FEAR AND ITS EFFECTS 😰

FAITH AND ITS BENEFITS

I have been thinking a lot about fear - especially in the past few years - and about how it has affected and shaped today’s society, so I thought I would dedicate today’s Letter to this topic. At first sight, it might appear to be a rather strange combination of topics but the connection between fear and faith is very clear to me. You would think that in times of great fear, people would be more likely to turn to faith.

“People are just afraid of things too much. Afraid of things that don't necessarily merit fear.” — Frank Ocean

I would not call myself a fearful person and yet I most certainly have my own personal fears as I am guessing everyone does.

Fear never has been and never will be a good advisor. There are three predictable stages the body uses to respond to stressors, called the general adaption syndrome:

1. Alarm: The first reaction to stress is recognising there’s a danger and preparing to deal with the threat. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and autonomic nervous system are activated. Primary stress hormones cortisol, adrenaline, and noradrenaline are released

2. Resistance: Homeostasis begins restoring balance and a period of recovery for repair and renewal takes place. Stress hormones may return to normal, but there may be reduced defenses and adaptive energy left.

3. Exhaustion: At this phase, the stress has continued for some time. The body’s ability to resist is lost because its adaption energy supply is gone. This is often referred to as overload, burnout, adrenal fatigue, maladaptation, or dysfunction.

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The extreme fearmongering that the world population has been putting up with has left its mark on everyone in one way or the other and many have gone through the stages and are stuck in stage three. There are those who believe absolutely everything that is presented to them by our politicians, the mainstream media, big pharma, the WHO, other three-letter institutions, and of course, so-called scientists making it impossible to resurface from chronic fear.

“Fear of serious injury alone cannot justify oppression of free speech and assembly. Men feared witches and burnt women. It is the function of speech to free men from the bondage of irrational fears.” — Louis D. Brandeis

There are multiple potential consequences of fear on overall, physical, emotional, environmental, and spiritual health that I would like to share with you.

The potential effects of chronic fear on

Overall health include:

• Immune system dysfunction

• Endocrine system dysfunction

• Autonomic nervous system alterations

• Sleep/wake cycle disruption

• Eating disorders

• Alterations in hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis

Physical health include:

• Headaches turning into migraines

• Muscle aches turning into fibromyalgia

• Body aches become chronic pain

• Difficulty breathing turning into asthma

Emotional health include:

• Dissociation from self

• Unable to have loving feelings

• Learned helplessness

• Phobic anxiety

• Mood swings

• Obsessive-compulsive thoughts

Environmental health include:

• Continued living in fear-generating situations due to uncertainty of moving out and unknown associated dangers

• Not able to find safe housing

• Afraid to leave home because of paranoia

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“What is a fear of living? It's being preeminently afraid of dying. It is not doing what you came here to do, out of timidity and spinelessness. The antidote is to take full responsibility for yourself - for the time you take up and the space you occupy. If you don't know what you're here to do, then just do some good.” — Maya Angelou

Spiritual health:

• Bitterness/fear toward God or others

• Confusion/disgust with God or religion

• Loss of trust in God and/or clergy

• Waiting for God to fix it

• Despair related to perceived loss of spirituality

I was intrigued by the effect chronic fear can have on our spiritual health. Interestingly enough for many it has taken their faith away and for others, like me, they have found their faith or rediscovered it.

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.” — Martin Luther King, Jr.

In the course of our lives, we all have been through negative and positive experiences. The permanent negativities that have been flooding our lives have shaped us in one way or another - for the better or the worse. When you go through these experiences and survive them, your outlook on life may have changed. The underlying factor that allows us all to overcome difficult times is the force of faith. Faith is the complete trust in a higher power and the unknown future. Having faith allows you to gain multiple benefits, to name just a few:

Faith can provide you with inner strength and the feeling that you are not alone.

Faith can teach you to give back and serve others less fortunate. Helping others in any way will positively impact your life for the better.

Faith allows you to be selfless and put others first, treating others as they need to be treated.

Faith can help you discover your purpose in life. Passion and daily action can lead to a purposeful life. Without passion or daily action, you may be missing the drive to live a meaningful and fulfilled life.

Faith can help overcome stress, anxiety, and fear. It can give you a sense of tranquility while living in a world that appears to have gone mad.

“Faith consists in believing when it is beyond the power of reason to believe.” — Voltaire

Faith can be a pathway to finding solutions. With so many variables and unknowns, faith helps us have patience, understanding, and optimism - qualities that can lead to great and productive solutions.

Faith can give you a sense of hope. Sometimes we feel lost, but faith helps us stay anchored knowing that everything will be okay in the end.

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Faith can be a source of peace and joy. Peace can be achieved by spreading happiness and love to those around you.

Faith can help you get through difficulties in life. Although challenges will always arise, there is nothing you can’t handle with the power of unwavering faith.

Faith can make you a better person. Spirituality can help you understand and highlight your qualities through self-actualisation. Personal reflection and meditation will help you see life in its entirety.

“To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.” — Thomas Aquinas

There will always be fear in our world and we have a choice to not let ourselves be overwhelmed by it constantly.

“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear.” — Mark Twain

These words by Marc Twain are so true and as long as there are people with faith left, I believe there is hope. I have always said it and do not tire of repeating myself. Good will prevail in the end even if it takes a while, simply because Good does not use the methods that Evil does.

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🎶My Song of the Week

This is a stunningly beautiful song by a great artist that I truly admire…. Jewel with Hands! Enjoy!

For more good music, go to this Spotify playlist where you can find all the songs from the Change & Evolve Letters!

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📚My Poem of the Week

Is a Sonnet by John Donne (1572-1631)

Batter my heart, three-person’d God

Batter my heart, three-person’d God, for you
As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend;
That I may rise and stand, o’erthrow me, and bend
Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new.
I, like an usurp’d town to another due,
Labour to admit you, but oh, to no end;
Reason, your viceroy in me, me should defend,
But is captiv’d, and proves weak or untrue.
Yet dearly I love you, and would be lov’d fain,
But am betroth’d unto your enemy;
Divorce me, untie or break that knot again,
Take me to you, imprison me, for I,
Except you enthrall me, never shall be free,
Nor ever chaste, except you ravish me.

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👀Impressions

The most beautiful view from my office window a few weeks ago, being able to watch a little hedgehog… The little things…❤️

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What is your take on the effects of fear and the benefits of faith?

Let me know your thoughts in the comments or send me a message. I very much enjoy hearing from you.

Wishing you a very happy weekend.

Yours

Tanja 🤗

Change & Evolve