We can learn to live with fear by understanding that it can't always be something so negative. Understand better the meaning of self-preservation and some examples to understand it better.

What is self-preservation?

Self-preservation is a tendency that a person has to preserve his or her own integrity or existence In order to keep himself safe, a person will do everything to ensure his survival in any situation, so he will keep away from all dangers or events that might risk his life.

Individuals who preserve themselves have an innate desire to stay alive. This feeling is common to mankind, something that has directly contributed to our survival over time. So much so that the fear we feel is responsible for avoiding some tragedies in our lives.

However, fear must be handled with balance so that it doesn't take over our lives or make us take too many risks. For example, a person who is afraid to travel by plane or who risks drunk driving. If on the one hand an individual preserves himself, on the other he takes unnecessary risks.

The role of pain

Self-preservation in psychology has been studied to better understand the individual's relationship with his feelings. Pain is a fundamental part of this survival mechanism in the person, avoiding risky exposures.

Through pain a person has the incentive he needs to get away from any danger Since he feels that his integrity may be at risk, he is unlikely to face the cause of his fear, especially since he is afraid of getting hurt and doesn't want to feel pain.

Thus, the individual moves away from danger to avoid injury, new painful experiences, and to heal himself.

Fear

So is pain, Fear is responsible for making an individual seek security quickly This is why this feeling influences your organism, so that it causes chemical changes to ensure your survival. For example, people in risky situations whose adrenaline in the body increases their strength impressively.

In addition, the senses of the human being who is afraid are heightened: sight, touch, smell, and hearing become more sensitive in order to protect the individual. And the person's own perception becomes sharper in order to anticipate dangers and other threats.

When the child is frightened, he never grows up

Surely you have already witnessed an adult overprotecting his or her own children. When we are children we always carry some emotional insecurity about everything and everyone. Although this insecurity is common, it is fought aggressively by a distorted self-preservation.

To deal with this insecurity a person may emotionally repress himself in an exaggerated way. Unconsciously it is a way for her to protect herself from what she believes to be a threat Thus, he grows up without understanding his own emotions and desires, channeling these forces externally in an ineffective way.

However, if the individual's instinct for self-preservation is healthy, he will certainly cope better with his constraints, and therefore activities that would be positive for him are seen and experienced in a constructive way. Even if you value your safety, a person with emotional balance will know how to communicate and interact with the world .

When instinct gets out of hand

A person's will for self-preservation should not limit his relationship with the outside world. Because of the distorted instinct to preserve themselves, many individuals end up deforming their own personality. So much so that they show in their behavior in:

• prejudice, especially with well-resolved people;
• greed;
• preconceived ideas about various topics;
• excessive attachment to material goods;
• constant repression of their own wills, generating frustration.

No one is obliged to serve the other

Even if a person with self-preservation instincts doesn't notice, he seeks the safety of others. In many cases, the individual almost forces others to take care of him in many ways. Not only does he fail to investigate the mistakes he makes, which would be healthier, but he also becomes someone toxic to others.

We can conclude perhaps that this individual has a very great fear when it comes to change. That is why he is reluctant to mature and invest in his own development in order to always be supported Just as a small child does, he must be cared for and protected at all times.

Looking at it from another perspective, this individual has a quest for power in relation to the people around him. He becomes demanding, so that his desires and whims must be attended to promptly. Knowing that other people are at his disposal, he will abuse the power impulse aggressively to get what he wants.

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Examples

Finding examples of self-preservation in our daily lives is not as difficult a task as you might imagine. In fact, we all have a similar instinct, but it manifests itself in varying ways depending on our personality. For example:

Drinking and driving

If you are driving with friends to a party and everyone is drinking, returning home drunk is extremely risky Knowing that the chances of getting hurt while driving drunk are high, you will certainly prefer to preserve yourself this way.

On the other hand, there are people who ignore the danger signs as much as possible, so they drive while intoxicated, ignoring the preservation signs that their body sends, and cause serious accidents.

Interaction with strange animals

You have probably encountered some strange animal inside your home, such as a scorpion or a snake, and in order to stay alive, you have tried to get rid of the animal so that it stays as far away from the place as possible. However, many people still insist on ignoring the dangers of handling wild or venomous animals without any kind of prior instruction.

Some cases of hospitalization involving bites and stings have happened because of the improper handling of these animals. If the person had followed his or her preservation instinct, he or she would certainly be fine and the animal would be far away from them.

Final considerations on self-preservation

Self-preservation is a natural survival tool for humankind and other animals However, it is necessary to know how to control this fear when it starts to control you and dictate the rules of your life.

Being afraid is healthy, advisable, and part of us, because in this way situations that would certainly cause us harm are avoided. However, this will to preserve yourself should not prevent you from interacting with the outside world. Live, experiment, make mistakes, and above all, make every second worthwhile.

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