Fear VS Intuition by Raelin Bell
How do I know the difference between a decision made by my intuition and a decision made out of fear or insecurity? My intuition is the same as my gut feeling. Going off of intuition means picking up on a weird vibe or feeling without consciously thinking about it and feeling confident in leading with that decision. A decision made out of fear or insecurity can feel like an unknown and rushed decision. Making decisions when fears and insecurities are leading the way can feel like a sensation of panic, worry, frustration, and other feelings that can overwhelm you and have you questioning yourself over and over.
When I make a decision leading with my intuition, I feel safe and confident in that decision. Sometimes my gut tells me things that my brain and heart are trying not to. Often, I find that my heart and brain both try to protect me in certain situations. It’s a proven fact that our brains will block out passed pains and trauma to keep us from reliving it. Leading with my intuition also comes with positive feelings as well, not only negative. This can be a warm and fuzzy feeling when I feel as if I done a good thing and made a good decision or a feeling of relief and comfort. Our intuition helps define us as individuals. Being self-aware allows us to focus on these decisions and the emotions that come along with them.
As someone who struggles deeply with social anxiety, sometimes following my intuition can play tricks on me. As I like to lead with my gut feeling in many situations where in a social setting I always feel myself holding back. This means that sometimes in my mind my intuition is telling me that I’m not wanted here or that they don’t like me and other negative things like that for example that aren’t necessarily true. To help myself get through social settings sometimes I will take deep breaths, try to relax and remind myself of positive affirmations like we learned on the heyimhere squad. These affirmations in my mind are ways I remind myself that I am loved, that I am wanted at whatever event I am at and that I can get through this anxiety.
When I make a decision made out of fear or insecurity I can feel myself holding back. I tend to make a lot of decisions out of fear and listening to all of my insecurities, there’s always that little thought in the back of my mind telling me “you can’t do this”. Fear can hold us back from being our best selves and following our dreams. Fear is the enemy. When making decisions based off of fear and insecurities we are only thinking negative things such as all the things that could possibly happen and go wrong. I have learned that there are many ways that I can put these fears and insecurities to the side so that I can continue to be the best version of myself. I like to think of all the positive ways that things can go. I was terrified to start college at first as I thought that I wouldn’t be able to thrive in that environment. Now three years in I am so glad that I didn’t listen to my insecurities. To get through the negative thoughts I looked in my mind at the possible end outcome which was me having my degree and dream job and that was enough to push me to take the chance. My intuition was telling me that I could do it and I’m so glad that I listened to that instead.
Sometimes following our intuition can lead us to the best possible outcome. That little gut feeling that we have when making a tough decision can lead to great things.
Making tough decisions while leading with fear and listening to all of our insecurities can keep us from doing all of the amazing things we want to do in our lives.
When fear is talking, remind yourself of all the positive outcomes that could come out of a situation to help yourself overcome the fear in order to make the most clear-headed decision.
I’ve found that following my intuition and learning how to put my fear to the side has changed my life in the best ways.
Additional tools for when you may be in crisis:
U.S. Crisis Text Line: 741-741
Ohio Mobile Response and Stabilization Services: 1-888-418-MRSS (6777)