fear.

Well, friends, I conquered my fear. I forced myself to that dentist appointment and am still alive to talk about it!

In all actuality though, it wasn't bad at all. In fact, it went better than expected. I don't have a cavity like I thought I did, I just have a sensitive tooth. I am proud to say that I have zero cavities after rejecting the dentist for about five years.  I give credit to my trusty toothbrush and my daily obsessive brushing regime (maybe that fear of dentists paid off?).

I have to admit, I was more than nervous walking in there and even still after I had my xrays taken. I pictured myself running out the door multiple times, but as soon as the dentist told me it didn't look like a cavity, my heartbeat went back to normal and I felt pretty good. She was a nice polish lady and the exam room had a tv on the wall that was playing America's Funniest Home Videos.  She even handed me a pair of sunglasses to put on so I wasn't blinded by her light. I even got some estimates to have some cosmetic work done and will be planning my next visit. I never thought I would say that!

This got me thinking about my fears. There is a lot of stuff I'm afraid of doing which seem so silly. I've never mentioned this on my blog before (maybe some other time...), but I have some pretty awful anxiety issues that hold me back a lot of the time. Normal everyday things can sometimes be the absolute scariest ideas to me. It's something I've been working on, and pushing through this whole crazy dentist ordeal has opened my eyes to a better future in knowing that I can tackle my fears.

I decided to make a list of all of the things I am afraid of, or simply unwilling to do and make myself do at least one of them a week, in no particular order. I'm hoping that by the time I accomplish everything, I'll be laughing in fear's face for ever doubting I could do it.

So, who's with me?