I Was Terrified Of Public Speaking For Years. Here's How I Finally Conquered My Fear

<div><img src="https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/68dada3d140000815e5c65e5.jpeg?cache=jZx6eO3EAY&ops=scalefit_630_noupscale" alt="" data-caption="" data-credit-link-back="" data-credit="Xesai via Getty Images" /></div><div class="content-list-component text"><p>When my younger sister called in November 2022 to say she was getting married, I was slow to connect the dots. </p><p>“YAAAAY!” I screeched into the phone. Meg had been my maid of honour a couple of years earlier, and now I’d be hers. I turned and roared over my shoulder, “Meg and Ken got engaged!” in the general direction of my husband, Nick.</p><p>From 10 feet away, he grinned and winced, possibly reflecting on his own marriage to a human car alarm. However, after a giddy few minutes of chatter, the realisation hit me like a bridal bouquet to the face: “Oh, <em>crap</em>.”</p><p>“Yep,” Meg said.</p><p>“I have to give a speech at your wedding, don’t I?”</p><p>“Yep,” Meg confirmed.</p><p>And just like that, my excitement mutated into 270 days of dread.</p></div><hr width=50%><div class="content-list-component text"><p>Some people get butterflies in front of an audience. For me, it’s killer bees. My extreme fear of public speaking, or glossophobia, isn’t mere nervousness – it’s a personal horror show.</p><p>My symptoms are intense: chest pain, a churning stomach, and knees so trembly I’d make a newborn giraffe look graceful. As in any good scary movie, the danger feels real.</p><p>Whether it’s five people or 50, my nervous system floods with adrenaline like I’m facing Hannibal Lecter instead of some barely interested co-workers. </p><p>Why such an extreme reaction? Science has my back. The human brain is wired to perceive public speaking as a genuine threat,