A Mindset for Overcoming Fear

Asahi Shimbun Morning Edition, September 26, 1998

Major corporations suffering from poor sales, financial collapses, historically low interest rates—the recession shows no sign of ending. Anxiety levels have reached unprecedented heights. According to last year’s report by the National Police Agency, more than 24,000 people died by suicide, with a sharp increase in suicides among middle-aged and older individuals related to restructuring and the economic downturn. We may be approaching another peak, following the “bottomless recession” and the “strong yen recession.”

The word "panic," which denotes a state of economic fear, is also a psychiatric term used to describe symptoms of panic disorder, an anxiety-related illness.

According to stress indices, being fired or unemployed scores 47 out of 100 points, changes in financial status score 38, and debts or loans score 30. Combined, they easily surpass 100. This recession is creating an enormous amount of stress.

Anxiety comes in many forms: vague unease, realistic fears such as unemployment or illness, or specific phobias like fear of heights, flying, or earthquakes. It can range from persistent psychological anxiety to physical symptoms like palpitations, shortness of breath, diarrhea, frequent urination, and numbness in the hands and feet.

Alfred Hitchcock’s film Vertigo begins with a former police officer who develops acrophobia (fear of heights) after witnessing a colleague fall to his death during a suspect chase. Haunted by recurring nightmares of the fall, even a slight elevation triggers dizziness and vivid flashbacks.

Now widely recognized as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), this condition was depicted by Hitchcock as early as 1958, a testament to his reputation as a master of suspense.

The ex-detective is later hired as a private investigator and is manipulated into witnessing the apparent suicide of a woman jumping from a bell tower in a convent. In the end, he climbs the tower once more to uncover the truth—that it was a staged murder by her husband—and in doing so, overcomes his fear of heights.

Phobias cannot be conquered without deliberately facing the places or situations that provoke the most anxiety—those we try hardest to avoid. The film serves as a cautionary tale in this regard.