The 3 Places Fear Hides (and How to Take Back the Lead) | Face the Fear, Find the Freedom series | Ep 359

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The 3 Places Fear Hides (and How to Take Back the Lead) | Face the Fear, Find the Freedom series | Ep 359

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Is It Fight, Flight… or Netflix? How to Spot Where Fear’s Hiding

Fear wears disguises. 🎭

She’s not just a loud “what if” or a sweaty-palmed panic.
Fear is a master shape-shifter—hiding in your to-do list, your self-talk, even your stuckness or that not-enough-ness feeling.

Here’s the truth:

fear loves to hijack the very systems God designed to help you lead with courage—your head, heart, and gut.

Let’s break down what that means:

💭 Fear in the Head: Overthinking & Indecision

Your head is your logic center, the place where plans are born. But when fear takes over, it becomes a loop. You might:

  • Overanalyze every move

  • Stay stuck in strategy without launching

  • Spin in “I’m not ready yet”

“Lean not on your own understanding…” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

❤️ Fear in the Heart: Overfeeling & Not-Enoughness

Your heart is where emotions, connection, and identity live.

Fear twists that into:

  • People-pleasing

  • Emotional spirals of not-enoughness

  • Numbing with busyness or distraction

“Guard your heart above all else…” (Proverbs 4:23)

🔥 Fear in the Gut: Overaction or Shutdown

Your gut is your doing brain.

But fear can show up as:

  • Hustling for control

  • Busywork instead of breakthrough

  • Avoiding action altogether

“Stand firm… having girded your loins with truth.” (Ephesians 6:14)

The key? Name where fear is landing:

  • Is it in your thoughts?

  • Is it in your emotions?

  • Is it in your actions or inaction?

Because once you can name it, you can change it.

🎯 Courageous Action

Fear Tracker

  1. Pause when fear shows up

  2. Ask: Is this fight, flight, or freeze?

  3. Where’s it landing—head, heart, or gut?

  4. Journal what you discover

  5. Pray: “Father, what’s the truth You want me to believe here?”

  6. Declare: The truth He shares with you

  7. Here’s one to get you started: “Fear doesn’t lead me. I am designed for courage.”

Show Notes

🎯 Summary

Have you ever caught yourself spinning in overthinking, shrinking in shame, or bulldozing your way through business just to feel in control? In this episode, we’re uncovering the 3 places fear hides—your head, heart, and gut—and how to spot your patterns so you can take back the lead. This is your freedom starting point.

📝 Takeaways

  1. Fear doesn’t always look like fear—it hides in your thinking, feeling, and doing.

  2. Your default fear response will likely be fight, flight, or freeze—and each shows up uniquely in your head, heart, or gut.

  3. You are divinely wired with three “brains”—head, heart, and gut—that are designed to work together through courage, not fear.

  4. The vagus nerve connects all three, but fear distorts their communication.

  5. God’s blueprint of “threes” (like spirit, soul, body) is echoed in how He designed you to function with wisdom, emotion, and action.

  6. When fear leads, it produces loops (head), spirals (heart), and stuckness or hustle (gut).

  7. You can’t change what you don’t name—awareness unlocks your courageous action.

🎙️ Sound Bites

  • “Fear is a master of disguise—it hides in overthinking, people-pleasing, and hustle.”

  • “You were never designed to be led by fear. You were designed for courage.”

  • “When you can name the fear, you can change the fear.”

  • “Father didn’t give you a monkey brain—He gave you a masterpiece mind wired for freedom.”

💪 Courageous Action

Use the Fear Tracker this week:

  1. Pause when fear shows up.

  2. Ask yourself:

    • Is this fight, flight, or freeze?

    • Is the fear landing in my head (thoughts), heart (feelings), or gut (actions or inaction)?

  3. Journal what you discover.

  4. Go to Father and ask:
    “What truth do You want me to believe instead?”

  5. Declare daily:
    “Fear does not lead me. I am designed for courage.”

⏱️ Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Face the Fear and Find the Freedom

02:29 I was a bird in a cage with the door open too afraid to fly out

06:01 The Three Major Fear Responses

08:51 Fear and Our Three Brains

11:50 Identifying Fear Patterns

15:31 The Head: Our Thinking Brain

17:46 The Heart: Our Feeling Brain

20:54 The Gut: Our Action Brain

25:07 Which Brain is dominant?

26:13 Recapping the three brains and fear responses

28:11 Courageous Action Steps

29:44 Conclusion and Next Steps

Who am I?

Heather Bunch – The Courageous Coach 

I’m a certified life and Enneagram coach, speaker and author who helps women Christian women entrepreneurs go from feeling stuck, not-enough and fearful to taking focused, confident and courageous action. We’re growing ourselves so we can grow our business and fulfill our God-given assignment.

I also use her ninja writing skills to help other coaches, speakers, and authors get their ideas out of their heads into their signature systems, coaching programs and books so they can create the income and impact they dream of. 

📖 Hello, Courageous! The Gal’s Guide to Delight, Discover, and Direct Your Divine Life is available at: https://hellocourageous.com

🔗 Or get it on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP3BZ7ZP

🆓 Grab my free Beat Procrastination cheat sheet if you need to get busy on the right thing lickety-slit: https://www.heatherbunch.com/beatit

🌐 You can find me at https://www.heatherbunch.com. 

📧 Email her at hello@heatherbunch.com