I have been interested in the topic of fears for a long time. And delving into this state, which arises from a feeling of danger, is unpleasant, SCARY. After all, it is this feeling that makes us want to run away and never see him again. For example, do we want to remember the moment when we were attacked by a street dog in a deserted place, after which we miraculously managed to stay alive? Do we want to relive these sensations and begin to reflect on the topic: “Why did this happen to me?” Rather, we would like to bury this episode in our memory. Forget like a bad dream and never remember this incident again. And, more often than not, this is exactly what we do. But, unconsciously, this situation becomes a prerequisite for how we will behave when experiencing strong fear in the future. Because when life is threatened, the human brain reacts according to the “fight, flight or freeze” principle - this is a basic defense reaction. When, at a moment of danger, on an instinctive level, we quickly decide what to do - fight, run away, or fall into a stupor. We can only speculate on how to choose the right reaction; at the moment of true fear, it is impossible to be prepared and choose tactics in advance. But, if you time you experience a feeling of obsessive fear and anxiety about an event that is far in the past and these memories begin to deplete you and make you even more vulnerable, you can use the psychological technique AWARE (AWARENESS). Its author is the founder of cognitive psychotherapy, Iron Beck. AWARE stands for: Accept (recognition) Watch (observation) Act (action) Repeat (repetition) Expect (expectation of the best) So if you are scared, do the following: Accept the fear or anxiety. Don't try to fight them. Watch the fear. You shouldn’t draw any conclusions, just try to understand what’s happening to your psyche and body. Act as if everything is normal. Continue talking and acting as if nothing happened. This sends a powerful signal to your unconscious mind that its overreaction is not really necessary because nothing unusual is happening. Be the firefighter who arrives at the address, finds there is no fire, and returns. Repeat the steps above if necessary. Expect the best. One of the greatest feelings is the realization that you can control fear much more than you thought possible. As the name of the technique suggests (translated as “Awareness”), it helps to bring yourself into a conscious state. In conclusion, I would like to share a Sufi parable. We met as - there is a pilgrim and Plague on the road. - Where are you going? - asked the plague. - To Mecca, to worship the holy places. And you? “To Baghdad, to take five thousand people,” answered Plague. They went their separate ways; and a year later on the same road they met again. “But you deceived me,” the pilgrim said to Chuma. “You said that you would take five thousand people from Baghdad, but you yourself took fifty-five thousand!” “No,” answered Plague, “I told the truth.” I was in Baghdad and took my five thousand. The rest died of fear.