The Cost of Fear

Fear is of course a common response to threat and in this time of pandemic it is impacting every fibre of society. In a positive sense fear helps us acknowledge the extent of the danger implicit in the threat of a deadly and highly contagious virus and to respond to it in practical and common-sense ways. Personal hygiene, social distancing, the wearing of masks and even the total lockdown of cities are appropriate responses to a pandemic that has killed millions across the world.

What begins however as a healthy response to a real and present event, brings with it other threats to which we also respond with fear. Damaged economies, personal financial difficulties loss of jobs and employment opportunities and family stress related to forced isolation and working and studying from home to name just a few. A lack of obvious and likely solutions to either the virus or these additional threats, becomes a secondary cause of fear far more dangerous than the initial fear caused by the pandemic.

The absence of a panacea for fear creates an inward panic that expresses itself in ways that negatively impact the individual, their relationships and ultimately the whole of society. Anxiety and depressive disorders with the attending loss of hope and motivation are of course fear related, and while they are serious and often debilitating conditions there are some very resources available for those who seek to find a solution to and support for these mental health issues

More serious in the long term is the reality that anger is rooted in fear and is potentially the most dangerous force known to humanity. In its milder manifestation it is visible in the social media pages. Cynicism, sarcasm, conspiracy theories, malicious gossip and vicious personal attacks on politicians and others are common expressions of anger born out of fear. In its most damaging form, it manifests as violence. Domestic violence results in at least one death of a woman every week and literally hundreds of physical and emotional injuries.  Violence against emergency service personnel, the wanton damage during demonstrations, or even the refusal to abide by isolation rules made to protect others are acts of anger generated by fear.

Much of the fear and anger we see and experience at this time is not primarily caused by the current threat. Over the years many of us internalise painful emotion and it forms a grid through which we filter information about new and current threat and informs the way we react to it. For example someone whose past trauma involved strangers or people in authority, may continue to have extreme anxiety that relates to the same type of person regardless of there being no evidence that that anxiety is justified.

It is helpful to take the opportunity of understanding the particular filter you use and explore its origin, its importance to you, and the unintended negative consequences of your reactions to perceived threat being so strongly influenced by internalised painful emotion.

Next week I will write about how we might address ways of minimising the effects of fear on our lives. In the meantime, here a suggestion. This week keep a daily journal and log the expressions of anger or depression you become aware of and reflect on their relationship, if any, to fear.

Keep Safe.

Graeme.