The Walking Dead, Survival Rule Of The Week: Fighting with yourself

4) Fear

Considering that The Walking Dead’s sister series is prefaced with the word, it comes as no surprise that fear would pop up a lot in the series. Frankly, I’d be mildly concerned seeing someone who wasn’t at least slightly afraid in a zombie apocalypse.

That said, we saw Carol really wrestling with her fears on Sunday’s Walking Dead, mostly manifested as her arguing with Alpha’s ghost, who seemed to be voicing Carol’s fears that her quest for revenge cost innocent people their lives, and her continued presence could endanger those she cares about, as it had done before. It had gotten so bad, Carol was considering just abandoning the communities altogether and even just letting a walker eat her! That would not have been a good idea.

Which brings me to my point: While fear is a necessary thing in a zombie apocalypse, it can also be a massive detriment to you and your continued survival if it gets out of hand.

To say nothing of panic, one of fear’s hideous children (Which I’ve often railed against), fear itself can cause you to make rash decisions or half-measures, which either result in the very sort of decisions that can cause you to become racked with doubt, or, not go far enough, because you’re already afraid of the result.

You can’t let fear get control of you. Caution is important, but, if you’re letting your fear take over, sooner or later, you’ll end up doing yourself more harm than good, as the longer your fears go unchecked, the more irrational they can grow, and the more they can affect your behavior.

Bottom line: You need to be afraid sometimes, but, do not let it get the better of you.

Things are never going to be perfect, especially in a zombie apocalypse, we will always have some sort internal struggle about something. However, in a situation where death can be waiting just around the corner, and every decision is crucial, if you are having a serious internal struggle with your fears, your guilt, your regrets, or your doubts, these are struggles you can’t afford to lose. If you do, those inner demons could easily be your undoing.

And that is (Those are?) our Survival Rule(s) Of The Week! Hopefully, you’ve learned about why the choices you make (And how you come to them) in a zombie apocalypse are so important. If you like this and want to find out more tips to survive the zombie apocalypse, why not pick up a copy of my book, The Rules: A Guide To Surviving The Zombie Apocalypse! You can also get it at Amazon here, on iTunes here!