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howlin_hank t1_j9y890u wrote

Reply to comment by xanadumuse in I think DCist is just trying to gaslight people about issues around the city. by [deleted]

This!!! I lived in Recife, Brazil for many years and crime there is pretty high. Basically you had to make the choice of either hyperventilating into a paper bag about it or just going outside and living. It didn’t help that there were loads of sensationalist TV shows about crime and whatnot

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xanadumuse t1_j9y93zc wrote

Without trying to diminish people’s fear( because yes,crime does exist), social media portrays it in a vacuum. Our minds just go down a rabbit hole. I’ve talked to a few friends who suffer more from anxiety. I swear it’s social media. It serves its purpose to inform but also creates a type of hypnotism - ( I see you FB algorithms).

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howlin_hank t1_j9yq9y4 wrote

100% I mean the thought of being robbed at gunpoint, potentially shot and who knows what else is terrifying. Being in a life or death situation that you have almost no control over is really scary and I know that because I’m scared of flying. I guess the thing is what do you DO with that fear?

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xanadumuse t1_ja4mfge wrote

There are professionals who can treat anxieties. I think a small dose of exposure to whatever the fear is will help. People who constantly stay at home and just doom scroll would benefit from interaction with the outside world more. They’ll slowly associate that with something positive. They’ll probably see that going outside doesn’t pose an immediate threat.

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