Question: What ONE emotion can all these behaviours signal?
Laughing 😂
Covering your face 🤭
Yawning 🥱
Changing the subject 🔀
Smiling 😊
Being passive 😶
Getting angry 😠
Avoiding eye contact 🙈
Talking excessively 🗫
Answer: FEAR 😱
When we’re afraid:
😂 Laughing can make the situation more ‘bearable’.
🤭 Covering your face can alleviate feelings of being exposed.
🥱 Yawning can project nonchalance or brings the situation to a close.
🔀 Changing the subject can shut the conversation/situation down.
😊 Smiling can be another attempt at denying the situation, like laughing.
😶 Being passive can be an attempt to disown the situation and so avoid taking responsibility.
😠 Getting angry can allow us to regain control.
🙈 Avoiding eye contact can make the experience less real.
🗫 Talking excessively can avoid silence and being in touch with our fearful feelings.
👉All these behaviours can mask our fear because embracing our fear can be challenging.
👉A certain amount of fear is healthy. Fear is how our mind and body communicate that we may be in danger. Fear exists to keep us safe.
👉However, when we try to ignore or eliminate fear, we do ourselves a disservice. Fear can lead to anxiety, stagnation, and life dissatisfaction.
So how can you embrace your fear?
✅Increase your awareness of when you’re fearful – feel it, don’t deny it.
✅If you are safe, remind yourself that ‘you’ve got this’ so that your mind and body can relax.
✅Breathe through your nose and work on breathing calmly.
✅Consider what steps you could take to ease your fear. Set yourself up to succeed.
✅Take small steps – minuscule ones work just as well!
✅Practise – this is a process not a quick fix.
✅Keep practising.