Fear and How to Control It

**The_Beak** · Posted On: 5/07/2010 12:00am

You cannot control fear. Every time you are even kinda afraid you faint and ****/piss your pants. This has been my experience.

***battlefields*** · Posted On: 5/07/2010 12:13am

Originally Posted by The_Beak

You cannot control fear every time you are even kinda afraid you faint and ****/piss your pants. This has been my experience.

Fucking snuffaROFLgus.

**Uglybugly** · Posted On: 5/07/2010 5:06am

The thing with me is that I get this shaking after a while when I am in a fight. my adrenaline ends or something. I am pretty much useless when this happens so I go out strong in the beginning.

I escalate fast and make it clear that there is gonna be a fight in 5 seconds. this will either send the guy packing or I will have to send him packing which is usually no problem as long as I do it before I start shaking.

I would like to learn how to avoid this shakyness though..

**Kovacs** · Posted On: 5/07/2010 5:45am

In the context of fear and fighting I also agree with sparring. Before I started kickboxing and MT I was fucking useless at fighting, I'd either overreact immediately or run when it wasn't even necessary. Adrenaline would make me shake and my heart rate would be all over the place and that would make me do dumb stuff like hold my breath.

Sparring helped me to 'get over' being hit and I learned to breath properly and calm down under stress. On top of that competing is a good idea, I've only been in a few interclubs but after feeling fine sparring lots of 3 minute rounds after circuits I thought 3x2 minutes would be a breeze. It nearly killed me as I totally underestimated the shift in mindset between sparring (even hard) and fighting.

I'm very good at avoiding trouble but if I ever get stuck with any, rather then feel my adrenaline flood my system, I can breath easy and carry on as usual. Naturally I'm wary but I believe that MA has significantly improved my chances of not getting fucked up.

**gregaquaman** · Posted On: 5/07/2010 12:39pm

It is not just fear. Fear is going to be the common reaction for most people when they are about to fight. It is more the Idea that you are the only person who suffers from it and if a fight dosent come to blows you have somehow lost because you were afraid.

Unfortunatly I will have to start this with a "I have been a bouncer for 15 years (Blah Blah)".
I have been involved in a lot of conflict and have found that most people are afraid before a fight. (even the jumping up and down yelling ones).
I have found that fear can also be very fast and a bit random
I find it is easier to accept that I will be afraid rather than think I am doing something wrong when I feel that.
I also shake before a fight. I dont think it is a big deal.

When a fight dosn't come to blows my brain works like this. Conflict= fear. bulshit bullshit bullshit. threat goes away. Relief. Then suddenly I entertain thoughts like I should have bashed him I am a *****.

logicly of course this is wrong avoiding fights is better. And so I just prepare for the emotional hit and move on with my life.

lets put this more simply

recently told him of a fight I had almost been in, and how I was paralyzed with fear; rightly so (the kid had about 30 of his friends and had been know to pretty much **** kids up)

He had 30 hard guys backing him up and diddnt have the stones to flog you

**Craig Jenkins** · Posted On: 5/07/2010 2:56pm

Ask some of the vets and current military servicemembers - lots on the board. I'd certainly be interested in their thoughts.

**Mr. Machette** · Posted On: 5/07/2010 3:29pm

Originally Posted by kayman101

Humans have spent 90% (or more) of our existence as the prey. We are amazingly slow, weak animals that rely on vigilance to survive. With our brains hardwired to fear and flee, it's no wonder that we have so many individuals in therapy, addicted to drugs, or suffering in silence. Martial arts are good for the psyche because they give us a sense of self protection that we innately lack as a species.

I'm going to have to disagree with that, since us hominids have been clawing our way to the top of the food chain with rocks and sticks since we first had thumbs.

Even our nastiest natural predators and competitors (sabertoothed cats and Ursus Speleaus ) apparently were hunted to extinction by our ancestors.

That makes about as much prey animals, as wolves.

**devilboy7778** · Posted On: 5/07/2010 4:12pm

Originally Posted by Craig Jenkins

Ask some of the vets and current military servicemembers - lots on the board. I'd certainly be interested in their thoughts.

I agree
in my Wing Chun class there was a guy who was in the military who was always shaking, I think because of shell shock. Do any military feel these effects still?
:cry:

**kenpo man** · Posted On: 5/08/2010 8:25pm

once i heard a quote from a martial artist "the more u sweat in training, the less u bleed in battle". if u prepare yourself properly fear will not occur...only confidence and focus

***battlefields*** · Posted On: 5/08/2010 8:50pm

Machette, since we learnt to use tools and be hunters this has been the case but that is probably less than 10% of our evolutionary background. Way less.