How I made pact with my Fears

Recently I heard the word FOMO. Unaware of the lexicon of Gen Z, I typed on Google and the answer appeared instantly, Fear of Missing Out. I was completely perplexed. What kind of fear is this? Wiki says it is the feeling of apprehension that one is missing out on information, events, and experiences. The Gen Z and its unique problems, I wondered.

Being an introvert, this fear is beyond my thoughts rather I would say I have JOMO, Joy of Missing Out!!!! Mind you, even this word exists, and it means the pleasure derived from living in a quiet or independent way without feeling anxious. JOMO, I completely resonate with you!!!!!!!

The bittersweet relation between my fears and me

Growing up in the ’90s, we had completely different innocent fears. I for instance feared Mathematics a lot. In order to get away from it I started leaning toward Biology and I don’t know when I fell in love with it. But Maths never stopped haunting me. I had to face it, practice, practice, and more practice and finally, I was able to score well. I was the happiest in the 11^th class. Finally, I said Goodbye to Maths and welcomed Bio into my life forever. But Maths sulked and never quite left me. It came back from time to time in the form of Statistics, but I was able to decently manage it now.

One summer when I was in college, I was determined to learn something new. So, I joined swimming because water scared me. I wanted to overcome my fear. (I must have overdosed on Sandeep Maheshwari videos).

First day. “Hold the bars on the edge, dip your head, and let your legs float while holding your breath, “said the coach. I tried to follow and dip my head. I could not see anything and panicked. My legs started moving exactly like a tail cut from a lizard. Coach immediately approached and helped me stand up. From the corner of my eye, I could see my zeal to learn something new take a plunge into the pool and vanish.

I missed a few classes and then one day my friend called up to enquire. After narrating the entire incident to her she motivated me so much that I made up my mind to give it one last shot. I got up to leave but it was drizzling outside. My motivation level was already shooting through the roof so nothing could deter me now. I reached the swimming pool. There was no one. Even the coach was sitting and reading a newspaper under the shade. He gave me a thumbs up and I went inside.

I tried the technique several times and I was getting better at it. The feeling was awesome. Water above, water below, and water everywhere. It reminded me of the poetic lines, water water everywhere, not a drop to drink. I enjoyed swimming that day, but the fear has not subsided completely, it’s just that we made a pact and decided to live together happily ever after.

What did I learn?

From all these incidents I learned one thing. Fear feeds on your thoughts. The more you think the bigger it gets. So now if I wish to do anything that scares me, I don’t think much and get into action. If by chance I give it a moment, fear will overpower me, doubts will start creeping into my mind and then my mind will imagine the good things that would happen if I don’t do it. So, stop your thinking and just do it if it is worth doing it.

PS: This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z 2023