EFFECTS OF FEAR
Whether we accept it or not we all suffer from fear, it effects us all in many different ways, it is a trait that none of us can control fully. Here is an abstract from a book,(Life of Pi), as I have had this photocopy of the page for ages.
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"I must say a word about fear. It's life's only true opponent. Only fear can defeat life...
It is a clever treacherous adversary, how well we know. It has no decency, respects no law or convention, shows no mercy.
It attacks your weakest spot, which it finds with unerring ease, it begins in your mind, one moment you appear to be feeling calm and happy. But then fear, disguised in the garb of mild-mannered doubt, slips into your mind like a spy. Doubt meets disbelief and disbelief tries to push it out. But disbelief is a poorly armed foot soldier, and doubt pushes your disbelief a side with little trouble.
You become anxious, so reason comes in to battle for you, for now you are reassured as reason is fully equipped with the latest technology to combat your doubt.
But to your amazement, despite superior tactics and a number of undeniable victories, reason is laid low, you feel yourself weakening / wavering. So your anxiety soon becomes dread.
Fear next turns onto your body fully, which is already aware that something terribly wrong is going on. Already your lungs have flown away like a bird and your guts have slithered away like a snake.
Now your tongue drops dead like an opossum, while your jaw begins to gallop on the spot.
Your ears go deaf, your muscles begin to shiver as if they had malaria, and your knees shake as if you are dancing. Your heart strains too hard while you sphincter relaxes too much.
Every part of you, in the manner most suited to it falls apart. Only your eyes work well, they always pay proper attention to fear hence you making rash decisions. You dismiss your latest allies, hope and trust. At that point you have defeated yourself, fear, which is, but an impression has triumphed over you.
The matter is difficult to put into words. For fear, real fear such as shaking you to your foundations, such as you feel when you are brought face to face with your mortal end, it nestles in your memory like gangrene seeking to rot everything, even the words with which you speak of it. So you must fight hard shine the light of words upon it, because if you don't and you fear becomes a wordless darkness that you avoid, perhaps even manage to forget, you open yourself to further attacks of fear, because you never truly fought the opponent who defeated you."
