Terrorism Worries: 10 Ways to Turn Fear into Hope -

Home
>
Dealing with Grief & Loss
>
Terrorism Worries: 10 Ways to Turn Fear into Hope

Terrorism Worries: 10 Ways to Turn Fear into Hope

September 11th changed America and chances are it changed you. Images of that tragic day pop into your mind without warning and you have a constant feeling of anxiety. Awful questions come to mind as well. Will the terrorists strike again? Where will they strike? How many innocent people will be killed?

You may attribute your worries to news reports reports when they're really anticipatory grief -- a feeling of loss before a death or dreaded event occurs. The stress of anticipatory grief can become unbearable. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to turn your fear into hope.

1. Focus on the present. Though anticipatory grief shifts your thoughts to the future, you have the mental power to shift them back to the here and now. You have this day and may as well live it to the fullest.

2. Model calm behavior for kids. According to The National Association of School Psychologists kids are reassured by a parent's calm behavior and words. Though you may not feel calm on the inside, try to model calm behavior on the outside for the sake of your children.

3. Pay attention to your children's health. Stress takes a toll on kids so make sure your children eat balanced meals, exercise regularly, and get enough sleep. While you're at it, pay attention to your own health.

4. Talk about terrorism. Voicing your worries is better than pushing them to the back of your mind. Share your terrorism thoughts with family members, neighbors, and church friends. You may even wish to start a support group.

5. Talk to your kids about terrorism. Kids' fears can magnify quickly and you don't want that to happen. So tell them the truth: America was attacked by terrorists. Say the attack upset you and it's OK for them to be upset. Be brief and use words your kids will understand.

6. Limit television viewing. Just because there's 24-hour news on television doesn't mean you have to watch it. Young children should NOT see terrorism footage. Turn off the set and get them involved in somethng else.

7. Know your community resources. Locate the nearest hospital, police station, fire station and drive the routes. Put a list of emergency numbers by the phone. Read stories about hospital workers, policemen and women, and fire fighters to young children.

8. Stay in touch with family. Regular contact with family members will prevent needless worry. Give family members a list of contact names, addresses, and phone numbers if you're going away.

9. Make a terrorism plan. Terrorism expert Michael Osterholm, PhD, MPH thinks every family, including his own, needs a plan that includes a central meeting place, redundant systems (such as multiple cell phones) and a back-up system. Distribute the plan to family members.

10. Shift your thinking. Sheila Jowsey, MD, a Mayo Clinic psychiatrist, recommends a shift in thinking "from hopelessness to helpfulness." You do this, Jowsey says, by focusing on available resources and staying current on terroist information.

You can turn your fear of terrorism into hope. Pick a step and start working on it today!

Harriet Hodgson has been a nonfiction writer for 26 years. Her recent work focuses on health and she is a member of the Association of Health Care Journalists. Smiling Through Your Tears: Anticipating Grief, co-authored by Lois Krahn, MD, is her 24th book. Hodgson describes the book as "balm for a wounded soul" and it is available from amazon.com by entering the title or her name. She has also written Alzheimer's: Finding the Words (a communication guide)and The Alzheimer's Caregiver, both published by John Wiley & Sons and available on Amazon. Hodgson is hard at work on her next book, Doctor in the House: An Inside Look at Medical Marriage.

In The News:

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article921274.ececid=0ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNGVKtYp-RA1N0vMffQgKx59BIvFaQHernando, Pasco hospices offer tips on bgrief/b during holidays/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fTampabay.com,nbsp;FLnbsp;-/font nobr2 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1Losing a loved one is hard, and that bloss/b can feel even greater during the holidays. Finch and Quinones recently spoke to the Times about bgrief/b and offered b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://savannahnow.com/node/626518cid=0ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNE42N10UVT2C7SmAQjf57UhhTddSgTeen still bgrieving/b over bloss/b of father/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fSavannah Morning News,nbsp;GAnbsp;-/font nobr18 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1A. While four years of bgrieving/b for a lost father may seem beyond expectation, the death of a father during those precarious adolescent years often causes b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-durbin30-2008nov30,0,4986667.storycid=1276231019ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNF21BTfjeNX5NJbgXc_vMecDVQROASen. Durbin is working through his bgrief/b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fLos Angeles Times,nbsp;CAnbsp;-/font nobrNov 30, 2008/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1quot;It is painful to see anyone suffer great bloss/b,quot; Obama said. quot;He and Loretta have been such wonderful friends to me and Michelle and so many others that we b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%252BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_308238.htmlcid=1275733763ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNFH2wGli28xrFR8fXgxYbchdiUuzAimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=uEOOf3YVvFsJimgurl=www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/image/20081128/spore-hostage.jpg width=49 height=80 alt= border=1brfont size=-2Straits Times/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://news.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%252BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20081201-104594.htmlcid=1275733763ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNEDLaVmFgBRldhr27Cpoi2ZOxaNgASharing the agony of sudden bloss/b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fAsiaOne,nbsp;Singaporenbsp;-/font nobr21 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1I imagine him now in sudden, inexplicable bgrief/b. I can#39;t put the picture of a city under attack away. Things I#39;ve seen on TV and heard from friends have b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%252BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_308041.html%3Fvgnmr%3D1cid=1275733763ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNFd3Fw7yPwJQd4BzIgspJWyVBcbWgS#39;porean hostage killed/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrStraits Times/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,185166,00.htmlcid=1275733763ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNF0FxXkXxh5Ht0QWw2GhAE-QakvogFamily#39;s hopes crushed with news of daughter#39;s death/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrElectric New Paper/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%252BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_308310.htmlcid=1275733763ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNEfjpGvmnvqW5yodnEGS2LOVRuaLQPM sends condolences/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrStraits Times/nobr/font/fontbrfont class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1275733763hl=ennobrall 56 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.timesdaily.com/article/20081201/ARTICLES/812010310/1011/NEWS%3FTitle%3DHolidays_can_be_difficult_for_grieving_families_cid=0ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNFLF1l0I8XtmG6I5ID4kjUsfUf7pwHolidays can be difficult for bgrieving/b families/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fTimes Daily,nbsp;ALnbsp;-/font nobr13 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1Topics including common reactions to sudden bloss/b, coping strategies, and dealing with holidays and other special days. Let family and friends know what you b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.santaclaritamagazine.com/index.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26task%3Dview%26id%3D4960%26Itemid%3D94%26ed%3D25cid=0ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNFrsAeL1cHwBsSGZNtywlHSkDzV5wHandling the Holidays Without Your Loved One/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fMagazine of Santa Clarita,nbsp;CAnbsp;-/font nobr11 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1“As a society we are not trained or prepared to deal with life’s most predictable event and that is bloss/b,” said bgrief/b counselor and author Jeff Zhorne, b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article%3FAID%3D/20081201/NEWS01/812010303/1002/NEWS01cid=0ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNEanFze3YJJdcFOqCjL91aFoH5Y_wbGrief/b allows time for healing/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fRutland Herald,nbsp;VTnbsp;-/font nobr15 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1When you#39;ve lost a loved one, the holiday season can be a painful reminder of the bloss/b you are feeling rather than a time of warmth, love and excitement. b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.wiscnews.com/bnr/news/316041cid=0ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNE2Fi5QMiC5LhTL8f8YGmqArAmwKQUnit encourages students to ask tough questions about death, bloss/b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fBaraboo News Republic,nbsp;WInbsp;-/font nobrNov 25, 2008/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1A four-week unit on bgrief/b, bloss/b and death will be presented to fourth-grade classrooms at different times this year, based upon lessons backed by the b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://www.citywebshopper.net/articles/includes/redirect.php?url=http://www.hometownlife.com/article/20081127/NEWS22/811270545cid=0ei=SXE0Sdi0JKTe6APW1On4BAusg=AFQjCNFAQJSzns-n0YZchOW8b4NAZy8yXgTalk for seniors addresses bgrief/b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fMirror,nbsp;MInbsp;-/font nobrNov 27, 2008/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1The problems of quot;bGrief/b, bLoss/b and Mourningquot; will be the subject of the second talk in a Troy series especially for seniors. The event will be from 7:30-8:30 b.../b/font/div/font/td/tr/table

grief loss - Google News

Terrorism Worries: 10 Ways to Turn Fear into Hope

Dealing with Grief & Loss