Fear

Fear is there all the time, in the corner of the room, in the dark shadow that forever will follow us. We carry fear with us, its impossible not to because it is what keeps us alive, up to a point. Fear can also kill us, fast or slowly, depending on what we do with it. Some fears will be impossible to conquer in our lifetime and if we let them, they will destroy us from within, messing with our minds, making us believe or disbelieve, see or not see, confusing us to the point the only thing we can do is stop, literally be paralyzed and go no where even though our life depends on how fast we can run out of there!
It is easier to control fears of a physical nature, like the fear of flying, but how do you control a fear that goes behond anything physical and comes from deep routed insecurities, abuse, violence, loneliness? Maybe the techniques are the same, anyway! Maybe only a shrink can tell!
It is very difficult to fight fears, to push them down so they are small enough to not hamper our decisions and have a positive effect instead of a negative one.
My response to physical fears is to rationalized them and think about them without the emotional emphasis, just think of the actions to take in the event of an emergency. That keeps me safer while riding and also gives more confidence, because I have seen the films many times in my head.
My response to the other type of fear is to run away as fast as possible!! But that doesn't cure me from them, doesn't beat them to oblivion and to a manageable size. That just makes them bigger!! So, be brave and fight is the only solution. I just hope I am not fighting the very essence of my survival instinct.