We are all afraid of something.

As a stunt woman, the thing I get asked most often is: Do you get scared? Yes, I do get scared. I am not fearless, I just know how to fight my fear. It has taken me many years training and perseverance through terrifying events to be able to handle the things I am afraid of. The one thing I could never shake though was my love and fear relationship with the water.

Overcoming fear has been something I have dealt with over and over again since a very young age training in gymnastics. As an athlete, stunt woman, solo traveler and woman I overcome fear often. You could say I am an expert on overcoming what scares me. Whether I am learning a new skill, performing in a movie, traveling to a new place by myself or just walking the streets at night. A good dose of fear is often with me.

Luckily for me I was trained from an early age to suck it up and get over it. So much so that after being the victim of a home invasion, I was able to get right on back to living in my house one night later. You see when I was 22, four men entered my home with AK-47s, they pistol whipped my dog and dislocated my shoulder, I was home alone, I was also lucky that I didnt die. I was terrified when I went back to my home the following night but I stared fear in the face, and guess what? I won!

Overcoming my life long fear

You see I have always loved the water, just being near it makes me happy. But throw me in deep water and I will start to panic. My parents and sister were all certified scuba divers and I grew up with the tales of ship wrecks, sea creatures and marine animals.

In my youth I spent my summers boating, swimming, water skiing and floating on my favorite raft in the waters of Squam Lake in Sandwich New Hampshire. I was on swim team as a child and later went on to compete in springboard diving in college. Water was my happy place. Several incidences also made me scared of it, from run-ins with water snakes, to too many reruns of Jaws. Couple that with my sisters love of the all things slimy and I developed a fear of being eaten by sharks.