Obsessing About Terrorism Is Bad for Your Mental Health
Constant Media-Induced Anxiety Can Inflict Psychological Harm
My patient, Anna, is an African-American woman in her 60s living alone in Los Angeles. She has a progressive arthritis and she walks slowly with the aid of a cane. She no longer meets friends at the movies or at the mall, and won’t go to shows. But her arthritis isn’t the reason she is avoiding public places and limiting her social life. It’s the Paris terrorist attack followed by the San Bernardino attack, not to mention the active shooters that have become routine. She is watching a lot …
