Conquering Fears

Part of my Journey to Thin is about going out of my comfort zone and doing things that I may not have felt comfortable doing when I was larger. Getting thinner is only a part of the journey, a big part of it is about gaining confidence and strength.

I am SO afraid of diving boards. I always have been. Not only did I have images of draining the pool when I jumped in, scared of what people might be thinking of me, I was also mentally afraid of that diving board, afraid of making that jump. I have pictures of when I was a little girl taking swimming lessons and I climbed up on the high dive and was too afraid to jump off, so the lifeguard came up and jumped off with me. So this is a fear that I’ve always had, probably since then.

I have been contemplating jumping off of the diving board for a while now. My philosophy is that if I am afraid to do something, then I should do it. So today, I decided I would jump off the diving board at the pool. So I walked over to the diving board (not a high dive, lol), saw the steps and said, “I don’t know if I can do this.” My brother kept encouraging me telling me there was nothing to be afraid of. So I climbed up the steps, and climbed back down. And then I climbed up again, walked to the edge of the diving board, and climbed back down. My legs were literally shaking. I was so scared. Finally, I confidently said to myself, "I can do this!” and I climbed up on that diving board, took a deep breath and just jumped.

And I enjoyed it!

Fear conquered. It made me feel strong.

This is a concept that can be applied in so many different aspects of life. If you’re scared to do something, but want to—muster up that courage and believe in yourself. Your legs might be shaking and it might take a few tries, but doing things that are outside of your comfort zone is always worth it. It’s what life is about, experiencing new things and living life to the fullest.