To me, to grieve means to feel, share, cry and let go. During grief, we are releasing an attachment to something that we either choose or had no choice but to let go of. It can be an attachment to something in the physical or mental such as a story or a belief. It can physically be felt like a weight on the heart and lungs. The process is painful, can be dark and depending on the depth, can trigger the dark night of the soul.

Fear, however is something different. Fear manifests in the mind and can physically show up as anxiety and induce panic attacks. Fear can also be felt in the chest. Some symptoms are shortness of breath, stiff limbs and tingling throughout the body and is often exacerbated by the mind. Often times when there is fear it is followed by grief.

Fear and grief often show up for us when we do not expect it. A situation, such as covid, can induce fear. The fear that covid created crept into our minds and changed every single one of our worlds, even if just a bit and even if it was out of our control. The fear of the unknown was felt in the core of our bones. There is only so much we can control and the rest we have no other choice but to surrender to. For some of us, Covid became a spiritual time to face our fears, grieve and purge old emotion.

We often place unpleasant, unknown or scary things in the shadow. We suppress it and the resistance causes us pain. Things like fear, grief, and negative thoughts are all just energy that we place in the shadow. When we acknowledge it for what it is, energy, the weight can be lifted.

 

How to Overcome Panic and Fear

Fear doesn’t necessary mean we need to change or steer course, however is something we acknowledge. Navigating fear can be terrifying alone. To get through fear, we must say yes to it. We must become it. What we usually do is reject and try to get rid of it, but if we accept and allow it to become part of us, it no longer feels like fear. When we are able to recognize fear for what it is, fear, we are able to surrender to it. When we surrender, it can be an emotional experience, often followed by a period grief. This is good, this is letting fear go.

 

Some tools to help move through fear are:

  • Meditating or sitting with yourself, acknowledge what you are feeling by either writing it down or saying it out loud. Talking to someone is powerful during this time; someone who is able to help you by sitting with you while you experience these emotions and validate them without judgment.
  • Surrender to the physical sensations that fear or panic can induce. Guided meditation below is a powerful tool to help you soften into the emotions
  • Practice Alternative Nostril Breathing and light yoga for stress and anxiety
  • Repeat as much as needed and allow time to heal. When moving through the extreme fear and panic attacks, we often do not instantly feel better, but do receive a small amount of relief that over time will increase.

 

If you are experiencing fear or grief, you do not have to go through it alone. There are many tools and healers that can help assist and be there for you during this time.

 

Meditation to Release Fear:

Full conversation with Lilura Le-LaLuna on this topic below: