In Which Winnie-the-Pooh Discovers that Most Fears Don't Exist Outside Your Head

I have horrible anxiety. The kind that makes me stay home and worry that everything is going to come crashing down around me if I leave me house. The debilitating kind. Needless to say, it's not fun.

I go through cycles, so there are times I am fine and I can live like a relatively normal person. Then one day I wake up and I can't leave my house. It seems random, although it really isn't: There's almost always a trigger somewhere, it's just a matter of locating it. But it's hard to find and I am usually back on my feet and returning to my relatively normal life way before I have time to think about the trigger.

Today I thought of the title of this post, and  how our fears almost always live inside our heads. We are afraid to try something scary, we are afraid to make a move into the unknown, we are afraid to grab for what we want because it means letting go of the safe, boring, drab. While mine is an illness, it is a similar thing: I'm afraid of leaving the safety of the known for the unknown.

My unknowns, though, have brought my amazing husband, my fantastic friends, my wonderful volunteer work with my church, my life. Imagine staying home and having none of the things you have. Nothing is scarier than that, is it?

So let the fear motivate you, let them give you the energy to move beyond your comfort zone and into the scary area where the greater rewards are. Think about the worst that could happen, and remember that your couch will be there for you. Trust me, mine has never once let me down.

Oh, and I'll tell you my scary place: the gym. So that's my goal and that's where I'll be headed.