One of the ways of conquering fear is to let go of your attachment to it. What does this mean? We become attached to anything that has a role in our lives, and whether or not we love or hate it, it becomes important. The more significance we place upon that thing, the bigger it becomes. If you are afraid, and you allow fear its own importance in your life, it gets bigger until eventually, you can become fear and it takes over your life.
Letting go of your attachment to fear is not a case of pretending it’s not there. On the contrary, you accept its existence, but at the same time, are prepared to let it go. After all, what good does it do in your life? Does it help you achieve the things you want to achieve? Does it prevent bad things from happening? This fear is holding you back. It is preventing you from living the life you were supposed to live.
When you have been living with fear for a long time, the thought of living without it can be just as frightening. However, it does not have to be that frightening or drastic. All you really need is the genuine desire to be free of fear. All you need is the willingness to let go of your attachment to the fear, and be ready to welcome all the changes that this will bring into your life.
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It is you who are holding on to it
You cannot force yourself to release something which has had a hold on you for a long time, but you have to understand that it is you who are holding on to it; it is not holding onto you. So, first of all, stop owning it. When you think of the fear, whether it is a fear of spiders, or something far more serious, never call it ‘my fear’. Call it, ‘the fear’, or ‘that fear’. By doing that, you are in effect, disowning it, putting it outside yourself, and beginning the process of dismissing it from your life.
I am willing to let go of this fear
This giving up is not a quick fix process, but it does work. All you need to do whenever you are feeling afraid, is say to yourself, ‘I am willing to let go of this fear.’ This may seem impossible, but as long as you are willing to release the fear, deep changes will start to take place within. The fear will begin to have less and less significance in your life. You will look back a few months later to the person you were when you began, and realize there is a difference. You have moved on, the fear has diminished.
Once the fear begins to release its hold on you, there will be room in your life for new experiences, new joys. So, as you let go through the process of releasing your attachment, be prepared to welcome these changes into your life and embrace what the future holds for you.1