow through and finish activities that I am interested in.
I fear that I will never control my depression and its going to swallow my 30s whole. I need to make a commitment to getting help - find the RIGHT therapist, put the time in, and make the changes I need to reduce the things that bring me down.
The fear of getting ill again has hung over me. After my scare this year, it hovers over everything, but I'm beginning to get beyond it. I fear that my negative thoughts draw negative things to me. I am actively trying to replace those negative thoughts with positive ones, but it's quite a challenge. I also have a fear of my productivity dropping and being unable to meet my professional obligations. I've always had that fear, and I'm trying to just let things be, without obessing over what's not getting done. Also very difficult to change that habitual anxiety.
Fear of dealing with debtors, collectors and institutions like DMV, INS, hospitals I avoid dealing with this shit and then it gets worse. I need to get my shit together to take care of business in a timely fashion. Even if its unpleasant and i don't have the money. Fear of being myself, of putting myself out there. Limits my iterations with others, and constrains who i can be in semi-public
Some how I am having more self-doubt then ever in my life. It's not that I feel like I'm not talented or smart or nice or anything in specific. It is hard to explain or understand. It is like I have become more sensitive in certain ways. I feel a certain negativity inside of myself. I suppose I have to explore deeper and find out where this fear and blockage is coming from. Is it new or just buried so deep I am only unpacking it now.
Fear of committing to anything. Plans, people. For fear of changing my mind and letting them down when something I'd rather do comes up in the moment. It's kept me from forming deeper friendships, or maintaining focus and direction and achievement. I'd like to practice setting little goals and committing to them. Like learning to play a certain song on guitar, or seeing a certain person and proactively setting a date, or visiting a certain country. I'm terrified of making a plan to far in advance of fear of missing out on something else (undefined). I think working on this would be better for the depth of my friendships and contribute to feeling more direction and achievement and self esteem.
Fear of Death. Not so much being afraid of dying. But fear of being dead. Of this being all there is. I don't let it bother me every day, but when it does bother me, I can become depressed and nearly incapacitated. Not sure how I will let it go or overcome it. But I am planning a visit to a medium. I Went to one in 2011 and am planning Another visit. It did help somewhat when I Went last time.
My greatest fear is that my current relationship will end like the last one. I've always known I wanted to get married and have kids...just having a slight issue finding someone who feels the same way. Not really sure how to overcome this.
I fear of being completely and utterly alone. It's limited me by making myself unable to make new bonds... I want to just get over it. Make new friends. If possible, join clubs! Join activities that require social-ness....
It's silly, possibly, but I have a crippling fear that I won't be able to get the grades or write the statement or perform the interview(s) that I need to get into the university I want to study Medicine. I don't know, I really don't know how I'll get over this fear. I think I will just have to prepare myself and work/study as hard as I can for my A Levels. It all starts now, whether I like it or not. I know that I can't be lazy and if I am, I'll be reading this message next year and probably ripping my hair out for it. It's going to be a tough year, but I know that I'll just have to push through with it (unless God says the word and it's time for me to croak it, haha). Future!Self, if you're reading this, and I've failed you--I'm really sorry. Super duper sorry. All I can say is to work your hardest, take resits if you need to and speak to anyone and everyone you can to turn everything around. Just keep on going. You can do this. If you're smiling right now, and you're happy with your grades, I'm glad. Don't take this as an excuse to be lazy. You still have A2 to complete, as well as everything else--whatever extra curricular activities you're doing now, for instance. Make the most of all the resources you have, and try to get along with your teachers. Try not to procrastinate and take it easy--impress them. I know it's hard and they'll annoy you, but they only want the best for you. Chances are, they don't think you're stupid either. Just remember these people will be writing your references. I hope I've done you proud. I also hope you're still vegan. I'm writing this on Day 3 of Veganism, so let's see how far I can get. Good luck!
I fear that no one will love me. I've let it stop me from doing what I want to do, from even knowing my own thoughts at times. I plan to slow down, tune in to my inner voice.
Hmmm...a fear that limits me? Can't think of one that really limits me but I do have fears. Fear of Andrew getting worse. I don't know if he can deal with the emotional effects of his illness, since symptoms and issues do weigh him down. He doesn't have the optimistic spirit that I have so he doesn't have the buoyancy to help him get through the tough times.
Fear of everything! Getting married, job performance, my children's health and well-being, finances - you name it, I have feared it, dreaded it or have had anxiety because of it. Those emotions limit my ability to feel joy and be carefree. They keep me from staying in the moment. I will continue to remind myself every day, that I must stay in the moment, because I cannot change the past, I have no control over the future. I can only control myself, and my responses, in this moment.
I have this intense fear of success. I always feel that the day I succeed is the day that everyone else fails. That my friends and family will have things go wrong because I succeeded. This year I graduate college and hope to finish my quest towards judaism. Im scared stiff of not getting a job, not finishing, and not doing everything that I expect to have completed by next year I might be more scared of doing it. I have a huge support network and people in my life who believe I truly should succeed so I plan to move forward and hope that I can spread around the good.
I live in a near constant fear that I won't get my work done on time, that I will have to isolate myself and give up the things I love to stop being 'behind.' Recently I see that make choices, for example in my financial dealings, that make that fear seem more convincing, when I could make other choices that would weaken the fear. For example I've owed someone money and spent a lot of time dreading talking about it. But when I finally raised it with him, he said, as I could have guessed, that he could wait for the money until it was comfortable for me. But in the meantime I had that dread, that sense of distance from him, that anticipation of failure seeping into my thoughts every time I saw him.
I think just about the only fear I have is being hurt by a lover. After the break up, I was reckless and careless and incredibly adventurous because nothing mattered. I've said it a million times: nothing could hurt as much as the pain I felt in that month. So I took risks. And what an incredible thing that it was only limited to a month. There was pain throughout the year, but more a dull ache then a sharp jab. I was lied to and cheated on and I hope that that won't taint me and make me a distrustful girlfriend, lover, wife forever. I didn't like who I was when I was with him: I was angry, bitter, resentful. I want to love and trust and care for. That's who I am. I will not fear being hurt. I will be cautious, but not overly so. I will love, too much.
Fear of letting y life get away from me and n0t have a direction to go. I fear that I am just floating through life and don't have a place to go. I just want to find a career that makes me excited and I have to desire to really pursue and jump into.
Fear of new situations, new people. Fear of the discomfort around new stuff. I must just learn to embrace the discomfort and let it exist without always running from it.
My fear has been of failing, in spite of doing everything that I can. I plan to be honest with myself about both what my weaknesses and faults are, as well as recognizing that what others say about me may or may not be valid and I can't be paralyzed by it.
Fear of marrying the wrong person. I guess i am craving/terrified of real comitment. I am working through it in therapy and hope to be able to let things flow instead of always trying to drive and direct things.
I've made so many mistakes, especially over the past 13 years. I've kept most of it to myself and done tremendous harm because my hiding kept me from writing. I need to write to clear my soul, refine my thinking and clarify my next steps. That's why I've been stuck for so long. Writing is the key to my liberation. So, I need to finally let go of giving a shit what anyone thinks about my past. Whoever reads it will likely find a bit of themselves in there, and I won't be viewed as the scary monster I've sometimes characterized myself as in my mind. I'm not perfect and I've done some harm, but I can do better now. It's no mystery or mistake that my past - locations, people and situations - have risen. I may not be forgiven everything and I may not share it all, but I can make amends with some and certainly with myself. And in return, I can forgive those who betrayed me and sprouted the fearful hurt that turned so huge in my heart, making me feel less than I am. It's time for me to make peace and move forward.
My biggest fear is being seen...my place, my body, my art, my writing...it limits me all the time. The fear of judgement that might come and my own disappointment in myself, my appearance, my taste is the biggest limiting issue of my life. I want to work with some cognitive re-training to extinguish my limiting beliefs. I think it's a hard road, but I'm going to start the journey, or at least, continue it.
Fear of making a big mistake. Fear of looking stupid. I have learned not to be reactive so I slowdown and think More but sometimes.... I am seeing myself now more confidentally Hopefully this will continue into all aspects of my life
I'm still afraid of failing, and that still stops me from trying. But I think I'm slowly but surely getting better at that. And I'm still terrified of letting people down. But there are people around me who believe in me and I should trust them!
Fear that I've made the wrong choice in retraining, that I've wasted a lot of time and money, and that I'm not very good at it. I'll be able to overcome these fears by immersing myself in study and gaining much more work experience to improve my skills. To have patience and compassion for myself whilst I learn.
Fear of being irrelevant and uninteresting. Fear of getting sick and old. I will exercise my body and mind more, and try new things. I guess there will also have to be a certain amount of acceptance.
I do not know of any fears. The universe will give me what I need.
I have a fear of not being good enough for others, not being perfect or not giving my all. That makes me only focus on the task at hand and not listen to myself about what I need as an individual, and in turn it makes me shoot myself in the foot. I am going to listen to myself more, and if I need to take a day off, I'm going to do it in order to get myself in check. After all, if not for myself, who will be there for me?
I fear I will never find my calling again; will not be able to live up to being a great parent ; and fear of failing at a new career.
I fear the way my face is beginning to sag as I age. But I don't fear aging. I am about to start a series of physical face exercise. No going under the knife for me.
I fear the pain that it will take to achieve my goals. I fear that I can't do it. The plan is simple. Quitting is not an option. There is no good,bad,easy,or hard. There is effort and energy. I'll just keep going. If you are scared you must realize that you are on the verge of being excited. You might even be close to having fun. The big experiences only come from stepping outside your comfort zone.
I worry about the expansion of wars worldwide but am not letting it limit what I do.
Too often I fear not being good at things and avoid those things if I can. Now, though, I am trying to swim and ride a bike. Hopefully, I'll do both enough to get "good"! At least I'm doing them.
I'm afraid of taking myself seriously. If I half-ass something and it doesn't work out, then I don't have to really feel like a failure, because I didn't really try. If I whole-ass it, though, and fail? That would be humiliating. So I half-ass so many things, and then am disappointed by my outcomes. I don't have a plan for letting this go. That's discouraging to admit.
I have a fear of global warming and other political problems. Instead of helping, I tend to freeze. I plan to go back to my new therapist, Elizabeth Rona, for more help on this after we return from visiting my son and his family. I also plan on trying to notice when I'm freezing and turning my head left to right and back again, scanning the horizon, as she taught me.
My biggest fear is having something terrible happen to my kids while I'm not with them. My hope is that I can learn to cope with my anxiety, because I obviously can't stop my kids from doing stuff and learning how to be independent.
Marianne Williamson says there are only really two things we experience love and fear. Fear generally shows up when I don't feel I belong or I am not good enough for the situation. This seems to be a life long quest of mine. Letting go and allowing the Universe to handle my stuff is the goal for this year.
I am afraid that I don't know how to raise my daughter and step-daughter. I think asking for and seeking out support is going to be my best means of overcoming this fear.
I'm deathly afraid of being alone forever. I just need to accept that I will always have people who care about me, romantically or not, and appreciate them for that.
Definitely my fear of failure. I think that has always been an issue. I'm afraid of failing at everything I do, so I don't even try. When I actually do something, sometimes it doesn't work out. Also a fear of disappointment: disappointing myself and everyone around me. I work too hard on making sure everyone around me is content. I think a lot of this has to do with switching priorities. I will never be a carefree person. It's not in my nature. But I can work towards better coping.
Fear of making the wrong decision has in the past paralyzed me or at least cost me precious time. I'd like to get to the point where I can make decisions, especially small ones, much quicker and easier. I think I'll be happier over all. I plan to overcome this by just doing it. :-)
I am afraid of being alone. I am more willing to hold onto someone that is not what is best for me to have someone rather than to say I'm sorry, this isn't working for me and what I need. There is a fear is having to start anew, how will I meet someone, how will I trust someone new. It is also a fear of failure and failure was not an option when I was growing up. i hope that through meditation and continuing working on my self esteem and surrounding myself with great friends that I will value myself, realize that I am not really alone and I deserve someone who wants to be a part of my life as much as I want to be in his.
Fear of not completing my degree (as I did in the past). Fear of loving and having my heart broken ... I will attempt a leap of faith, jump in and just try one more time ... for both: school and love!
Fear of rejection by my family. I wish to face it this year because the fear keeps me far from feeling for my family in unconscious ways. Fear of new students. I will face it and do my best. :)
Dying with my story still inside me. Continue to get my story OUT!
After having one job for so long, I started having impostor syndrome, and feared that I wouldn't be good at any other, which is why I never tried very hard to move on. Now I've been laid off, I can take it as an opportunity to find something else to be good at--something I might enjoy more.
There are plenty of things to be afraid of as a parent, especially the parent of a beautiful daughter. I know that sounds smug but she has been being told that she is beautiful since the day she was born. I am afraid that she will use her beauty as a tool, which would mean she would believe her beauty to be of value - society certainly tells her that - or that she believes her beauty is her ONLY value, which would mean we failed her in our attempts to show her that her intelligence, her kindness, her humor are her true worth. The dark side of the fear is the fear that she will be harmed because of her beauty - harrassed by men on the street, ignored or bullied by her friends, raped, kidnapped, killed - I know this is a huge spectrum, but a mother's imagination knows no bounds. I don't know that this fear (which is the one that comes up most) is something I can get over or let go of. I don't know that it will ever go away.
I fear I won't be able to afford college expenses for both of my wonderful kids.
I fear that I will not have sufficient funds for retirement. This keeps me working and the reward of working in my profession diminishes. I will have to step up my commitment to it or reassess my financial status and learn to live happily within my means.
Fear of failure, always it has kept from being where I want to be. I haven't overcome it yet, I don't know what I will do next year to try except take tiny steps and hope when I look back they will be bigger and better than I thought.
Fear of pregnancy and labor. I dealt with it by trusting myself. Believing- knowing- that I am strong enough to handle it. Having faith that I can face whatever I must. And so I did.... and I will. (This baby has to come out one way or another!)
I fear driving alone to unknown places. That is, places which are unfamiliar to me. I'm insecure in traffic; I worry about missing an exit, or taking a wrong turn that could turn into an accident. Just trying to weave through unknown streets is stressful for me. It keeps me from going places I'd like to experience. I do have a GPS now and that is a great help. I turn the volume up loud and follow the directions. I've given mine a British accent. That gives it just that much more authority. Mainly, I guess I just need to practice more to find my comfort zone. I'm also still afraid of spiders.
I have a fear, for the first time in my life, that I will fail at school. I am beginning to realize that the fear itself if far more limiting than any actual mental capacity to do the work. I don't think there is any way of overcoming short of walking through it. I can just do the work and leave the results to God.
I've had a fear that other people can see through me into my past; and that my character defects are clear to them. Particularly at work - and in personal relationships to a lesser extent. As to overcoming it: I know it's there, which is the first step. I can continue to 'do my duty'. Perhaps as I continue to make progress, the evidence of good living will reduce that fear I experienced. I've felt a bit paranoid at work, but then again a lot of them are just assholes.
I think this year I have mostly overcome my fear of my body and its "imperfections." I just want to continue working on that.
I have been afraid to embark on parenthood because I'm afraid of losing touch with my queer community, afraid of losing some essential part of myself, and also afraid that I just wouldn't be any good at it. But I've gotten enough reinforcement from new parent friends and allies that I seem to have all the qualities to make a great parent. Many of my parent friends are queer, and I'm seeing that there's a whole community there that I can enter into. And I don't have to lose myself or become a radically different person. Day by day I'll learn and unfold and grow, and I will become someone new—I'll become a Papa. But that doesn't mean leaving myself behind.
I have a fear that i am becoming complacent in my spirituality. It has limited me in a sense that i dont care about certain things that i used to and probably still should. Even though i dont necessarily believe a lot of the things i used to, i will still try to find meaning in my religion and spirituality in other ways.
I have a fear of failure, change and I think success. They are ALL bullshit This year, for the first time ever, I am I a career where my willingness to step out of my comfortable box will lead to greater success, $, independence and confidence. ONWARD AND UPWARD. Additionally, at this moment I am scared of not becoming as well as becoming a dad in the next year.... How to get last that - my family and friends.
I'm afraid I've missed my chance. I'm going to keep taking chances.
Fear of not actualizing my potential. Of living a tedious or uninspired life. Of not using my skills and passion and enthusiasm for anything unique and useful. I don't know how to give it up.
I don't have many fears per se. It's more of a need to be more self-motivated on the things that don't interest me so I can find more time do work on the things that do.
I am very afraid of being alone. Never thought that I was, but I am. As I get older I find that I need company more and more. I'm not sure how to let it go or get over it. Prayer? I know that by being a better friend one has better friends. It has limited me by holding me back from doing things that might have been life changing, a sad thing to realize at end of life.
I think I have lots of fears. Mostly they are about not being successful, and I think that they keep me from trying my hardest. I HAVE to find a way to move past them this year because they end up being a self fulfilling prophecy. I don't want to get used to falling back on my go-to skills. I want to push myself and grow in different ways. I think that therapy is going to have to be an important part of this because I still don't have any idea how to address it by myself. I think naming it and trying to see it in advance and not just in retrospect is part of it, but there has to be more I can do too.
fear of not having more time to myself as my mum will become more dependent on me
I have the fear other people are judging me. I just want to be more confident in who I am and what I believe in.
I suffer from the biggest of all the fears, the fear of failure or rather the fear of not being good enough, something I really need to get over I know – but what if I fail in doing that?
Wow. I am often really excellent at confronting my fears, yet also often allow my fears to rule my life. I think my biggest fear is that I have made irrevocable mistakes or bad decisions thus far in my life, including having moved to Minnesota. I plan to keep breathing through my fears, acknowledging them and then asking myself how I can live most fully in the present and future without dwelling on possible mistakes of the past. I do not need to judge myself for having fears; rather, I can choose to loving set my fears aside and summon the courage to move forward.
I have a fear of not having enough money to pay my bills and being dependent on another person for basic necessities. At some level I know that I have always been taken care of and will continue to be taken care of. On bad days I lose sight of this. At these times, I need to step back, take a deep breath and reflect on my life. My needs have always been met. I am blessed to have clean water, adequate food, a roof over my head to keep me safe and people who love me. Perhaps it is my wants that I am frustrated about. Are these things I really need or are they making up for something missing in another part of my life? "I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread." Ps. 37:25
I think my lifelong fear of not being enough has refined itself, though it still remains. I am no longer afraid of not being a good enough daughter, I know I've become a better sister, I work on being a better friend. But, by G-d, I know I'm not a good enough teacher and I am petrified every day that I am hurting these kids or simply perpetuating the cycle of their ignorance or hurtful behaviors. I'm so scared I'm not enough for them. I have to continue to educate myself and work even harder to be what they need.
I have had a fear of being "found out" in the last couple of years. Embarking on a new career after 30 is pretty scary and, while all of the feedback I've had has been positive, I'm still waiting for the bubble to burst. I hope it won't and I'm starting to believe that I am genuinely doing it well.
Fear of never accomplishing something big enough to change the world. Come to peace with the idea of if you live happy and having fun it will spill into my work and therefore into helping others live a more enjoyable life.
I have been afraid of my ability to perform my job at a level that is acceptable to me. I have a lot of responsibility but increasingly I have little authority to implement projects and ideas. I am within four years of retirement and have no where to go in the organization in terms of professional development. I feel that I am being marginalized. I feel I am stuck. My wife doesn't work and we need the pension, so I feel that I cannot leave. If I accept that my career is stalled and pass on projects that are career building for others but do nothing for me but put me in conflict with my co-workers then I can probably get through the next four years relatively intact... body and soul. I might suffer some personal embarrassment and ego bashing as the young turks leave me in the dust but if I can get past that, I should be fine.
A fear is that the house we have built we suck up all of our retirement resources, preventing us from enjoying these years with the people who love us best. I need to just quit worrying about it, enjoy the day in front of me, and trust that there will be enough.
i am afraid of my mom dying but i am working with it.
Fear of the unknown haunts me. I can't picture myself getting a job, so I freeze myself from looking. I'd like to come back to, again and again, hat I CAN be scared of something, or not picture how it'll be like, and still tackle it one block at a time.
Fear of not achieving enough. Focusing so much on doing something impressive/moneymaking instead of figuring out what I am passionate about and pursuing that. I aim to find fulfillment and a sense of self from other aspects of my life, and pursue my career without the self-imposed threat of not enough hindering me.
The fear of trusting myself and allowing others to see my greatness. I have tried retyping that several ways. I delete the sentence and try to rewrite it because I am afraid of sounding arrogant or overbearing. I am a pretty gentle and compassionate guy but I am not allowing myself to live to the fullest because I either swallow back my own strengths or I choose the other extreme of yelling out through my power and crushing the "other." My fears of my own power have created a strange dynamic. I plan to continue to develop mindful awareness of my own great qualities and learn how to share those with the world around.
Bugs.
I am pretty shy and reserved. I think its because I think I'm not good enough to be anywhere I am and that I'm a fraud. I'd like to get over this because I am suppose to be where I am and I am good enough. Someone recently said, that I seemed like the most interesting person in there class and that they were sad to see I dropped it and to not see me again. It really made me feel good about myself and first impressions. I need to hold onto this comment when I feel this particular fear creeping in and just go for it!
my fear is to get too fearful worrying about things that there's little point in wasting anxiety on. What does it help anybody? I hope to get on with things with a minimum of stress. Why not? Lots of reasons, but why dwell? The daily swim is a godsend for many reasons: it allows a kind of meditation that lets things go, that sorts things out, that lets solutions come . The first step toward a swim is one step then another til , despite myself and my worst impulses to not go, gets me to the pool and then in...Once in, the motion and the repetition take over and good things happen my way...I hope to continue this habit.
I am afraid of failing to find a special woman friend. The fear is possibly coming out of my eyes and preventing me from being my true self and attracting the perfect partner. I poan to overcome it and let it go in the approaching year by working more on being my own best friend and parenting the inner parts that need my attention.
Fear of flying. Always the same. Always pisses me off. Buddhism is a possible aid to overcoming it.
Fear of coming out to strangers has always been a problem of mine, but I have become more aware of it this past year. I feel shameful that I am not always showing my true self, but yet also feel shameful of what that is. I am going to try to let myself be more accepting of who I am and to not let other people's reactions of who I am make me feel any less proud of who that is.
I have a fear that we will never be able to afford a house. I fear that if we do get a house, something will go wrong and we'll be left with nothing. We refuse to purchase a home until we are completely debt free and we have 6 months (expense) savings in the bank so if an emergency comes up we are covered.... it's smart but it feels like a long way away.
I feel afraid that will not be able to save money the way we would like to. I hope to overcome this shortcoming this year.
weather. people not loving me/ respecting me not being enough. i have to simply let it go. enough. i have so mych. must let people in.
Fear of not being able to be connected and isolated. I fear that I will not be able to conceive or go broke doing so. I'm Afraid I will fail and be exposed as a fraud. But these are fears
I have a fear of making new friends. I had a great deal of friends from various circles and I made the mistake of hiring the closest as employees. I realized they had certain limiting views of me and my goals and values didn't gel with them. I feel like that may be an issue with new circles of friends. I wont share their values and we'll shut each other out. I plan on letting that go and just doing. Just attempting new friendships. opening myself up and getting outside more.
My biggest fear is my bipolar crippling my life. It is something that is with me all the time. I have to be careful not to let it make me unable to live, but not to ignore the danger. I am looking at starting Yoga, and with that and prayer/meditation that I will be better able to hold the balance that will keep me healthy.
I fear relying on others. I plan on overcoming this by surrounding myself with people I trust to not only catch me when I fell, but to help push me forward.
This fear will always be there, fear of a relapse. everytime I get any flu it comes back to me, the horror of it. Thankfully I've become better at controlling it and hopefully in time I'll be able to forget all about it
I am sure I must have fears. They must be buried because I cannot name any that are obvious to me. I guess I fear not doing enough--not taking that risk, not taking that trip. I think it goes back to that fear of regrets that I have listed in previous years. When I die will I wish I would have done something differently? And if so what is that, so I can start doing it. Well, I know I won't care about money or possessions. I think I will feel good about the work I have done at the prison and in my volunteer activities. Maybe little things like not having sung in a mic (I cannot sing); not having explored my creativity more. Or will it be all about people? Have I spent enough time with people I care about? Have I been kind to them? Have I let them know I love them?
I fear that I do not love enough. I didn't know that until I prayed one of the repentance prayers yesterday, and tears came to my eyes when I repented of not loving enough. I don't know how to overcome it. Perhaps this year I'll find out.
I am afraid of losing my job. I will try to keep my head down, be quiet, do the job I am supposed to do, and see if I can get past the mistakes I have made. If not, I will just have to do my best to find another way of making money.
Fear of not being good enough - but knowing that I also have lots of potential and am just not making the most of it. I deeply want to make a difference to the world, to leave a good mark on it for the time when I'm no longer around - but it's not clear how to there's just so many different options, and I fear I will waste this life and not make enough change. I feel like I could do with more positive people in my life, my parents don't encourage me, it feels my girlfriend has her own agenda and though she tries she often puts me down. I want to find somebody, online or offline, who just encourages me to be the best I am, no matter what direction it takes - and in return support them back. Just boost each other.
I fear that all these bad moods are just wasting my life. I am very lucky and I know that. I just don't act like it. I'd like to be responsible for my own happiness. I used to be like that so I know it's very possible.
I am afraid of failure. Tremendously. I cry when I feel that I'm disappointing people, or unprepared, or worried that I wont be as good as I think I could. This year, I am ready to embrace I have faults, run to criticism, and not let my past dictate EVERY small mistake at work. Some comments from my therapist helped, by reminding me that not everyone is as terrible as my old boss.
Fear of growing older, getting sicker, arthritis, etc. Let it go by being active. Try new things. MOVE. exercise more , walk with dogs. Stop negative thoughts, just enjoy your relative health and happiness.
My biggest fear is feat of failure and disappointing my family. It's held me back from a lot of decisions and experiences in my life. However, I have been taking steps in the past couple years to stand up for myself, my needs, my wants, and 2014 is not going to be any different.
Quitting my day job & putting all my eggs in my basket. I hope to overcome this fear by putting my trust in my husband to help set me up for success...or limit my damages if my business does not succeed.
I am afraid that no one will like me. I keep myself apart from others and feel disconnected. I plan to take small baby steps in extending myself to others.
I fear being alone and unloved forever more. This in turn makes with withdrawn from the people around me. I don't know how to overcome it, in time i suppose i will, i have been lonely before and life has moved me beyond it.
I am very anxious about everything. It limits where I take my kids and what I let them do. I should take anxiety meds. I used to think we should move to the country away from people but have since learned that crime is worse there than in cities. So I'm stuck with the fears that build walls in my mind and life. If we were rich then I would hire a security force.
I have at times struggled with fear of failure. I'm in a good place with it right now but I am on guard as I get settled into my new job that I bring an open mind and a sense of capability to my endeavors.
I don't have many fears, but right now, the fear of failure is creeping in. This is the last year that I get to graduate and do something useful in my life. I realize now that I've made some terrible choices that I need to fix. Another fear is the fear of relationships. I have a beautiful relationship right now, and I hope to stay committed to it, to Lucas. He deserves it, although this relationships frightens me sometimes. He makes such a big impact on me, that I would be lost if he'd ever let me go...
Fear of rocked / undermined stability - it's why I stay at the same job, in the same city, in the same communities, single. Hope to overcome it by being exploring being in a relationship and by reminding myself that while I needed to focus on stability in my 20's, my 30's should therefore be a time to branch out.
I have a fear of trusting myself and others. A fear of intimacy. A fear of pain. I plan on being more open and expressive with people close to me and are interested in me.
fear of being alone fear of being outcast fear of being ridiculed, humiliated, shamed and broken fear of being nothing, losing identity fear of wanting too much I would like to accept and listen to these fears, and also know that while they are part of my experience they bare not all of me.
I'm afraid of putting myself out there and failing. I'm afraid I won't be good enough and the thing I love the most. I have to acknowledge that fear and still put myself out there anyway. Being scared of something just means you're invested in the outcome.
Fear of asserting my desires. I start to let it go by being myself, being an I so others become Thous rather than judges. I just have to do it, and be where I have support.
I have real fear of success, I have found I am fortunate that when I apply myself I am fairly capable of achieving whatever my goal is ... sure that sounds lucky but before I push ahead I analyze too many possible outcomes and end up in mental paralysis ... I don't move. I need to learn to go ahead with pushing ahead and realize that my worst fears are just that ... fears, and not necessarily the reality of what I will end up with. Fear of success can be just as debilitating as fear of failure ... and worse in a way because it exists only in your own mind. I know I will fail and that is OK and all that happens is I slide back to whatever I had ... fear of success keeps you from even trying.
I have a huge fear of maximizing my potential and letting myself really dive into my future. Over the past couple of months I have really worked on taking myself seriously as a potential consultant. I hope that in the coming year I can take that all the way by really working my ass off. So that I have no excuses.
Definitely the depression coming back and also being too hard on myself. Thinking I've "failed" everytime something goes wrong. The depression hasn't come back in well over a year and my coping strategies have worked well. Also I have so much support and feel like I can reach out to anything when I do feel like an episode coming on. Definitely just keep trucking on, my strategies seem to be working and I always reach out to friends and family whereas in the past I would never do such a thing.
Fear that I don't represent myself well. I plan on being more communicative and direct with everyone in my life and not caring what people think.
I have a fear of not being accepted and liked by my peers that has made it hard for me to form many new, deep friendships. I have had a few heart-to-hearts with classmates lately and find these so fulfilling and important, and I hope to explicitly try to spend time in small settings with people and build that sort of intimacy. I feel like I have so much to learn, personally and academically from my peers, and I would like to develop more of that potential.
I'm afraid that I'll stay sick, that this illness is going to limit me beyond recognition. I'm afraid that it won't matter how much I learn from it because it's going to kill me before I get a chance to act on what I've learned. I don't know how to let that fear go, other than by recovering and getting well again. And I don't know yet if getting well is a possibility.
I have a general fear of social situations/talking to new people. This has limited me in that I feel like I have not made as many friends as I could have. In the coming year, I want to be as friendly to people as I can be, and try to really get to know them and say hi to them when I see them. It's always less awkward to talk to people! Also I hope to stretch myself in terms of the types of people I hang out with/stuff I do with them. I want to be more adventurous!
I'm afraid of never achieving financial stability. Of course, this is a self-fulfilling prophecy, because the fear discourages me from taking a good hard look at my income, expenses, lifestyle, desires, ambitions. This is the year that I will have to become more conscious, because my dad is done paying the college money he took back into my account. Now my financial future is my own. Sometime this week--maybe Wednesday evening?--I want to set up a budget on Mint and do a quick and dirty calculation regarding how much I would have to take in to maintain a comfortable lifestyle--to take a trip, to eat a meal out without a sense of guilty foreboding. I want to develop consciousness and confidence in this arena so that it doesn't feel like a shadow at my heels. I know that I come from an unstable financial background, but history is not destiny, and too often I've used my parents' flaws and failures as an excuse for my ignorance and neurosis rather than as a reason to seek out other mentors. This year I want to think more about money. I want to talk to my close friends about how they manage it, and talk to older mentors like Shira and Vince about how they made the transition from students to workers to parents. I have not fucked up forever. I am still young. I am debt free right now--contemplating taking on some debt for school, but still debt free--and this puts me in a strong position to begin thinking about self-reliance and freedom.
My fear of moving abroad and making a massive mistake. I have a good job, a decent place to live and a decent car. I have no incentive to follow my heart and move to Thailand other than to follow my heart (or dreams). I have confidence that us - her and I - will work, but do I want to make the gamble of a lifetime on it?
Fear of letting people down. Fear of being judged and found wanting. I plan to judge people less and judge myself less. And to recognize when I'm feeling that fear, notice it, and move on.
I'm basically a scaredy cat. Not confident, not happy with myself, afraid of failing. Maybe everybody is but some people hide it well. I just want to keep trying things that scare me and to be proud of myself.
I have a fear of not having enough money when I'm older. This has limited me because I have been less willing to take artistic risks: to commit to my work and trust that I won't have to live on ramen noodles in my old age. Having one foot in art and one in work has torn me apart. In the coming year, I hope to trust myself to put Art First.
Not sure how to answer this. Perhaps there exists a fear of saying/doing something that will further divide my family during an already difficult period in our relationships. But I am getting good guidance from my chosen counselor and am making every attempt to move forward, with balance and consciousness.
I think one of my biggest fears is being seen by people - really seen for who I am. I am going to let that go by just being very honest, and open my heart to the love I know it's there for me.
I have a fear that the friendships I have today are going to fade away. It's limited me by making me hold back how far I am willing to let myself grow attached to these friends, and I can feel myself starting to put up a shield. I plan to overcome this by sharing this feeling with some of these friends.
I have a fear for not being good enough. For being too different and not being understood because of it. I possess many fears regarding social situations, both intimate and casual. But most of all, I have a fear for facing difficult situations that I want to get rid of. I plan on doing so through inner value and decisiveness.
I fear not living up to expectations and I plan to try and compartmentalize and not think about things to much this year so I can see the big picture more often.
I think the quote by Sylvia Plath likening a life to a fig tree is very relevant to me. I've been concerned that I'm approaching the last year when I'll be able to choose any path in life I want. I've been afraid to charge down any particular direction because it might close other avenues to me. I plan on remembering that while it is impossible to realize every potential outcome in one lifetime, that this limitation is also truly inevitable, and thus not worth my worries. However, I want to embrace my anxiety and use it to chase down as many fulfilling adventures as humanly possible.
I have a fear of being too busy, so I don't have time to date! I really want to be married, and need to make it a priority. It's hard though, when I have so many other priorities, including my baby!
I have the fear that I am inadequate. Everyone here is really smart, and every now and then I get the feeling that I'm not going to stand out, or that I am going to fail. Not having a lot of exams is really different than in high school. Back then, I always knew where I stood and if I was going about my work the right way. It's been two weeks already and I have no idea if I should be taking more notes, less notes, or even no notes and using the extra time to study different ways. The only was to overcome this is to plow through and learn as I go.
I feel constantly afraid, but I have a hard time pinpointing my fear. I guess that's my goal in the coming year—figure out exactly what it is that I'm afraid of so I can overcome it.
I fear that I can't live up to my own expectations sometimes. I have this image of my perfect life, and I know that there are always going to be bumps in the road, but I am scared about letting myself down. I hope that I can be comfortable with the decisions I make when it comes to my family, personal life, and school.
Not having enough money! We all existed once upon a time in history when money was not around. Do not let it control your life and understand that its very existence is here to control us..
Recently, I've established a fear of getting stuck alone in my current location. I see no chances of going home anytime soon and it scares and depresses me. I can only hope there is a way out of this thing come next year.
My overwhelming fear of writer's block, tied up with a choking perfectionism - which is a problem for a graduate student who will soon be writing a dissertation! I will do only what I can do: break up my work into smaller and smaller bites. Paragraph-long writing goals: NOM. Twenty minute concentration goals: NOM. That's all you can do, but it can be enough.
Fear of being overwhelmed by poverty. I'll try to save as much as I can and work with my counselor on a solution
My fear is getting close to someone again and getting hurt
I have a fear of being alone as I get older (I turned 60 this summer) as I have no significant other or children.
I fear having no passion or purpose in life. I fear not making the right decision. I fear not making the most efficient or best use of my time. It has severely limited my enjoyment of life and college. I want to let it go and let myself live in the moment. I want to remind myself that there is no "should" and that I need to just let myself be.
I am afraid of not having enough money to pay bills and to keep up with spending. I have lots of travel goals, and quit my job in May, and it's hard to keep up with one income. I may have to go back to work to meet the goals.
I am afraid of letting people down, of not living up to the expectations of others. And it has led me to take on too much, and then of course I let people down. I say this every year but I really need to learn to say no, no to things that I might really want to say yes to, but once I've said yes I'm too busy.
I am afraid of failure. This makes me afraid to try anything new for fear that I won't succeed. I plan to try at least two new things that could potentially end in failure, but could also potentially succeed, to prove to myself that sometimes it's really about the effort, not the outcome.
I am afraid of myself. Afraid of being too much or too little. I need to accept myself for whatever I am and do all of the wonderful things that I want or feel compelled to do without worry that it is scary or wrong. I will do this by trusting myself and going for it!
I have a fear of being judged. It has affected my social ability particularly with my peer group. I find myself scowling because I want to appear "cool" when I should be making myself seem open and friendly. I need to look past social stigmas when I talk to others because in reality I'm a fucking great person too.
I'm deathly afraid of the future. As I enter my senior year of high school, I'm scared because I don't know where I'll be this time in 2014 and I'm scared I'm not good enough to get where I want. I plan to tasks risks and challenge myself so I can realize that I'll make it wherever I end up.
im afraid my bf is still in love with and or pining over is ex, saving her pix texting her secretly from me. settling for me cuz he thinks he cant have her idk, gotta talk to the bishop and pray more. my head says dump him but my heart says love and pray
Fear that my love of travel will prevent me from building a career and engaging in a long term relationship. But damn do I love to travel.
I believe that I am afraid of being irrelevant. The second question is one with which I grapple almost daily. My most frequent answer is to try to make a positive difference in someone's life each day.
Dying before next year. I have no idea.
I have lots of fears centered around loss - fears of losing my wife or kids, losing my parents. I don't know that I can do anything about that except learning to accept it but move forward so it doesn't paralyze me. What is nice is that I am letting go of my fear that I'm nothing if I don't have my job. There is a lot right now focused on my leaving my job. Maybe I'm afraid of not finding my way out in a way I'm proud of...
I expect that everyone hates me and even the people that like me will eventually hate me and run away. A part of me knows that it's not necessarily true with everyone and that has gotten stronger in my psyche. The little person in my head who remembers how things have been, always reminds me to not get my hopes up because everyone always runs away. The only thing I can do is try to be more open to people and try to remember that the past is the past.
My fear is leaving my daughter and my grandson. My daughter can take care of her own self, but I have 'single parent syndrome' and now I cannot imagine living without her. And my grandson? How can we live apart? I don't know how to be completely comfortable in being without either one. Help!
Fear of losing confidence when it comes to men. Fear of the same with girls in my sorority. The fear of losing my grandparents soon and drifting away in my personal relationships. The fear of not achieving the goals I have set in life. I will live life more fully and try to release my inhibitions. I will prepare for the worst and pray and hope for the best.
Fear of not reaching my potential... Of settling in life... Of not making the most of my opportunities... I am not sure how to let it go other than to trust and believe in myself. Knowing that I am only capable of doing what I can... Knowing that life is actually unfolding exactly as it is suppose to and that my heart and intentions are pure... Trusting in the universe... Accepting my failures and limitations as a natural part of life... This doesn't mean I should become discouraged or give up but just accept that these things happen... That is when you learn the most... By and through our failures...
Lately it has been a fear of things falling apart, specifically my house, but I know it has to do with a larger sense that, personally, I'm at an age where my body will fall apart if I don't take care of it and, globally, the status quo is going to fall apart and we are going to have to build something new. Intellectually, I know that these things are good, to be welcomed, even. But the more personal it gets (my house, my body) the more scared I get. This shows me that I have work to do on accepting impermanence. Like, why do I do nothing about it despite my fear?
I have a real fear of going new places, especially if I have to drive there. My plan has been to try to mitigate the second half of that issue, so that I can make push myself past the first part, if that makes any sense. I.e., I'll go new places and try new things, but only if I don't have to overcome my fear of not being able to find parking or getting stuck in an enclosed parking garage that is too small, etc. It's a silly fear, but it's mine!
The fear of rejection, of opening myself up to hurt and derision again, of being taken for granted. I've let it change me, even though I sang so fervently "Don't ever let 'em end the things you do." White Lion, you failed me. Self esteem is a tricky thing...you despise those who misunderstand you and treat you poorly, but then you begin to believe what they think and say.
I have been afraid of taking on more responsibility. It has kept.me from advancing at work as quickly as I'd liked. I plan on taking charge of.my career path.
I have a lot of fears, but the fear which is most limiting me is the fear of judgement of others. This results is fear of speech and saying what I want and like. I'm planning to overcome this fear by first, learning to properly express my feelings and needs to Jasper, then to my friends and then to others. Also my internship and the committee of my choir can help me with that.
I have financially over-extended in the past. I'm going to try to be more conservative as we move toward retirement.
To counteract my over-religiousness in question 7 (!), I'll quote Dumbledore: "Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself." Fear of identifying or acknowledging the issues I have is probably the most debilitating one - and perpetuates them! So I want to face up to things. It's a gradual process and one I'm working on slowly but steadily.
The fear of not being good enough has stopped me, made me frozen and doubt my choices. I am in my 40's it is time to let it go and move forward anyway!
Fear of change. Fear of the unknown. Fear of being bad at something. This is what's keeping me in my current job, when I know I could be happier elsewhere. In 2014 I desperately need to either overcome these things and find a new job to sink my teeth into, or learn to find the things in my current job that I used to love, and love it again.
I fear that I made the wrong decision about whether or not I want to have a child. I'm not sure that it has limited me, but it's been a nagging feeling that I have had lately. I think that I can only overcome it with time.
Fear of failure, and of failing other people (more than I have done already)... fear of the point when the achievements I've had so far in life are "found out" as fraudulent, lucky, flukes... Dealing with it in the coming year will involve brutal honesty about my own capacities, about the illusory nature of what I've achieved in the past, and acceptance that I'm quite good, but not excellent, at anything.
I have been afraid of being judged - my body, my goals, my intellect. Self-doubt is limiting, while confidence gives me the power to propel myself to new and dizzying heights.
Still it is fear itself that must be overcome. It leads to hate... And then...! I intend to overcome this by being more bold!
I've been fearing facing my past. In a way I've been terrified of it and what I might find there. Right now all I have are faint memories and I know I could have a more clear picture of it if I wasn't so scared. But to be honest I'm not even sure what I'm so afraid of: that I was really troubled or that I am imagining that I was troubled and realizing that I've been nothing but a drama queen. But, I feel I am now ready to face those fears and I intend to get my old diaries from my parents' house and even read them. Maybe they'll give me some answers.
I (still) fear not fulfilling my potential and running out of time. I want to take care of my creative needs and build a plan for next steps in my career.
I have a fear of being tied to my husband who is overweight and not interested in athletic pursuits (or sex for over 24 years). I hate the fact that I'm embarrassed to be seen in public with him. I don't want to divorce him, but wonder how I can let go of my own judgmentalism and just appreciate him for who he is. At least I have learned to hide my thoughts when I am unhappy about it...but I want to be not just accepting, but embracing! I know I must be afraid of something deeper, but what? I suppose it is the fear of what others think about me--being married to him. i want to overcome that desperately...but what does it mean to live in community with others, then? I suppose if they are judgmental, then they have a problem, too, and I should not worry about what they think. The kind and joyful people will be fine with it.
I don't really perceive myself as being afraid of much. I'm no longer afraid of losing a job, Joan, my retirement. I have a loving wife and family that sees at least some of the good in me. I guess I am afraid for future generations given some of the frankly crazy and "me first" decisions that are being made.
Fear that I won't be happy in the near future--I'm not sure why I have it though. I'm not sure how to overcome it--I'm fine in the present but fear for the next 5-10 years for some reason. I'd like to get over it by noting what does make me happy, what I think would make me even happier, and following that.
I am actually a sort of uncommitted perfectionist! Suspect bringing up my fears with others is probably helpful... and I am far less patient than I thought...
I think it some ways I fear I will never be satisfied. I always want more and want better. When will I know that I am happy?
The fear I have had for my entire adult life is around having a successful relationship, which has of course limited my ability to begin a relationship. I guess I need to figure out why I have "relationship block"! If I can get that far I would hope that I can begin to move forward. One step at a time.
fear of being complacent in my job. someone reached out to me about a new job opportunity and i had a lot of support to go for it. i need to keep it up so i can get to where i want to be
I have a fear of not being valued for who I am. I plan on overcoming it by learning to value myself and set realistic goals that I can reach. Baby steps.
I fear losing control. Not that I'm in control right now, but what I perceive to be control, I fear losing that perception. Or maybe I need to lose the veil so I can see things clearly...
Fear of failure in my career. I plan on overcoming it by proving to myself that the numbers that I set for myself to achieve are possible, and that it really is no more difficult than any other career out there. Maybe just a little more frustrating, but that's life, right?
I have a fear of failure both professionally and personally. I also have a fear of death and death of a loved one. At this point I'm not sure of how to let go of either. My father passed away which further affirms this fear. As for failing professionally and personally I would say that I just need to follow my dreams and have a good sense about what I do.
I fear illness and disability. That now that I am alone it will stop me doing things I want to achieve
Fear of losing my way in my career. I was well respected, successful, admired and known to be smart and hard working, and now I've left that, with no other job, to be in a place where no one knows me or my work history. I know this too shall pass and I don't believe this move will truly hurt my career - and it's not as if you have to keep being a star or moving "up", but I hope that it's not hard for me to get back to where I'd like to be (an ED at a kick ass organization) once we leave Shelton and settle in a city. I also just have a fear that I'll never again have as rich a life (re friends and lifestyle) as I had in Somerville....because I fear we won't return there.
I am positively terrified of not being able to find a job once I finish my Ph.D. I am afraid that there is no longer a market for the work I'm doing, and that I have made a huge mistake with my life. These fears have caused me significant anxiety, which has prevented me from seeing and seizing opportunities. My goal is to focus less on the desired end result and more of the skills and experiences I have gained, to be flexible, prepared for, and open to anything.
I have a major fear of failure... It holds me back in most aspects of my life. I'm trying to take control of it. It's hard, and I still have these terrible panic attacks... but I know that I need to try new things.
Same fears as last year. I've improved some on driving at night and in unfamiliar places. I have not yet contacted any synagogue and arranged a way to participate for the first time in my life in Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur services. The combination of fear because I won't know what's going on and will feel like an outsider, shyness, and the extra effort required because I'll have to travel to get to these services so far are a barrier I have not made myself cross. Next year? I hope so. And one more fear--because my son and his wife don't make any effort to stay in touch when we are not visiting one another, and never send messages from our two young grandchildren or call to let us speak with them, I feel completely cut off from them between visits. Even though our visits are wonderful and loving--and everyone is fully present with us during visits, I fear my grandchildren will grow up accustomed to ignoring the existence of their grandparents and as we age and can travel less and finally are sick and dying, they will not understand how much it would mean for us to get calls and visits from them when they are teenagers and adults. I have tried to come to peace about this and simply model the kinds of loving communication I'd like them to offer me, but I often hold back because they rarely answer the phone when I call, and don't call back unless I leave multiple messages. This is really the issue I want to work hardest at over the coming year.
I am afraid of failing, so I don't try very much. I especially hold myself back in social situations even though I desperately want to connect with people. I am going to work on developing some tools to make me more comfortable and confident in new social situations. It sounds hokey, but having some tricks to lean on might make it easier for me to talk to strangers without needing a context.
My fear is letting go and allowing myself to embrace myself fully, from fears of physical intimacy to following my heart's desire in the arts. I need to trust in my own adequacy as a person and my own worth as an individual, that I deserve to feel good and to explore my passions. If the fear is a creative life won't help others then I just need be that much more creative to prove myself wrong and make that difference.
that I am getting old (that of course is true, but in relation to people hiring me), that I am am an imposter. That I am no good at what I do. Very self limiting. Do need to let that go! I want to feel I have a purpose but can't find it!
I have a fear of failure and a fear of being rejected. These fears limit me by inhibiting my ability to make strong personal choices based on me and not what others want. I plan to begin growing away from these fears and allowing myself to do what I want/need and worry about the possibility of failure only in the event it comes to pass.
Fear of losing everything I have today. I am overcoming it by staying in the now. Being in the program and staying away from drink and drug. Continuing to overcome my disease is all I can do. I will never be disease free but I get healthier everyday.
I am afraid to be honest and open with my husband sometimes. I am afraid he will react negatively, and not listen to what I am trying to tell him. I end up letting things build instead, until everyone is miserable. I am going to have to get over this--I know my husband will not stop loving me for being open and honest. I need to find a way to talk to him so I do not feel like I am complaining about the same things, and without feeling like I am constantly criticizing. I also need to find a way to build trust, so I feel more comfortable, and he knows I am not trying to put him down. I want us to be problem solvers to improve our own lives and our family life--I just need to start by telling my husband that.
I have a fear of driving. I have a licence but no car. I can't get to as many of the things I like doing because I always have to rely on others. I can't spontaneously pick up and go away for a weekend. I also feel it limits me in finding a life partner.
I fear being judged harshly and negatively for my efforts. I have a strong desire to have my worth as a human being affirmed by other people, and while sure that's a nice thing to have, I need to stop relying on it. One: it never really works because I don't believe it; two: I need to believe it for myself. It's the reason I pull back on my creative efforts, and I'm coming to realize that is UNACCEPTABLE. I need to be free to express myself, in writing and drawing as well as personality.
Fear of losing it all. I spend so much emotional energy and time shoring up against that imagined loss I do not live and enjoy the here and now as much as I can or should. I am living my dream, I want to savor it, not fear its destruction.
A fear that I have is that my personality will get in the way of me becoming someone important. I want status and prestige. I want people to need me, and out me in newspapers and in the lime light. I plan to let it go because its not important for me to change my personality. its important for me to grow spiritually.
Fear of failure usually keeps me from making risky decisions. I don't feel like I have that much to offer, therefore, I feel like whatever I have is more than I deserve, and I should hold on to it. My father is usually the one who give me courage, as he believes in me, and in things that I don't think will work out. Recently, Bobby has given me courage in the same way. Both these men have helped me overcome part of this fear by convincing me that everything is going to be ok if I leave my current employer and move back to the US. I'm still not 100% convinced that things will be ok, and that I'll be able to get back on my feet, but I'm glad I have made this change, and that I'm working toward something different. My biggest fear now is losing their support some how. I need to find a way of not depending on others for encouragement and advice, and being able to motivate myself, even when things aren't going as I had hoped.
I am concerned that all of my work may not pan out. That I'll fall short and not be able to get the degree that I need to do the work that I want to do or that even with the degree I'll still be unable to work doing what I want. I can't know if it will work out so I just have to keep working toward the goal. I'll figure something out.
I am haunted by a single fear, although it has various manifestations. I fear that I'm a fraud, neither a competent visual artist nor a good writer. Sometimes, I even fear that I'm not very intelligent, lagging behind my cohorts. In short, I'm plagued by self-doubt; at times, it is acute. On the whole, however, this self-doubt has been less marked in recent years, and I hope it continues to fade in 5774.
Fear of losing my house. I work freelance and since 2008, the jobs have been down. I am living paycheck to paycheck and some months I worry that I won't make the mortgage payment. I'm not quite sure of how to let that one go.
Fear of losing things that I'm attached to and that I think I need to "survive." I plan to notice the urge as it comes and goes and move towards just letting it be as it is in each moment.
I'm flipping this answer because in the last two weeks my feelings had flipped. I started to talk about my fear of my relationship not being sustained with Alex - and in the last two weeks two significant things happened. First, although I had said it before and tried - he finally heard that I felt disconnected when we didn't text much on the days that we don't see each other (which have been 5 days in a row because of his work schedule). He has changed back to texting me more frequently, with little updates, love notes, et cetera - and it's made me feel more connected. Second, he brought up the question of when we move in together, which we had talked about a long while back. And it allowed us to talk about potentially meeting his parents, and him coming out to his friends, two situations which cause frustration for me and make me uncertain about the relationship being able to continue long-term. If he's able to help change those, that takes away a large concern of mine.
I'm afraid of judgment and letting people down. And I really need to let that go. Every single thing I do, I do with caution because I don't want to be judged in a wrong way. I want to please everyone, and in doing so, I'll make myself happy. This goes for appearance, school, and social life. I'm terrified that I'm going to end up alone. I'm terrified that when people look at me, they see an ugly person, inside and out. I'm afraid that they'll judge me based on appearance and won't give me a chance to prove to them who I am. I never want to let anyone down. That is so scary. I really want to make sure everyone is satisfied. I have no idea how I'm supposed to let go of these fears. And that scares me too. Maybe I'll figure it out in a year.
Not being able to make a living if I need to. Losing contact iwth my in laws family. Losing contact with my children. Mainitaining contact with a husband who is not responsive or appreciative and makes my older life miserable while tying me to a nursing home.
I have been afraid of letting go of my "safety net" relationships. Relationships that I know exist only because they are interested in me. I have done a good job of eliminating a few, but many of them have lasted for a long time. I need to clarify the nature of these relationships and decide accordingly if they are to continue. I need to be ok with letting go and surrounding myself with people who are as supportive as I am.
i constantly fear that I am being lied to, cheated on, or otherwise made a joke of in my life. I realize now that this is complete paranoia, and that my life is actually pretty awesome. I plan on doing more to challenge these falsehoods and proving myself to be a trustworthy, loyal, and genuine person.
I fear hurting the people I love the most.
Being successful. The mentors & support driving this is pushing me farther than I ever thought I'd be so it's not a limiting factor. Crush it now and don't be afraid to fail.
My fear is that my husband will accuse me of abandoning him when I do things to take care of myself. I need to find ways to talk about the importance of seeing my friends, and spending real, quality time with them. It's time to make time for this before the opportunities pass me by. I need to plan more fun things in my schedule, both with and without my husband. And I need to pursue my own business interests so that i also carve out an identity for myself in that space.
My friends and I are all leaving where we are for new places (again) and I'm afraid to start in a new place with people who don't know about my craziness, my depression and anxiety, or just about me. It is scary to find a new community to be accepted into.
I fear I will be alone for the rest of my life. I have never been good at intimate relationships, I generally run away as soon as someone says they like me as I wonder what is wrong with them that they could possibly be attracted to me. To overcome this I have to love me before I can let anyone else in to love me.
My greatest fear is that I will fail. That I am not good enough that I am not smart enough. That others are better than me. That means I often hold onto my ideas longer than I should, I double-check everything 1000 times and I am ready to drop and roll over on my back when I hear something that sounds like criticism. I will let this go: 1) Recognizing that there is no scale of better and worse when it comes to me and others. We are unique, we are individuals and we all have something to offer. I will be mindful of when I am trying to judge/compare myself and others and I will stop. In this vein I will also stop listening for voices to build me up. It is lovely that I have support, but I will quit trying to use it as a gauge and instead say thank you and know I would be the same w/ or without those compliments. 2) I will trust my own strength and unique abilities. I will do my best with everything I have and know that by giving it my best, I have done all I can do. 3) I will be bold. I will try to fail, not by doing a bad job, but by pushing my boundaries. 4) I will take criticism and realize that a) it might not be about me and may be about them and b) I don't need to be defensive... I can hear it, see if I agree and learn from it, instead of trying to make it go away. 5) I will actively seek feedbacck.
I think fear of failure has not allowed me to finish what I set out to accomplish. It subconsciously allows me to procrastinate. Not sure how I can work on that...
Fear of not being good enough. I need to put myself out there more.
Fear of money and not having enough. I don't need a lot, but I want to live to learn within my means without feeling the ever present need to panic about how I'm going to eat next week. I'm tough. I'll figure it out.
I am doing my best to not allow fear to guide my actions - if I have any fear, it is only that I will become unmotivated and slip back into the disorganized noise that is keeping me from moving forward. I intend on fighting that tendency with action and organization.
I am always afraid of Harris and I screwing things up. I am learning to trust the growing permanence of our relationship and trust that the love and commitment we have is not as shakeable as I once feared it might be.
Fear of heart attack; fear of dying. This shall be overcome with more physical activity, more awareness of diet, and more precise use of precious time.
The fear of being poor. The fear of being alone. No, I don't plan on letting that go, or overcoming it in the coming year. One must plan for it, because it may happen and one must be prepared.
Unsurprisingly, it is still the fear of change. I want things to change, but I never put myself out there because I'm scared of the uncertainty of it. What if I change jobs but I don't like it, or I find it isn't what I want to do? I know this is fixable by looking into something else, but somehow I can't apply this logic myself! I need to start looking for opportunities to change, as it won't just fall into my lap!
My biggest fear is underachievement. at first this used to be because my parents would yell at me for getting bad grades. Now, it's for me. I want to achieve mentally and physically for myself because in the end, that's what really matters.
I'm afraid of never 'finding my passion'. I like my job and I love my life, but I don't feel I have a calling. I hope that in more fulling developing myself, both personally and professionally, I will become more okay with having many deep and sincere interests, instead of one all-consuming passion.
I am afraid to commit and I am determined to let that barrier down with every turn I make!! It easy to sit on the side lines and now I'm ready to run with the ball and score!! I'm going to get married!!!!
I'm afraid of being alone. I'm not sure that I can overcome it. Perhaps finding someone to be with will alleviate that fear, perhaps it's just a cop out. I am also afraid of failure. I hope to face failure in order to excel.
I feel like I made great strides in the shark fear department this year, thanks Belize. I think that my fear of instability maybe something to look at. My desire to have a steady income even if I am not treated well at work. I am a risk taker in many ways and want to continue to do so.
That I'm not good enough, that I'll fail. I will try to overcome this by trying new things that take me out of my comfort zone.
Fear of not finding work that meets all of my needs. Fear of really loving someone, and accepting someone, unconditionally. Fear of making a mistake, settling, and having regrets. These three fears have limited me most of my life. I plan on working on this by first acknowledging and leaning into the fear. By creating space to listen to my heart and finding ways to act from my deepest values and feelings rather than from my fears. And by allowing the fears to be what they are, but not allowing them to take over.
I am afraid of failing. I am afraid of going unnoticed and also of being noticed. This makes it hard for me to get up in front of a crowd and speak my truth, even though people I love and people I have just met do seem to care what I think and how I feel. This year, I will aim to be noticed and to let myself be heard!
I have many fears, not the least of which are 1) fear of being a failure and being a nobody, which feeds into 2) as a woman who practised her whole life to become a professional, I'm afraid that I will be a regular old baby making, dish-washing, house-cleaning, *cringe* WIFE. I have said this before, and will say it again, I need to get back to work, it is the only thing that satisfies me, in the words of Weeds' Celia Hodes' one time lesbian lover Raylene "success turns me on." If I can rebuild my confidence and get back to work, I know I will feel like myself again.
DH mentioned taking a trip involving driving through the Continental Divide and I frankly freaked out. Doing that drive made my mom ill with altitude sickness when I was a little girl, and while I'm happy to road trip, driving through mountains like that frightens me. I'm not sure I'm ready or interested in letting it go or overcoming it, but I'm now really aware of it and will think about working through it.
The fear of failure. It holds me back all to often. I hope to be able to move out of my comfort zones more and get my life moving forward again instead of being stagnant or frozen...
I, evidently, don't think I've inherent worth. Or not much. This came up in therapy last week. Instead, I feel so much pressure to do, do, do, to prove myself, to be worthy...instead of just being worthy, as I am. I want that gold star. I want your approval, your acknowledgement. I fear the pain of failure, of disappointment. I fear the pain of exploring all this more deeply, severing myself from past unhealthy beliefs and modes.
I constantly have the fear of ending up alone...husbandless and childless. I don't think I can let it go, it gets worse with age.
My fear is that I will have a complete mental collapse again. It has been eighteen years since my mental breakdown after the collapse of my relationship with Kevin. I did try dating again, but I would choose people that were completely unaccessible or I could not look them in the eye for a while as it was so painful. I don't know what I am going to do, but I am going to put myself in situations where I can meet men in real person and not meet them off of the internet.
I have a fear of becoming sicker and not being able to stay where I live now. I'm not sure how I can reach acceptance on this. I think I would rather die than lose any more of my abilities. I also have a fear of becoming more alone as my children move away.I would never hold them back, but I'm not sure how to overcome this.
I have a fear of not being enough. I will fix it by....wow, this is hard. Trying to remember that there s no such thing as perfection, and happiness does not equal perfection. In fact, once I hit the "good enough threshold", the difference in happiness is negligible, so why stress about it? Let's hope I actually stick to that...damn.
I could have a fear of making it big, and going after the really big stuff. I need to build my confidence and know that I have the capabilities of doing amazing things. I need to go after what I want and deserve in life.
Self-consciousness. Breathe.
Fear of not getting tenure. It limits me in acceptance of myself as a professional. It limits me by placing so much stress on my life that I cannot relax. It puts too much attention on me & not my students. It's not a nice process. I will be done with it one way or another, in another year. If it doesn't happen I will be looking for another kind of job. I will not go through any of this process ever again. If I achieve it, super great. I will still HAVE my job and not go through this process ever again. I have decided I will never ask for promotion because this process has been so degrading, so subjective, and so critical, it is not worth it to me to ever do it again. Not happening. So I should be happy. :)
The fear of losing our home, it's been very hard. However working with the new owners, we've been told we will not be loosing it & that we are safe.
once again, fear of failure. This is something that I know will hurt me for the rest of my life. and it will need to be curbed and worked on, like an addiction. this year though, I've been especially afraid of how people perceive me and how I handle myself around people. I have no confidence and doubt myself constantly. I fear independence as much as I want it. I am so afraid of getting old sometimes.
I have been afraid to let go of the vestiges of my Orthodox lifestyle. I no longer agree with the underlying beliefs, yet I am afraid to cross certain lines that would make at obvious to the community I live in. I am going to try to be more fully myself, and the writing project I mentioned in the previous question will be one way of strengthening myself.
Fear of being seen as not competent which is resurfacing as I am starting a new job and an internship at the same time. I will try to be prepared, separate by neurosis from what people might actually be thinking about me. Do the best job that I can. And ask for help when I need it.
I'm working on this now! My greatest fear is of the unknown. Whether it's not being knowledgeable about something I feel I need to understand better (social networking, IT, website design, lighting technology) or finding myself in a new situation (social or business) or just not having a clue what the future holds...I've always found myself off-balance when dealing with unknown quantities. I'm working on making the realization that these things are common to all, and I just need to prioritize those things I want to learn, and trust that God provides a way through all of the other things over which I have no control.
Eating healthy food, like so icky. Can't I just survive on chicken fingers and french fries for the rest of my life? I need to try something new once a day. A lot easier to say than to do.
That I do not become bitter due to my divorce ...That my true happiness can shine through again ( regardless of what he is doing) I will continue to read the bible and talk to others in need and help them and really let my true smile come through...
I have a fear of confrontation, and it holds me back by making my relationships less honest and thus less full. I need to be bolder, speak my mind gently but clearly, stand up for myself. Maybe this confidence will rub off on me in other ways as well and make me more socially comfortable. The fatal flaw is that I don't have a plan for how to change that. I think I just need to reflect in the moment more and take active, brave steps to move forward differently.
I am scared that i don't trust enough, and I am too uptight to enjoy small thing. I hope to be able to get over that this upcoming year. Also, I hope I become more accepting of my weigh, and reach the goal feeling comfortable with myself.
I've overcome a lot of my fear of poverty and of being unimportant and not of value. That was a hard trek. I think I'll rest for a bit.
I have a fear of being alone forever. As I get older and more and more people find their spouse, I get more and more worried I won't find me. I do believe I will eventually, but it feels so hard. In the coming year, I will let it go by enjoying what I do have rather than harping on what I don't. By building a life I want to share with someone rather than looking for someone to fill the voids in my life. By being the best version of myself and therefore attracting people that want to be with me. I also have a fear of not being financially responsible. I will let it go in the coming year by spending consciously (both for my wallet and the world).
I think that right now in life, the biggest fear I have is... myself. Which really, is one of the silliest fears to have. What am I going to do? Reject myself?Hurt myself?Though I suppose in a way, it'snot silly at all, since the cruelest person to me is me. I shouldn't feel scared of losing my own love. Heck, something like that shouldn't even be an option. I should be able to love myself no matter what happens. I think the biggest thing you can do for that, future me, is to get a therapist and become the sort of person you want to be. You will always be ashamed of yourself if you aren't living your own life. Live it. Even if you're scared other people might reject you. Because no rejection can possibly be worse than your own. So focus on that one first and foremost.
Making The Wrong Decision> I am crippled by not deciding! I will try but when I make impulsive decisions I am sometimes stuck with regretable things... like this mattress that may be just too hard for me. UGH am I gonna return this thing?
A fear that I have is disappointing my parents and it's hindered me in nearly all the aspects of my life. I've begun realizing that this is my life and I need to live it the way I want to. I'm in my mid-20s and I need to create the life I envision for myself. My parents may be disappointed, but it will be temporary and they will always love me despite my decisions.
The fear of not getting a career, and that God won't let me. It has caused me to keep God out of the intimate DNA of that area, without realizing it. It has limited me in ways I don't fully grasp yet. But I am looking forward to have Him in the intimate details of this and every area, and the freedom that will come with it, even though it scares me.
I am still afraid of doing "it" wrong, whatever it may be, even if there is no wrong way to do it. I am afraid of having the wrong priorities in my life. I am afraid that if I don't prioritize my career I will regret opportunities that pass me by, but I fear that if I sacrifice my relationships to my ambitions I will end up lonely and bitter. I hope this year I will find a greater sense of sufficiency, that what I have, in career and in life, is enough.
Alas, (since last year) I haven't overcome my fears of being vulnerable, wanting and not being met, and/or being too much and being rejected for it. However, I can also see that I've made quite a bit of progress and am not as easily triggered or collapse as much when the fear arises. I want to work on trusting that I am loved and lovable more fully this coming year.
I mentioned this before, but am having real issues with getting older. I'm afraid I squandered my youth and missed my chance at lots of things. I fear financial instability and I fear that I will always have to work too much. The fear of getting older is just stupid. It is what it is. It limits me by diminishing my self-esteem and wasting time on regrets and second-guessing. The fear of financial instability limits my ability to relax and stop working. to overcome these fears... I have no idea.
im afraid of life passing me by, while i am waiting for it to begin. i dont know how to start to living. i am afraid of never having children, and what that will mean, now that i am getting older.
My right now fear is one I'd never thought much about, maybe because I didn't feel I had much to lose. I'm sure I share it with most of humanity and that is of losing someone close that we love. I'm heartbroken to have lost my best friend 2 weeks ago, and now I feel this being triggered around fear of losing my husband too. It's very uncomfortable. I don't know how to go about dealing with this yet. But it's got to be dealt with - before it happens to show me... see there's the fear. I don't feel that is in any way on the cards. Unless I refuse to look the fear straight in the eye.
I have a fear that I am not going to be and am not a success. That I am not using my talent and potential, I am not working hard enough, I am falling beyond and that I will never be a self sufficient artist. It has driven me, sure, but my drive will always be there. It has limited me by wasting my time and creative energy, by causing stress in my body and making me sick. By making other people aware of this anxiety and causing them to pull away, though they are attracted to the real me or though they are interested in my talent. I am already on my way to overcoming it. I will continue to make the choice to enjoy where I am. To, when I feel this way, meditate or play piano or write in my journal. To fill my life with art so that I remember that my boundless joy for creating and my God given and finely honed talent has already gotten and will continue to get me somewhere wonderful, exciting and THAT is success!
My fear of really screwing up always lurks in the background. It's what motivates me to keep it together. look presentable, think ahead. But it limits me from trying new things and thus missing out on some of life's richness. I do not have a plan to let this go....I do not know how to address this.
the fear of not being good enough, of failure. I would like to surmount this. I am not sure how to let it go, but I would like to figure it out this year- holding on to this for 50+ years is way too long.
I'm afraid having a child will throw my life out of balance. I fear losing my independence and having to trade my personal creative pursuits for raising a child. I'm afraid of making choices and sacrifices for 3 instead of 2. The fear is irrational. It's not really grounded in anything or anyone I actually know. And it's likely keeping me from the amazing life experience of fatherhood. I plan to overcome it by spending time with the many smart, young, creative fathers I know personally and learning how they balance it all and make it work.
Fear of failing in creating art. I will overcome it by reminding myself that I have nothing to lose, and that the more I try to create art, the further ahead I'm getting, as it's better to do something rather than nothing. I will also remind myself of the saying "Fail again, fail better!"
I have a fear of abandonment. This has lead me to have attachment issues and a great mistrust of my environment and others. This has greatly limited my experience to be loved and to love. I would like to let go of this fear. The fear of others that has kept me from fully experiencing myself and my life. This social anxiety. I would like to create more awareness about it, get some more help, and try to live more from the heart chakra. This also entails making sure that I take care of myself and maintain healthy boundaries when in NY. overall though, I want to cultivate a general feeling of safety in the world. That it is ok to be me and that I am wonderful and loved and have complete faith that I am safe.
Fear of letting my family down when they expect so much of me. To overcome it I will try my hardest to make it seem less and less like a stretch for me to accomplish.
I still have a fear of developing Alzheimer's. I need to stay healthy and proactive when it comes to what I am in control of. I hopefully will reach a place where I can live without worrying about it. Hopefully reading research will help put my worries behind me.
I will do my best and it will not be enough. Because I thought I had done my best and it wasn't enough. You know what you call fear that comes true? Reality. I'm either going to die trying or die.
two, actually. Getting married. and getting married.
showing who i really am. each day, i take another step in believe in myself.
Fear of failure and rejection are still at the top of my list. I've also realized that "fear of wasting my time" is becoming a bit stronger. Amusing, since I'm more comfortable wasting an evening than I am with working at a company I'm not 100% happy with. Overcoming it: trying to do more stuff, even when I'm not sure I can. Mostly by signing up for it/agreeing to it, and then figuring out how to get it done.
Fear of failure, undoubtedly. Trying to remind myself (again and again) that my Plans B and C are really not that bad, and that I really have nothing to lose in the grand scheme of things - might as well swing for the fences.
