We fear change

Moving on in life is one of the scariest things you can do. Whether it is moving house, changing schools, travelling alone, a new job, or even a new relationship. It's a known fact that we fear change.

It's like the night before you start high school. You are starting education in a brand new place, with new people, in a brand new unknown place. Can you remember the nerves of walking to the bus stop? I can. I was sat next to my toilet, thinking I was going to hurl through the fear. My dad sat on the bath next to me, trying to calm me down, but what could he say? Don't worry Jacqui, you may get lost, you may fall out with lots of new people, you may break down with nerves...but! You have to do it for years yet so get used to it? Thing is, I had no choice but to suck it up that day, and of course my first day wasn't as bad as I thought. It led me to think though, how many times have I let nerves get into the way of me doing something?

Nerves have definantly stopped me doing many social things, I remember the night before my first house party. I was invited to join a friend the next day in a full blown house party. I only knew a few people and there would be alcohol galore. Now, at the age of 16 believe it or not I had not been to many social gatherings, and I had only drunk alcohol with either my family or on one occasion with my friend, when I got drunk for the first time. I was so nervous, and I wasn't sure how I would adapt to the situation. I stood at the end of my mum's bed, hanging off the bedpost and confessed my fear, how nervous I was. What my mum should have done was assure me that things would be fine, and calm my nerves, but my mum is way too conservative, and would rather I sat indoors on my own, safe, than go out. She decided to notch up my nerves, telling me a fake story about her friend who got hurt at a party, and then said 'it was up to me'. It was never up to me, lets face it. When your mother gives you a choice, if you don't side with them your choice is wrong and you will pay for it. I didn't go, and I felt so much more relaxed. If I had of gone however, I would have met my favorite actor from the soaps that night. He had turned up at the party as he was a relation to the hostess. I kicked myself for ages for chickening out.

Maybe a more relatable example of the fear of change that we have, is dying your hair. That day you decide you want to go blonde, or pink or ginger. A big permanent change, that everyone will see if it goes wrong. You can be so sure that you want to do it, you can even book an appointment and sit down in front of a stylist with a picture in your hand, but the second they say 'are you sure' that's it. The fear kicks in. What if it goes wrong? What if it doesn't suit me? What if my hair falls out? To the even more ridiculous ones like what if I meet the love of my life and he hates the hair color? What if I have a job interview and they don't hire me because of it? Lets be honest, faced with the option to do a dramatic change or a safe option most of you out there will choose the safe one. Why do something dangerous when you could do something safe?

My best friend Megan is going travelling by herself across the planet to Sweden,  Brazil and Portugal  She has never done it before and has booked things last minute. She has so much guts, and I admire her for it. I don't think I could do it, for one I am scared of planes, so that is a challenge in itself, but being on your own in a strange place, you have no idea where you are going or even how to communicate with them. The thought that instead of waking up in my own comfy bed, waking up in a tent somewhere in the middle of a strange country. Lets be honest. That takes balls.

Thinking over it, I think it's time I, and all of you, took charge of our lives and do something different. Something that involves change, doing that thing that scares you that you haven't had the guts to do. I'm not that kind of person that says do something that scares you everyday, because lets face it. Who does that? Unless you spend every day watching horror films, but I think if now and again, we took that thing that scares us the most. That job we want to take, that place we want to go, that person we want to commit to, that hair color we want to go, and stare it right in the eyes, and do it! It might take time, Rome wasn't built in a day, but think about it. How much more relaxed are you going to be, and happier! That one thing will no longer be holding you back, and the quicker we face it, the quicker we will no longer fear change.

For me? Well I just hope to take a leaf out of Austin Powers' book and admit that 'I too like to live dangerously'.

Chann

Any comments or suggestions, feel free to tweet me @wackyjacky1994