Unnatural fear of death

[Staralfur1999]

I know it may pretty common to fear dying, but it often gets to the point where I have panic attacks thinking about it. It's sort of a combination of fear that I've wasted my life, fear that my health will dive-bomb at any moment, and fear of what comes after death. Fear of just not existing. When i get sucked too deep thinking about this stuff, I often pause for a moment and try to comprehend the possibility of experiencing nothingness, and it absolutely wrecks me - I start crying, shaking, panicking and the worst part is that I just can't stop doing this to myself.


How do I get out of the habit of thinking about this stuff? And why does my mind keep returning here?

 

[Aree Wongwanlee]

It's normal to fear death. Death means the end of everything we know. What's on the other side? Is there even anything on the other side? This is where religion plays a very important role. Regardless of whether it's true or not, what religion says about the afterlife gives us hope that death is not the end of everything, that there is more on the other side. Maybe, when the time comes, there really isn't anything after death. However, the hope of something on the other side would make our passage so much easier.

 

[John Snort]

Let not the thought of death worry you. The more you try not to think about something, the harder it gets to stop yourself from thinking about it. Something that could help you stop thinking about death is by picturing yourself in a beautiful place. It might take your mind of the unpleasant thoughts. And when they do come think of death as a bridge to this beautiful place. It might make it (death) seem less terrifying.

 

[fuzyon]

I used to be afraid of death as well until I read a quote from Mark Twain, it goes a little something like "I'm not afraid of death and I will never be. When I'm going to be dead I'm going to be like when I was born, I won't care if I'm alive or not" and that hit me hard. I'm now looking forward to the future and the blessings life can give you.

 

[Staralfur1999]

I used to be afraid of death as well until I read a quote from Mark Twain' date=' it goes a little something like "I'm not afraid of death and I will never be. When I'm going to be dead I'm going to be like when I was born, I won't care if I'm alive or not" and that hit me hard. I'm now looking forward to the future and the blessings life can give you.[/quote']
That train of thought usually helps me out. Or realising that it will just be endless peace rather than endless fear or endless suffering.

 

[lexinonomous]

This is something I also struggle with, especially if I am already experiencing anxiety. Death is a very scary thing. Not knowing what is going to happen after we die is really frightening. I sometimes take comfort in knowing that I am not alone in death. Everyone I know and all of the strangers around me will die one day, which leaves me feeling a bit better. I am not going to be the only person experiencing death. If death is nothingness, we won't get to experience death and won't know what hit us. I think of death as being put to sleep when going into surgery.


Sadly, avoiding these feelings is going to involve avoiding these thoughts. The thought of death is what is going to bring along that anxiety. Distracting your mind might help when you begin to think about death.

 

[djanx]

How do I get out of the habit of thinking about this stuff? And why does my mind keep returning here?

Well, you can easily get out of it by using statistics and faith


Look, even if you're an atheist, you can read what psychologists like Brian Weiss say. They've conducted thousands of past-life regression therapies, which may sound like crazy, but it is a genuine therapy used by real psychologists. And what you'll realize is that there is plenty to do after death. Just read "Many Lives Many Masters" why don't you


Also, death is inevitable, so it makes no sense to fear something that's inevitable.


The way you die is also something. Use statistics to quell your fears. For example, people fear plane crashes - but probability of it actually happening is one in eleven million! Go figure!


Don't be afraid of death, be afraid of not living well enough.

 

[kgord]

I think most people fear death to a degree, and if there is a history of early death in the family, they may fear it more. I agree with the above poster, concentrate on living well, if you do that, I think you will find your fear of death diminishes. Living less well than you could be is to be feared more than death in my opinion. Treat your fear of death as an unhealthy thought process and treat it accordingly. I think you will be surprised how quickly it can extinguish.

 

[Staralfur1999]

Just to add: I think a lot of this fear came from my anxiety and depression and more so how they actually impacted my life. They actually forced me to drop out of college at risk of a severe breakdown. And after that, I found it hard to motivate myself to do anything. Which led to thoughts that I'm wasting my life, which then subsequently led to thoughts that I will die having achieved nothing.

 

[Panic57]

I know it may pretty common to fear dying, but it often gets to the point where I have panic attacks thinking about it. It's sort of a combination of fear that I've wasted my life, fear that my health will dive-bomb at any moment, and fear of what comes after death. Fear of just not existing. When i get sucked too deep thinking about this stuff, I often pause for a moment and try to comprehend the possibility of experiencing nothingness, and it absolutely wrecks me - I start crying, shaking, panicking and the worst part is that I just can't stop doing this to myself.
How do I get out of the habit of thinking about this stuff? And why does my mind keep returning here?

Make a bucket list, write down everything you want to do before you die. A fear of wasting you life might really come from the thought that you don't have a direction to your life. Once you figure out what you want to do, every time you feel that worry that you're wasting your time and that your heath might dive-bomb, look at your list and figure out something to knock off it. It's not unreasonable to fear death and dying to soon. I have it to. But I'm slowly working on my to do list, it helps. Then you look at what you'v accomplished. I take inspiration from Martina from EatYourKimchi, she has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and she is slowly finding it hard to move or walk. But while she's still young and can walk, she and her husband are moving to Japan so that she can see all the Japanese temples despite the fact she's made a home for herself in South Korea. Since it was her dream to live in multiple countries and see the world, she is making a conscious choice and taking action, while living with EDS. I think If your healthy now, figure out the things you want to do while your young like traveling and accomplishing a big goal. Just remember that you're not helpless in your life.

 

[Staralfur1999]

Make a bucket list, write down everything you want to do before you die. A fear of wasting you life might really come from the thought that you don't have a direction to your life. Once you figure out what you want to do, every time you feel that worry that you're wasting your time and that your heath might dive-bomb, look at your list and figure out something to knock off it. It's not unreasonable to fear death and dying to soon. I have it to. But I'm slowly working on my to do list, it helps. Then you look at what you'v accomplished. I take inspiration from Martina from EatYourKimchi, she has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and she is slowly finding it hard to move or walk. But while she's still young and can walk, she and her husband are moving to Japan so that she can see all the Japanese temples despite the fact she's made a home for herself in South Korea. Since it was her dream to live in multiple countries and see the world, she is making a conscious choice and taking action, while living with EDS. I think If your healthy now, figure out the things you want to do while your young like traveling and accomplishing a big goal. Just remember that you're not helpless in your life.

Thanks, that gives me a good plan actually. I guess I've sorted of started a bucket list; I plan to visit Ukraine to see my girlfriend next year, and since working towards that goal I've just felt a lot more at peace in general. It gives me something to look forward to. Minus all the anxiety that comes with thinking about how big a deal traveling alone is to me, but that's a different story entirely.


It's mainly just laying in bed at night, being inactive and just laying there shrouded in darkness kind of makes my mind race a bit. Probably a pretty good idea to get out of bed and add one thing to my bucket list every time I feel that way, what do you reckon?


You're absolutely right though. The only way I can really put this out of my mind is by living as much as I possibly can. I actually live 2 roads away from the Irish sea, and I recently started walking there every evening to watch the sunset. I had a mini revelation as I was sitting on the beach and realised that I am missing out on things by letting this stuff drag me down.

 

[explorerX7]

many people will have a fear of something or the other. its shows how fickle we all are. I had a friend who had seemed to be totally fearless, however, if a flying cockroach should appear, he would missing from the area immediately. Such was his fear of this insect. I can understand many persons fearing death, however, I don't give the idea much thought because It's a certainty that we will all have to die

 

[Surrender]

I don't fear death but I fear the pain of a permanent loss, if that makes sense. I'm not good at dealing with grief and I probably form too strong of an attachment to people. I know that death is only a transition into the spiritual world, yet it still pains me to think of the separation the occurs between the living and the dead. I know as part of the body of Christ we will be reunited on the other side, however I have attachments to people who I do not think are saved yet, or to people who have passed over that I am unsure of what their spiritual convictions were. On the flip side, I have met some quiet believers who I feel drawn too, but our life circumstances have it that we are only ships passing, but yet for some reason I just know I will be joyfully united with them on the other side, in the family of Christ.

 

[ReadmeByAmy]

I knew that our life had a beginning and an end and that we had our own designated time and God knew when is the right time for us to die. That is why I am not afraid to die or fear of death. It is better instead of thinking about this thing we better enjoy our life to the fullest while we are still living in this world and to be kind and to do goodness to ourselves and to other people.

 

[tinnie]

Death is something I try not to think about, because the concept of not existing is just too crazy. Even though there was a point when I didn't exist and the universe was totally fine. I don't really believe in God or afterlife so that makes it even scarier. But the good thing is, that if there really isn't anything after death, we won't get to find out anyway.


But as I've said, this is a thought I'd rather avoid. It's not worth worrying about. 

 

[lexinonomous]

I don't fear death but I fear the pain of a permanent loss, if that makes sense. I'm not good at dealing with grief and I probably form too strong of an attachment to people. I know that death is only a transition into the spiritual world, yet it still pains me to think of the separation the occurs between the living and the dead. I know as part of the body of Christ we will be reunited on the other side, however I have attachments to people who I do not think are saved yet, or to people who have passed over that I am unsure of what their spiritual convictions were. On the flip side, I have met some quiet believers who I feel drawn too, but our life circumstances have it that we are only ships passing, but yet for some reason I just know I will be joyfully united with them on the other side, in the family of Christ.

I can completely understand this. The pain of permanent loss is something I fear on a day to day basis. After losing someone earlier this year, it has finally hit me that I will never see him again. Sadly, I cannot wrap my head around the idea of God, so it's hard for me to let go of something. The idea of someone seizing to exist is scary to me. 


I would love to reconnect with my loved ones in death. It'd be amazing to be able to see them again and be able to enjoy the good times all over again.

 

[iArvee]

I randomly think about how it would feel to die, especially when watching Final Destination movies.  But it's natural, I guess. It's bound to happen to anyone of us at any time. When we do kick the bucket, I hope we've been able to appreciate life as much as we could.

 

[hades_leae]

All you can do is accept your thoughts, and learn from them. I many times through out the day have the worst thoughts and I don't fight myself about it. There is no use in letting your mind destroy you, the things that you think about can be the most random, but just because you don't like them doesn't mean you have issues.


I feel like many people out there try to seek help for something that cannot be fixed, no one has medicine to keep you from thinking about things you don't want to think about, you mind works in it's own way.

 

[Alex]

People do fear death as it has been ingrained in us as sad and tragic and even painful. However, as I get older it is a natural part of life and overthinking about it won't prevent death, but we can lead and make healthy choices.


So how do you stop feeling like this? Well, I stopped feeling like I should do more or I have wasted my life when I traveled to some poorer countries and realized I had done a lot and am fortunate to have choices. I have traveled to Nepal, Thailand, and other countries where people live on next to nothing and have few choices in life, but the kids run around happy, and families and the community take care of one another. It grounded me and made me realize that you can't always help your own situation, and that we live our lives in the best way we can.

 

[Novelangel]

Of course people fear death. It's understandable considering that death is an unnatural state. We were designed to live forever, so we fight death with every fiber of our beings. The fall from grace meant the fall from eternal physical life. There's a reason why Methuselah lived well over 900 years... people were designed to do that and when that was taken away from us, it was like that proverbial kick in the pants. We still haven't gotten over it and we never will. There IS an afterlife... everyone beats around the bush, afraid to talk about that, but it's there and we shouldn't ignore it. We have immortal souls at least, so even if our bodies do decay, we live on. This is how people of faith manage to live out their lives, get older, and still remain happy. If it weren't for faith of some kind... a belief system, all of us would go insane well before we reached our golden years. Even atheists believe in something, and that something is often geared around helping that person get a grip on death.