Crisis and Courage give birth to Creative Solutions.
- Steve Vann -
- Steve Vann -
What would life be like without fear?
For one thing, it would not be very long. Fear helps us to recognize and avoid dangerous situations.
But what about the all too common experience of misplaced fear, fear that keeps us from doing and being all that we could. Why are we saddled with that mess? It turns out that even mistaken fear has it's utility. Our brains were designed to be overly sensitive to potential dangers.
Is that a rock or a bear?
If you think that it is a rock and it is really a bear - that is a dangerous mistake!
If you think that it is a bear and it is really a rock - that is not so dangerous.
There is an element in the human brain, the amygdala, with the main function of detecting potential dangers, and sending that signal away from the executive part of the brain where the danger can be analyzed and options weighed out. The amygdala sends the warning to the more reactionary parts of the brain and we impulsively act with protective strategies - fight, flight, freeze or deceive. When you are in real danger, the amygdala is literally a life saver. But when you are not in real danger, the overactive amygdala can really mess things up for ourselves and for those around us. Likewise, an under-performing amygdala can prevent us from recognizing and appropriately addressing real dangers.
A regular practice of meditation can help the amygdala to function more effectively, helping us to react when there is a realistic emergency, and allowing us to take some time and evaluate and respond appropriately when there is not an emergency. The practice of setting aside time to "just BE", helps our minds to learn to "just be" when no immediate action is called for. It allows us to take time to respond, instead of just reacting.
As we grow in our meditation practice, we can choose to actually face more directly some of the fears that have haunted and limited you. We can sit with them and learn from the wisdom of our fears. We can then be freed to make wise decisions about how we are going to respond to what life presents.
For one thing, it would not be very long. Fear helps us to recognize and avoid dangerous situations.
But what about the all too common experience of misplaced fear, fear that keeps us from doing and being all that we could. Why are we saddled with that mess? It turns out that even mistaken fear has it's utility. Our brains were designed to be overly sensitive to potential dangers.
Is that a rock or a bear?
If you think that it is a rock and it is really a bear - that is a dangerous mistake!
If you think that it is a bear and it is really a rock - that is not so dangerous.
There is an element in the human brain, the amygdala, with the main function of detecting potential dangers, and sending that signal away from the executive part of the brain where the danger can be analyzed and options weighed out. The amygdala sends the warning to the more reactionary parts of the brain and we impulsively act with protective strategies - fight, flight, freeze or deceive. When you are in real danger, the amygdala is literally a life saver. But when you are not in real danger, the overactive amygdala can really mess things up for ourselves and for those around us. Likewise, an under-performing amygdala can prevent us from recognizing and appropriately addressing real dangers.
A regular practice of meditation can help the amygdala to function more effectively, helping us to react when there is a realistic emergency, and allowing us to take some time and evaluate and respond appropriately when there is not an emergency. The practice of setting aside time to "just BE", helps our minds to learn to "just be" when no immediate action is called for. It allows us to take time to respond, instead of just reacting.
As we grow in our meditation practice, we can choose to actually face more directly some of the fears that have haunted and limited you. We can sit with them and learn from the wisdom of our fears. We can then be freed to make wise decisions about how we are going to respond to what life presents.