Social Unrest

[DDNatureLover]

I find myself getting very anxious and sometimes panicked when things such as the Dallas police murders happen. Obviously it's natural to feel somewhat unsettled, but it's also unlikely that I will be personally affected by major events like that, terrorist bombings, etc. I like things to be orderly, and when events happen that seem to threaten the order to society at large, my anxiety level increases.


Do y'all feel the same way? Has anyone else been feeling particularly on edge since the Dallas attacks, or other events that might not touch you personally, but throw off your sense of safety and security?

 

[Robilas]

I've been very anxious because of all the terrorist attacks of the last year, starting from what happened in France in November 2015. It mostly affects me when I'm traveling, for example if I am in an airport or in a crowded train station I think that there could be a bombing or a mass shooting.


Of course I know that in my ordinary life there is only a minimal risk, but it still affects me, I can't tell why. It's just like I can't feel safe anymore in public and crowded places.

 

[cecejailer]

Yes. I'm not from the United States so I haven't heard of this Dallas attacks thing. I think watching the news a lot can be really bad when it comes to anxiety. There are never happy, positive news, everything's mostly about terrorism, rape and hate crimes. A few weeks ago there was a crime in my area that was the worst I've ever heard about, it shook me up for weeks. A girl had been raped by 35 guys (including her boyfriend) at the same time. This was big here, and they've hidden her identity because she's a minor. It was so terrible.

 

[John Snort]

There's always some bad news every day and I've kind of got use to it. Of course when I hear about murders being committed in the name of justice (terrorist attacks, the murder of police officers, etc) I find all this very annoying but it doesn't make me any more anxious. DDNatureLover I think you should find some vids about Survivalism on youtube. When you are prepared for the worst at all times, you'll be less anxious when you hear news that would any other time make you feel that way.

 

[Alex]

As you get older, sadly you will see these events as part of human nature. Dallas was more significant as a larger number of police officers were targeted and murdered. If anything these should teach people to close the racism, political, or religious factions, but i doubt it will.


I find it is sad that some people feel violence makes a point, and it doesn't. I'm more pragmatic about it, but I do worry that protests can and do go badly so I avoid them.

 

[shcoo]

I am having a lot of personal problems and a low point in my mental health this month, and I feel like my friends are shaming me for being self-involved and not taking to the streets in protest of these social issues. I do care, but caring is so exhausting. Sometimes we just have to turn the news off and try to find peace, because if we are always met with how irredeemably terrible society is on this planet, we would probably all kill ourselves. I guess it is a privilege to be able to "not care" like that.


The shootings of Philando and Alton as well as the Orlando gay club shooting are what upset me the most, not the Dallas issue. Many of my friends actually went on social media hiatus when the Orlando shooting happened because they could not bear to see the updates about it. It was all just too depressing.

 

[Laneorexorcist]

I live in a kind of unsafe country, and I think that this fact made me realize that all of these things can happen to anybody, anywhere, no matter what... So I guess that I already have this mindset, and things like that are scary but I'm aware of them, does that makes any sense? lol. On the other hand, after what happened in Orlando, as a queer person I have to admit that I'm more nervous and I'm even trying not to look that "gay" when I go out, and I'm always paranoid about other people, I feel more unsafe now... and it makes me really sad that some people have to live like this every single day, but there's not really aother option at this point.

 

[joshposh]

It does stop to make you think twice about everything that goes around you. But what can you do? You can't live your whole life in fear and not go out. I think due diligence is in order. You need to be careful and mindful of your surroundings. Living in fear or paranoia is not the way life was intended to be. Prepare for the unexpected and always have a back up plan. Don't put your trust in others to take care of you. Have a plan and with that plan you do have a piece of mind. It's when you don't have a plan is when you feel this way.

 

[DDNatureLover]

Yes, as a few have mentioned, having a plan can give you a sense of confidence. I definitely agree, it's important to be self-reliant and not wait for others to protect you, because they may not be available. I tend to like to take charge, so if something happened, I would probably be trying to help those injured, assuming I wasn't one of them.


I watched a few videos of the Nice, France terrorist attack last night, and was struck by the person filming the injured. I don't know who he was (I believe it was a male), but I think he had checked out emotionally and was simply trying to capture the gravity of the situation, not capitalize on the situation in an attempt to become famous. Thankfully, at least, he turned the camera away from the living who were struggling to get up and move, but I can't imagine doing that. I would have to do whatever I could to at least comfort those who were wounded.