| Most of us are brought up not to be afraid. | | | | Most people mistake it for panic and don't know how |
| Well-meaning parents, siblings or other relatives told | | | | to take advantage of it. Harness the adrenaline dump |
| us over and over not to be afraid. Children in schools | | | | to your advantage. |
| have teased us calling us scaredy cats. We've been | | | | Adrenaline only stays for ten minutes or so in the |
| brought up to think that fear is a bad thing and that | | | | body. However, due to additional stress hormones |
| it should be avoided. | | | | being released, the physical, mental and emotional |
| When we do feel fear, we panic because we think | | | | effects of a physical or verbal confrontation can last |
| it's some how wrong. Let me tell you that is absolute | | | | for several hours, or even days. |
| nonsense! | | | | You might be edgy, nervous or extremely emotional |
| Fear exists for a reason. It exists to keep us safe | | | | for days. Some people experience confusion, guilt and |
| and stop us from being foolish. Imagine if you had no | | | | outbursts of crying. All this is completely natural. You |
| fear. What kind of risks would you take? People | | | | have to give yourself time to recover and be sure |
| would jump off buildings, drive like maniacs, start | | | | not to punish yourself. There is no point in thinking "I |
| fights, and do all sorts of crazy things. | | | | wish I had done this or that" or "why didn't I do |
| Make no mistake, fear is a good thing to experience. | | | | something..." or "I should have..." Thoughts like these |
| The important thing is not to let your fear overcome | | | | will not help. Be thankful that you are alive and make |
| you. A coward and a brave person both feel fear. | | | | sure you learn from your experience. It's not your |
| The difference between them is that the brave | | | | fault. |
| person controls his fears, while the coward lets his | | | | Many martial art clubs around the world now also |
| fear control him. | | | | provide adrenaline stress response training with their |
| When you do experience fear, do not hold your | | | | standard self defense classes. Some people find |
| breath! Make sure you keep breathing calmly. This will | | | | these very helpful when done in a class with others |
| help you overcome it. | | | | and a teacher explaining things in more detail. Some |
| So there you have it. If you know what adrenaline is | | | | people are able to control their adrenaline dump while |
| and how it works, you can use it to your advantage. | | | | others find it a bit more difficult. |