F E A R

“There is so much blood pumping through your brain, it is like rocket fuel. Right now, you can run faster, and you can fight harder and jump higher than ever in your life! You are so alert that it’s like you can slow down time! What is wrong with scared? It is a superpower! It is your superpower” –  Doctor Who S8E4

Fear is a superpower, but with great power, comes great responsibility. Without wisdom, strength is less than useless, and it can become very destructive, and it has…

These past few weeks, due to the reality of the Coronavirus, that is exactly what we have seen. People with purchasing power, go to the extreme, buying all the toilet paper (for some reason), and even some going as far as price gouging. Fear, however, has an important place in the human psyche. It’s as the Doctor said (above), it is one of the great superpowers that humans have — but we merely need to learn to use it.

As anyone has witnessed, someone under the effects of emotion will react in an unpredictable or specific pattern. The individual who is afraid is more likely to run or fight, however, the angry person is more likely or certain to fight. Their rational judgment is suspended during this fear process. The actions taken during these states are much more effective due to the altered state of mind and the hormones going through the individual; they are pre-programmed.

The state of fear can last up to when the source of fear is gone, and the individual may not even be panicking, but just anxious enough that they do not ask the simple questions.

This is exactly how people lose money on the stock market. Stocks are falling, so they run and try to “cut their losses.” That is, of course, a topic for another time; this is just to give you an example of how this creeping “fear” can damage a person while they may not be fully panicking.

Fear has a time and a place. It is a superpower that unless controlled, will lead the person to jump off the cliff.