Natural Fears
A friend shared that recently his wife took two of their children to the Pediatrician’s office to get their scheduled shots. The youngest, a one year old, took his shots “like a man” and after it was over clapped his hands with sheer delight that it was done. His sister, however, about age four was not so happy with the whole idea and after receiving her shot informed the doctor she would like nothing more than to hurry home, get a hammer, come back and promptly hit him with it!
The doctor found the whole situation amusing while the mom was mortified that her daughter would actually tell the doctor about her thoughts of vengeance. The small daughter soon learned that such deliberate, unkind verbalization would require an apology, which she would do in writing later that day.
I understand the distaste little people have toward getting shots. The needle hurts upon injection, you can feel the medication being pumped into your blood stream and the after affects aren’t to grand either since the area is tender to touch and sometimes even affects the muscle area causing movement to be hindered for a day or so, not to mention the occasional fever the shot induces. But all in all it’s usually a two or three day problem and then it just goes away.
I remember when my little 2-year-old granddaughter was playing on her small slide. She was headed down the slide head first (mom was near by) when she grabbed onto the side of the slide stopping her decent down and began crying and screaming in fear. My first thought it was the idea of going down the slide head first, but as her momma reached for screaming daughter, I was surprised to learn it was not the fear of sliding down the slide but the sight of a small bug she was nose to nose with. An hour later while walking back from the mailbox, a small flying creature, perhaps a fly or gnat, landed on her tiny hand and again she screamed in paralyzing fear.
My daughter shared the story of a little girl whose first visit, age four to a dental office included being “strapped in.” The child was terrified and refused future visits anywhere even when being assured the dentist would not strap her in and just look at her teeth without any hint of pain. It took many visits to reach beyond this point, when as fate would have it, she needed her tonsils removed. The anesthetic wore off too soon and she was left in horrible pain and since she associates it with her mouth and the dentist, she’s refusing to allow entry into her mouth once again!
My husband has a fear of heights. I remember on our honeymoon we visited Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina. One of the attractions to the area includes a mile high swinging bridge. My then new husband, squelched his fear determined to reach the other side, which we accomplished, after he determined he would just not look down. On our way back, however, two little boys about seven or eight years old were completely enjoying the bridge and added excitement by running into first one side of the bridge and then the other, giving new meaning to “mile high swinging bridge!” Needless to say, it was not an adventure my husband wants to repeat!
Parents of a newborn with disabilities can easily become fearful of not being properly educated or able to care for their child. They may even fear they have birthed this child by mistake, sure they aren’t the right parents for the challenges before them. Yet, often as they acclimate to their situation, and their new infant, they come to realize their love overrides their fear.
My personal fear is snakes, while other people are frightened of spiders (not that I like them either!). What causes this paralyzing fear? Can it be overcome? The truth is, we all have fears of something, but there are only two things we are supposedly naturally afraid of: the fear of falling and a fear related to loud noises. All other fears are said to be learned, usually during our early childhood. (It may be a true statement, but I’m not absolutely certain I believe that!)
Most of us will admit to having a fear of something, although there are those who will insist nothing can frighten them! But I encourage you to consider what you are afraid of and why. Are there instances where your fear reaction was greater than the danger—or where your love overcame the fear? I’d love for you to share your story!
#NaturalFears #ChildhoodFear #Fearful #Fear #Spiders #Bugs #Falling #FearOfHeights #Disabilities
https://highcountry.guide/mile-high-swinging-bridge/
http://heilablog.com/2013/09/30/did-you-know-that-we-are-born-with-only-two-innate-fears