“Our fears are often of events that have already happened, earlier in this life or even from lifetimes long past. Because we have forgotten, we project these fears into the future. But what we fear is actually finished. All we have to do is remember, to awaken the past.” – Dr. Brian Weiss, Messages From the Masters

Fear is a negative vibration and while sometimes that can be good—at least when it’s a temporary awareness that keeps you safe—over the long-term, the emotional impact fear can affect your entire body and the experiences that you manifest into your life. The mind body fear connection can’t be overlooked because everything is energy and therefore everything is connected.

Here are a few different ways fear may be manifesting in your life.

Unhealed Mind Body Fear Connection

According to Dr. Brian Weiss, a highly respected psychiatrist and past-life regression therapy expert, fear is rooted in past events either in this life or past lives that we have forgotten about. If the fear is based on a past life event, it’s obviously not as readily available to recall because those memories reside in the unconscious mind. In his books, Dr. Weiss describes through innumerous examples of how people when people recall traumatic events from past lives during regression hypnosis, negative symptoms in their current life begin to disappear. But what about fears that are based on experiences in this lifetime?

If the fear is based on an event in this life, we may think we have healed from that experience and therefore are not consciously aware that the fears we project into the future are based on past trauma and unresolved issues. I also find that sometimes our fears are the result of behaviors or beliefs we learned as children and so it is so engrained into who we are today because when we learn things as children, we tend to accept those things as the way that life is. In other words, even in negative situations, it’s comfortable because that’s what we grew up learning as children when we developed our sense of the world and how we view it. Additionally, it’s also common for people to hold onto their past experiences as a part of their identity and so they continue to project that identity through their fears.

Fear as a Compass

There’s another way to look at fear too. I once heard Mastin Kipp, founder of The Daily Love, say that fear is a compass pointing us to where we need to go. I believe this also to be true because when we are changing, taking on new challenges, or growing, fear is often a part of that process.

Taking it a step deeper, I believe that Dr. Weiss’ approach can apply here as well because maybe you fear taking a big step because you’re afraid of failing. Well, if you ever experienced unstableness (e.g., financially, living arrangements, emotionally unsupported, etc.), then it would make sense that you’re afraid of change because you’re afraid of being unstable as you once were.

Fear That Keeps You Safe

Fear also exists to keep us safe. Obviously, if someone is threatening your life, your fight or flight response is there to keep you safe. Sometimes fear, however, can is also there to push you to make better decisions.

I was recently speaking with a woman who told me she turned her health around because she feared having a heart attack and dying young like her father did. At the time she was overweight and unhealthy. When her father passed away, she made drastic health—and spiritual I might add—changes because she was afraid that she would also die young. Again, we see here that Dr. Weiss’ philosophy is also applicable in this instance except this time it helped this woman. I will also add that she doesn’t only adhere to a strict diet because she lives in fear of dying everyday. I believe she made peace with that fear, which is critical in the energy she projects into her body and in her life.

It doesn’t matter how healthy you live physically if everything else doesn’t line up mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Remember, if everything is energy, fear is energy, and what you project is what you attract, even if what you’re manifesting is a negative environment for your body.

What to do With Your Fears

Fear can be a complicated emotion and one that’s tough to move past. Sometimes we let it dictate what decisions we make, for better or for worse. Fear is part of the learning and growth process. No one is 100% fearless because we all have buttons that can be pushed. If you have skin, there’s bound to be something that can get under it.

One way to approach your worries is to decipher what kind of fear it is, the root of your fear, the purpose of your fear, and then lovingly letting it go once it has served its purpose. To do this, you may want to work with a licensed health professional, particularly if the fear feels traumatic. You can also work with a life coach, spiritual counselor, journal, meditate, go on a retreat, or any other activity that will allow you the space and support for self-exploration. Deep self-awareness can bring your body, mind, and soul into harmony, which can only help to increase feelings of security.

Furthermore, keep in mind that quite often a shift in perspective is enough to help you move past any hardship. For example, can you replace that fear with trust? So, instead of “I’m afraid something bad is going to happen,” replace it with, “I trust that everything is going to be okay.” Begin to train your brain to adapt a new thought habit.

Want to work more on self-awareness and thought habits? Contact me for more information about coaching.