Many science fiction fans who experience anxiety have taken inspiration from Dune, the classic science fiction novel by Frank Herbert, and its movie adaptations.
The world of Dune is characterized by political maneuvering between ruling aristocratic houses and powerful organizations. One of these organizations is the Bene Gesserit. In the story, this all-female order has existed for thousands of years, and has developed advanced mental and physical training techniques. This training gives them abilities that can appear superhuman or magical to outsiders. (Sound familiar? Some argue that George Lucas was inspired by the Bene Gesserit when he created the Jedi from Star Wars!)
As part of their training, they learn to master their physiology and emotions. One way they do this is the famed “Litany Against Fear,” a saying that serves to focus their minds in the face of overwhelming circumstances. It reads:
“I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past, I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”
First off, it sounds super cool. Second, for those who struggle with anxiety, it suggests a way out. What if you could learn to recite this when feeling nervous or afraid, and use it to conquer your fear? In fact, many fans of the books and movies have actually memorized the Litany and used it in tense situations.
I am both a fan of Dune and someone who specializes in treating issues of anxiety. So I can’t help but notice that there are parts of the Litany that don’t match with what we know about human psychology. And, there are some parts that are spot on.
Let’s break it down!
I must not fear.
As a piece of writing, this is a fantastic opening line. It’s succinct, powerful, and dramatic. As a piece of psychological advice, it’s…not so great. It implies you have a choice about what emotions you feel, and that you can stop yourself from feeling certain emotions.
Another problem with this line is that it blurs the distinction between an emotional event that you don’t have control over (i.e. feeling fear), and behavior that you do have control over (e.g. I must not run away.)
If you are inclined to believe that feelings are something you can control, think how silly it would read if, instead of fear, it was against a pleasant emotion. For example, if it was the Litany Against Pizza, it might start, “I must not enjoy this pizza…” Can you imagine being able to make yourself not like something that you enjoy?
In addition, research shows that emotion suppression (a fancy way of saying “trying to not feel your feelings”) is bad for your health, both physical and mental.
Overall, a great opening line, but bad advice.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Once again, a great line, very “heavy metal.” Numerous musicians have incorporated it into their work. And, there’s actually something to it.
There are two parts of our brains that are important to know about here. There is the amygdala (ah-MIG-da-la), a small structure deep in our brains that is responsible for perceiving threats and activating the fight-or-flight response. In other words, the amygdala’s job is to “sound the alarm” when a threat is perceived. When our amygdala is activated, that is what we experience as fear and anxiety. Then there is the prefrontal cortex, the area just behind our forehead. The prefrontal cortex is responsible for rationality, logical thought, planning, and decision making.
The thing is, the amygdala doesn’t listen to the prefrontal cortex so well. Especially when the amygdala is activated, it becomes relatively insensitive to input from other areas of the brain. At the same time, when the amygdala is activated, its signals to the rest of the brain come through loud and clear.
This is why we can often have the experience of logically knowing something is not a threat, and still feel terrified. The prefrontal cortex is trying to do its logical thing, and the amygdala is doing its fear thing, and its fear thing is LOUD. For example, almost everyone knows that flying on an airplane is safer than driving in a car, and yet many of us still feel a moment of panic when the airplane hits turbulence or makes strange noises.
Strong feelings of fear or anxiety can thus challenge our ability to act based on reason and logic. Psychologist Daniel Goleman calls this “amygdala hijack.” When this happens, our ability to evaluate a situation logically, to see the bigger picture, and to act thoughtfully rather than instinctively is impaired.
From this perspective, our “mind” is that part of us which thinks, knows, remembers, plans, and decides. When we are overwhelmed by fear, then fear truly is the “mind-killer.”
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
This line is re-emphasizing the previous line. Yes, amygdala hijack can and does occur, and it impairs our ability to think and act rationally. “Total obliteration” is a bit dramatic though. Once again, it’s a good bit of engaging writing, but it overstates what actually happens.
I will face my fear.
From my perspective as a therapist who works with fear and anxiety, this is where it starts to get good. A consistent research finding in psychology is that avoidance of fear causes fear to persist. Avoiding fear may bring you temporary relief, but there is a cost. It keeps you afraid.
Facing what you fear is essential to overcoming fear. If you never face your fears, you get stuck in a pattern of avoidance.
A quick tangent here is important. Not everything that is feared can, or should, be overcome. There are some experiences that we are supposed to fear. If we didn’t, it would put our survival at risk. For example, it is healthy and natural to feel fear if you are crossing the street and a car is speeding towards you.
Even people who have become accustomed to extreme situations still have things they fear. People who participate in extreme sports may have overcome their fear of heights, speed, or even their thoughts of what might go wrong. However, they still fear a lack of preparation, equipment failure, or recklessness, and they act accordingly.
However, in our modern world, we often feel excessive fear about things which are not truly dangerous. For example, research shows that many people are more afraid of public speaking than they are of death! Similarly, we are often afraid of things like flying, speaking to people we do not know well, the possibility of rare diseases, heights, needles, looking for a new job, and so on.
The first step in overcoming fear is to face it. Meaning, to do what you are afraid of, rather than avoiding what you are afraid of. After all, if you always avoid something you are afraid of, you never get the chance to learn how to stop being afraid of it. It just doesn’t happen without actually facing what you fear. Whether it is learning to ride a bike, or swim, starting a new job, or getting married. There’s no substitute for actually doing it.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
Another great line that I completely agree with. This is what psychologists call “acceptance.” Acceptance is the opposite of trying to avoid, get rid of, or change feelings. This means allowing yourself to feel unpleasant and painful feelings. This doesn’t mean you like the feelings, want the feelings, or try to find a silver lining to the feelings. It’s just that you “permit” the feelings to happen without struggling with them.
A normal question is, “Why would I want to accept unpleasant and painful feelings instead of trying to avoid them, get rid of them, or control them?” There are two main reasons. One is that the things we do to try and avoid, get rid of, or change feelings are often unhelpful or destructive. If you’re afraid to fly on airplanes, then avoiding flying may be unhelpful because it prevents you from traveling to places you want to visit, from seeing family, or from taking certain jobs. If you’re socially anxious and you use alcohol or drugs in order to socialize, this will likely be harmful to your health and your relationships.
The second reason is that doing things you care deeply about, or doing something that involves growth and change, often results in uncomfortable feelings. You might be scared to try something new, or afraid that you will fail at something important. You might worry about putting in the hard work needed to achieve a goal. People who are unable to accept these inevitable feelings will often find themselves putting off or avoiding the things that make life worth living because they are unwilling to have the feelings that will occur. People who are accepting of these feelings are able to persist and live a richer life.
When it comes to fear and anxiety, acceptance helps us to focus on doing what we want to do, on living the life we want to live, even when we feel like avoiding or running away. It also allows us to stick with fearful situations long enough to learn that we have what it takes to face our fears.
And when it has gone past, I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Another line I agree with. “When it has gone past,” points to the fact that emotions are always temporary. Even the most intense fear and panic do pass. When we face our fears, and allow ourselves to feel whatever we’re going to feel, eventually the fear or anxiety passes. And this is what allows us to unlearn our fears. We get through the situation and realize that all the outcomes we were worried about did not happen, or even if they did happen, they were not so bad.
“Turning the inner eye to see its path,” refers to our ability to be mindful and to observe what happens in our body and mind. When we avoid fear and anxiety, we never get the chance to observe these feelings run their course. When we face our fears and allow the feelings to happen, we are able to observe that the feelings follow a cycle of occuring, peaking or plateauing, and then fading away.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.
I think this is a fantastic line because it has a sense of mastery, which is one of our basic psychological needs. It also illustrates that you are not defined by your feelings and thoughts. As the previous line suggested, all feelings and thoughts are temporary. This final line emphasizes that what persists is that part of us that contains, and is greater than, the thoughts and feelings that are always passing.
There is something profound that can happen when people face their fears while allowing themselves to feel the fear. They discover that they are able to do things and face things that they previously thought were impossible. This doesn’t mean that they are never afraid again, but it begins to build a sense of confidence that they can handle fear, and that they no longer need to be held back by fear. In what I consider the best cases, people change their relationship with fear entirely. When they do feel it, it becomes a signal that there may be opportunity and growth on the other side, and that is when people become daring.
Lessons
So what lessons can be taken away from this analysis?
One is that the Litany Against Fear gets one thing wrong. Trying to make yourself not feel fear or anxiety just doesn’t work. You can’t will yourself out of your feelings. Feeling fear and anxiety is a natural and inevitable part of being alive.
Another is what the Litany gets right. That you can change the way you respond to fear and anxiety. Instead of trying to shut it down or get away from it, you can face your fear, you can open up to fear, and allow yourself to experience it. That doesn’t mean you have to like it, or want it, it just means letting it be. This frees you up to focus on doing what is important to you.
Finally, fear always passes. Avoidance of fear is a shortcut that robs you of the chance to learn. Facing fear allows you to experience the full cycle of fear. And experiencing the full cycle of fear allows you to learn that you can be bigger than the fear, and that fear doesn’t have to push you around. When you face your fear and allow it, you outlast the fear, and you can emerge stronger and wiser.
This is the first installment in a series of articles called Anxiety in Pop Culture. If you have a portrayal of anxiety in film, TV, literature, music, etc. that you think would be a good subject to write about, feel free to share your suggestion at contact@hudymapsychology.com. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have found it useful!