Fears are like annoying relatives. You can’t avoid them forever, and ignoring them won’t make them go away. Come Thanksgiving, they’ll plop down right next to you and ask to borrow your fork. So you’d better figure out how to confront the little devils before they eat your dessert too. Here are a few fun ideas for how to tell your fears to hit the bricks.

1. Yell at them.

Tell them to go to a place where there are no lemonade stands.

2. Laugh at them.

A good technique: start with “ha” and end with “hee.”

3. Talk about them.

Preferably to a friend, over a cup of strong coffee.

4. Scare them away.

Any mask will do, but any beast or vampire getup is particularly effective.

5. Dress them up.

With the right attire and hairdo, you can make anything seem attractive and desirable (to someone else), right?

6. Harness them.

If they are under your control, you don’t have to worry about them.

7. Interrogate them.

Ask them the hard questions, including: where, what, why, when, and how? Then get a mug shot.

8. Bully them.

Boss them around like the scary dude in the fifth grade who made you cry. You’re bigger than they are –don’t let them forget it.

9. Free them.

Let them go. Tell them to have fun, but not to come back.

Comments

This post currently has 3 comments. You can read the comments or leave your own thoughts on our new comments page.

Trackbacks

No trackbacks yet to this post.

    Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 5 Apr 2009
    Published on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved.