conquering your fears - why do people do this

[gamblore99]

Example. Guy has an incredible fear of heights, so he decides to "face his fear" and bungee jump. His fear of heights isn't cured, and he just put himself through a ton of stress, yet the guy is really happy with himself and considers it a big accomplishment. Can someone explain to me why "conquering your fears" is a good thing? Unless its something that detracts from your quality of life on a regular basis it seems silly.

[Pete H]

Because it's the best drug you'll ever try.

[Edge34]

I don't know, maybe people just enjoy testing their limitations and proving to themselves that they can do something that they didn't think possible?

Just a wild, wild guess. I guess if you're cool with not testing your fears, good for you, but why worry about other people feeling better about themselves?

[daryn]

i thought the point was he overcame the fear by getting out there and doing it, and after he does so he realizes that it was dumb to fear the thing, thus not fearing the thing anymore.

even if it doesn't work that way, it's a challenge to overcome. how isn't that something to celebrate?

[A_C_Slater]

People like drama. Makes them feel like they in movie.

[Blarg]

Fears detract from quality of life pretty consistently, so that seems reason enough. Plus learning to handle fear without going to pieces or just freezing is very useful in life. We'll face scary situations until the day we die, which is of course pretty likely to be scary too. It's also tough to shore up a weakness without working on it, and fear and weakness are often tightly interwoven.

[capninsano]

I fear presentations. I've given probably 25 since I started college. I am not cured. I would prefer not to face this fear anymore.

[edfurlong]

Beta blockers.

[Vyse]

[ QUOTE ]
Because it's the best drug you'll ever try.

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[Sun Wukong]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Because it's the best drug you'll ever try.

[/ QUOTE ]

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Exactly try it and you'll know exactly why.