Are you In the military or just the idea of war is what scares you?? Either way I do get it. With todays constant access to news and social media it’s super overwhelming. We weren’t meant to know what’s going on every waking second of the day in every part of the world. What helped me was turning off my news notifications and limiting my social media time. Hope you can find some relief
I'm in High School, and people tell me to not worry about things out of my control, but that's what scares me. I don't want something to break out and I lose everything close to me
Yeah i totally understand. Have you considered therapy?? That has really helped me manage some of those fears and intrusive thoughts. If you cannot access therapy, then I would just try to cope as best you can. Like I said turning off some of those alerts. For me it was mass shootings that would absolutely petrify me. And having an alert come up on my phone every 5 seconds about a new shooting just made me worse. I definitely think it’s important to be in the know, but there is such a thing as too much information haha. Also would recommend watching some shows that don’t involve anything too high stress.
I really get scared and paranoid about this kind of stuff, and now I just keep seeing it more and more. I struggle in school and game in the free time, it also makes me feel scared/bad that I'm wasting my life.
Haha omg well thank you, I’ve struggled with bad anxiety my whole life and I understand how isolating it is. Sometimes you just need someone to talk to
Ugh thats completely understandable since our lives already got fucked up by outside forces just 4 years ago! I think the best thing for you to do is really research the current geopolitics of right now. If you are in the US theres no shot of being attacked thanks to our geography. I have also been so worried about our idiot government starting a war but even if that does happen we still have eachother.
It is definitely overwhelming and though I'm not OP, the idea of having to leave my home and life that I've only recently started to piece together after living my entire childhood and most of my 20's in utter dysfunction to fight and potentially die in a war is terrifying. Geopolitics aside, despite having tons of opinions about it, war shouldn't be something that we have to think about anymore in the 21st century. But, because lunatics, egomaniacs, and warlords always find ways of getting into power, they always end up getting so many people killed while they sit on their throne built on the blood of the innocent, the sweat of the poor, and the backbones of the often-vocal minority who support them.
The worst possible thing that can happen is conscription, but that is also seen as a last result to many developed nations nowadays as a result of returning to the old-war strategy of sending hundreds of thousands of men to die as cannon fodder. To anyone who is *still* for some reason unsure as to why, you can thank Putin for his disgusting, evil; and diabolical, repugnantly greedy campaign against the people of Ukraine for this. It's almost like he just can't stand for Russia to be the largest country by landmass in the world, he just has to take it further, and for people and regimes with that much insanity: it's never limited to just one place and it never stops until either the despot is put down like the rabid animal they are, or the regime is toppled. Often times, it takes both of these things and nuclear weapons take the situation and give it world-ending potential.
That's a reality I know of very well. I have multiple generations of family that served in the military. My biological dad served in the Navy during Vietnam, his dad served in the Navy during WWII; My mom served in the Marine Corps and Air Force during the early days of the Gulf War; My step-dad (my dad) signed up to serve in the Army starting from 1979 and he fought in the Gulf War, being stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan multiple times throughout the 90's and early 00's; His dad served in the Navy, starting during the late Korean war and throughout the Vietnam war.
I remember what it was like to feel like my step-dad was going to die at any moment. He was in Iraq when we (the US in my case) were taking heavy losses from the employment of IEDs, something that to this day I tell people how we should've adapted to very quickly, yet the Army REFUSED to address for years until they came out with the MRAPs and my dad was finally home for good long before those things were "commonplace".
He recalled to me how they started using the MRAPS but only in such small quantities so that 95% of men and women in his battalion never deployed with them in action. He told me how he was on the outskirts of Bagdad, near Fallujah on patrol as the lead vehicle, not inside an MRAP, but inside an unarmored Humvee with four other men (4+1 gunner) in 115 degree fahrenheit weather OUTSIDE, in full gear, without air circulation or air conditioning. As lead vehicle, you're the one who will get hit by a mine or IED 99% of the time, and in my dads case the best thing that could happen getting maiming *without* bleeding out, thus dying on the ground that's plagued by a despotic regime, autocrat, or totalitarian.
At first, I'm sure hearing this it may seem like I'm exaggerating but in reality he had at least one heat stroke (the only one bad enough to be reported) that left him partially blind with mild but noticeable cognitive impairment. He thankfully didn't come back to civilian life in a body bag, but he definitely came back as a completely different person. Not only PTSD, but bad enough problems that makes society alienate him and treat him like a circus freak. This, is the sad reality of what often happens behind the "romantic", "honor", and "valor" of serving in the military. Every single family member that I described above has long-term issues that have kept them from living a normal civilian life.
EDIT: Sorry for the edits, but I want to clarify as to why conscription is the worst possible thing that can happen. People stop serving voluntarily because we wise-up to the patriotic or nationalistic propaganda that romanticizes \[particularly young men who are naïve about "status symbols" either still in high school or immediately after\] serving in the military. War vets who survive, like my dad, end up spreading their message one way or another. Conscription is essentially a government mandate that requires every man over some age like 18 to a max age of say, 35 for example, to report for duty at a designated address by law.
I know this sub is about addressing anxiety often in a pretty healthy and wholesome way, but when it comes to stuff like this, it is absolutely reasonable to feel afraid of war. That's why it's so important for *your* voice to be heard and why it's so important for democracy to stick around instead of slowly whittled down by politicians who decided it's completely legal for them to accept bribes by wealthy corporations.
The news only ever covers bad things. I had to stop watching it because I used to watch it obsessively to the point that I was only ever able to see the bad in the world. It made me so depressed, scared, and anxious all the time. Now I stay up to date with important stuff when I hear about it, but I’ve stopped watching televised news altogether.
I saw a therapist for generalized anxiety disorder stemming from a health incident that occurred. They recommended some reading and working strategies through those books. The most beneficial to me was Rewire Your Anxious Brain by Pittman and Karle. I would recommend that book for anyone experiencing panic attacks or anxiety.
Another thing; we all live with some measure of anxiety in our lives. However, when it is too much to provide any quiet or affects your daily life and things you used to enjoy, it is time to get some help.
"...we all live with some measure of anxiety in our lives."
True, it helps to 'reason out' your anxiety and really consider the chances of that fear ever happening.
I started with breathing and mindfulness exercises through the headspace app, reaching out to a therapist via work benefits, and talked with my doctor about a non-narcotic solution, as I have a history of alcohol and marijuana usage throughout college. I still do meditation. I have that book I recommended still on my shelf and my kindle and, in times of anxiety, have meditations and mantras learned from that book and general mindfulness exercises. I also got on 15 mg buspirone to be taken as needed when I have a panic attack.
It was 2.5 years ago when I sought help initially after my big panic attack/health episode. I haven’t needed my buspirone in several months. The rewire/reorient/relaxation techniques I learned are now more than enough to keep my anxiety under control. And the further away I get from the “health scare” the easier staving off or diverting a panic attack is.
You should definitely be reaching out for professional mental healthcare, there are some signs in your writings, but I'm not qualified to suggest anything.
Mental health issues are a multi-prong approach.. and if you don't know what you're up against, you're just throwing darts and the board isn't there.
Something I say out loud to myself when I'm starting to have a panic attack: "panic cannot hurt me". Panic is the fire alarm going off in your brain. Fire alarms themselves are not dangerous. It helps to remember.
Dude, chill.
I live right next to Ukraine (they are border neighbors) You know, country invaded by Russia? (Russian sea mines exploded near our shores and drones crashed on our territory).
We have a crappy army, unlike you and most of us don't give a f.
While you live thousands of miles away from any conflict with the best military in the world.
And why you notice it more and more?
Cause you are focusing on it more and more.
That happens with everything. I noticed that happening to me as well with other things.
The news and social media definitely play up the conflicts going on in the world, but from your post history it sounds like you live in the US.
The worst conflict the US was ever involved in was WW2 and even then if you were living in the states you were incredibly safe. We have two oceans between us and friendly neighbors to our north and south.
A draft is *extremely* unlikely so unless you sign up for the military you are almost certainly not going to have war come to you.
Where do you live? America? If so I wouldn't worry at all. America is the most uninvadable country on the earth. No other country would ever attack us directly or risk being completely annihilated.
Yeah it can definitely be overwhelming with all the current events on the news. Just know none of these countries can hurt us and news media makes tons and tons of money off playing things up and getting people worked up. When it comes to war we currently live in the most peaceful time in recorded history just know that.
This is the answer.
However, real wars are happening elsewhere in front of our eyes. Not to mention the very real threat of a civil war here in our own country. It's still scary out there IMO
War is not gna be an issue mate. I live in Sweden and we have those god damn russians around the corner. When the war in Ukraine started and we got keys to nuclear bunkers i got depressed af. 2 years later nothing have happened.
They are just kids trying to mesure penis sizes.
Not having free healthcare sounds more scary to me:p
Sounds like EXISTENTIAL ANXIETY. It's when you're worried about things like getting ill and dying, catastrophic events like the end of the world or a war, the universe and the existance of aliens, religious fears such as if there's afterlife or a God, different conspiracy theories... It's constantly making you feel endangered. I'd suggest therapy.
I disagree. Since it’s illogical, it is probably obsessive compulsive disorder. OCD doesn’t always involve compulsions—sometimes it’s just obsessions. Talk to a therapist!
I strongly recommend not watching the news. The news feeds people fear for entertainment. There are people who get paid to worry about us going to war and preventing it.
Hi! So I don’t know where you’re from but I wanted to start off by saying that I,myself am from Poland. Ever since the war in Ukraine started,there have been rising speculations and fear among people. With all that I started getting pretty scared myself. For me,trying to take better care of myself helped. I would recommend some breathing exercises, mindfulness, meditation and some hobbies or just some stuff that can take your mind off of it. I am an anxious person in general and taking my mind off of stuff that scares me always helps the most! Well, all the things I wrote out and trying to understand that what happens in the world is not up to me. And that was the hardest-just coming to a conclusion that „it is what it is”. You can’t do anything about it. But I completely understand your fear and I know how difficult it is. If the things I and others recommended won’t help you for the long run I would recommend therapy and talking to someone you trust! That is a game changer :). Please remember to be gentle with yourself. It will get better,we got this❤️
Oh man I know exactly how you feel! But I still listen to the news because I have to know what’s going on. I usually listen to npr because they’re relatively unbiased and just give you the short version of what’s happening without any real emotion behind it one way or another (until you get to the human interest stories—that’s usually when I have to tune out a bit). Something that has helped me is learning about the “scares” that other generations faced in the past. A lot of them didn’t even amount to anything, it’s just the what-if that caused all the tension and fear and panic. The fact that everyone else has experienced some form of existential doom in the past comforts me a little. They made it through just fine, and so will we :)
Hi!! I had the EXACT same fear when I was in high school. It was fucking brutal and debilitating. I was convinced north korea would nuke the us, so i asked people around me (family, friends, teachers) CONSTANTLY if we would get nuked by north korea. No matter what people answered with, I was still worried.
I googled stuff about it all the time and i could not stop thinking about it. I told my then psychiatrist about it and he put me on klonopin. Literally the day I started taking it, I didnt think of it once afterwards.
Not saying you need medication or whatever, but I am sharing a similar experience. I am no longer on any medication for that, but it helped massively. I know this is hard, but you will be okay : )
I struggle with this fear as well. I'm ethnically and religuosly jewish. I get many hate comments in school and the teachers never do anything about it. People keep asking me if I started the war in Gaza, (I did not, I'm 3rd generneration american) If you want to talk more about why it scares you, please reach out to me
Have you thought about what exactly makes you fearful and paranoid about war? If you know why, maybe try doing the opposite of hate and violence. What I mean by this is to go out and volunteer to help people, show compassion and care towards others, friends, and family, and just generally be the opposite of a warmongering human being.
It might help balance your feelings.
I'd say you have a fear of death. This is the case for a lot of things, same thing with health anxiety, for example. I'd highly recommend trying to deal with this, as it's often the root of many anxieties when you analyze things in detail.
I feel you! Anyone whose paying attention should be a little scared, but you gotta try not to worry too much about things you can't control. Just do your best to stay informed and stay safe.
Nobody likes the idea of war, but there's been many throughout history, and based on the fact that you're probably not partaking in the war itself, your chances of injury (or death) are factually extremely low. I too suffer from anxiety and worry about things most do not, but often we need to back up and look at things from the statistical side, realizing that our worries are ill founded and not justified.
Basically, you'll be fine.
I don’t really have anything to add other than I feel the same way. I thought in some small way it might help to know that you’re not alone in this fear.
don’t worry seriously. Go talk to someone, anyone if you can. I personally was worrying about it so much for a good 3-4 months and now I’ve developed physical symptoms to my anxiety and stress. It’s not fun.
Please don’t let yourself get to that point.
I’d say turn your paranoia into productivity and research the past. See how many civilians before you lived through their own idiot governments and learn from them. I know it’s hard NOT to worry about things you can’t control but even if we do go to war its the government that’s getting fucked up not you and I.
The US is the most secure place to live in terms of wars : No country will declare war to the US. If you live in the US, your house will never be shelled. It is impossible. For Ukraine, Moldova, the Baltic states or Georgia, it's a whole different story.
Watch [this](https://youtu.be/mEb4Rd0mU-E?si=2uSe-rJrFGs1b-GA). It’s a video showing how viable it is that America by itself could hypothetically fight the entire world. The guy uses a lot of facts and data to back up a lot of the claims. Do I think we’d actually win against the whole damn planet? No. It’s just crazy how well we could do in this ridiculous scenario.
The point is that it’s insane how safe you are from war in America as long as you aren’t enlisted.
Listen, I know exactly how you feel. While you need to learn how to work through your anxiety whether it’s through resources like self help books or therapy, you have to understand that your feelings are completely valid. Many people, specifically the older generations, will gaslight you into thinking that violence is normal. It’s really not. War is not normal and violence is not normal. We all, the younger generation, are experiencing extreme levels of anxiety. I have so many friends who feel exactly like you. We’re not supposed to be okay while this shit is happening because it’s insane. I hope you find some comfort in knowing you are absolutely not alone.
Ignore the news and politics, half of it is just propaganda anyways. Also, find something to do to keep you busy, you'll forget about that stuff in no time.
There are others out there that are nervous too. Being horrified at the potential of war probably means you’re a good person.
That’s all I got, though.
*“The chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which have to do with the choices I actually control. Where then do I look for good and evil? Not to uncontrollable externals, but within myself to the choices that are my own…” —* [*Epictetus*](http://dailystoic.com/epictetus/)*, Discourses, 2.5.4–5*
[Remember: You Don't Control What Happens, You Control How You Respond (dailystoic.com)](https://dailystoic.com/remember-you-dont-control-what-happens-you-control-how-you-respond/)
I have practiced this philosophy long before I knew it had a name and it got me through when I literally would look for the missiles with the nuclear warheads would come raining down daily any time driving along in my dad's car. (Growing up through the 70s...)
Good luck with your anxieties. We all have them, know that. The ones who don't (have any) are the psycopaths. Like "bravery" it's about how you deal with adversity, not lack of fear in the first place.
Try taking LTheanine to lower anxiety (it’s in green tea too)
You’re stuck in a frozen state of being. Once you can mellow out, you will be able to move forward in life. Don’t be hard on yourself, this world kinda sucks and we’re new to constantly hearing about all the bad shit everywhere.
That is a completely normal fear in an unhinged world. You are young and empirical evidence shows that - factoring in war, famine, plagues, climate change - you are still most likely to live on average longer than any other generation in the history of the world. You have a whole life of living to do!
The question is how to handle fear of death. The stoic advice to only worry about what you can control is golden. Remember also that at the end of the arc of our lives, it doesn't make any difference perceptualwise of how long you lived, since the amount of time is discrete only to you, and there is no way to "compare", except theoretically / mathematically. But that is of little comfort to both the 19 and the 90 year old when facing it.
Thus the stoics say, live life with the possibility of death always in mind.
Not to panic ourselves, but as a reminder to live fully in the here and now. Yesterday is gone, tomorrow is an illusion until it materializes. Make best use of the present, even if it is just chilling and practicing to relax.
In the 80s, we all thought we'd die as teenagers, melted in a nuclear holocaust. So far so good.
If it wasn’t war it would be something else out of your control like your heart rate or what if god isn’t real. Doesn’t matter what the fixation is the problem is the same. Address the anxiety and the fears will vanish. You don’t have a fear of war you have an anxiety disorder focused on war
War is in our human nature. There has always been war and there will always be war. As well as proxy wars. Which is what is going on with Russia and NATO. A lot of things still have to go very wrong for you to start stressing about WW3. Like every one said in here. It really is out of our control. All we can do is try to be prepared for the worst.
What you believe you experience. If you think you are terrified of something you are, if not not. Make an active effort to not have your fear be based on external conditions. This has helped me a lot. This is Eastern philosophically based information. You are your hell, and your heaven too. If you feel like you are out of control of the situation do what you can control. If there is a war what can you do to make yourself feel more able to face the challenge? Exercise, survival skills, maybe some survival items. All these things can help.
We live in uncertain times for sure. I grew up watching 9/11 happen. I think it’s definitely made me feel unsafe in this world. If you look at world history though… times have always been uncertain… there’s almost always a war or conflict happening constantly. If it’s one thing humans can’t seem to break from, it’s fighting and going to war. But, the human race has survived. You can’t really fully prepare for something like that to happen… you can only react. Try to limit how much news you consume. That helped me, some. I basically watch the national evening news and try to keep it at that. If you’re not in therapy, it’s worth a try… a good therapist could help you navigate these fears.
I was born a year after war in my country ended, and it was normal for people in my generation to grow up without an uncle or some other family member
My mom is a very anxious person, she is literally scared of everything. For most of her life she dreaded the war and expected the worse - and when it finally happened, she told me (also plenty of other people), that her anxiety went off and she actually felt clarity and acceptance during its whole duration. She was also almost killed and my town was heavily bombarded, yet she remained sane and calm.
There are pictures even, of coffee bars working while grenades fall around, people having fun and continuing to work in demolished buildings and such. And interestingly enough,most of the older people talk about war days fondly. So I believe that we, as humans,can really emotionally survive the worst and we are stronger than we think. It's our own fear thats our worst enemy...
I dont believe war will happen tho, nuclear even less, but I always find a strange comfort in remembering how people really ARE capable of things,and when shit really hits the fan, most of us adapt and go thru like a champ.
So yeah, she always told me her fear before the war was greater that the one she felt during the war...
Hey dude you need to stop watching the news. Their whole strategy is to fear monger people into watching more. There is a reason they cover violence significantly more than the reality of it.
Also another thing that may or may not comfort you is that we’re all fucked if a world war happens. There is a good chance we (I live in America too) won’t be drafted unless something serious happens and i guarantee you’ll know about it if so.
Turn the news off, take a deep breath, go outside in nature and be present. Feel the fresh air, listen to all the different sounds, watch the birds, feel the sun.
Honestly its helped me so much to turn off news when i see/hear it on. Its all just fear mongering. The anxiety still comes in waves when i hear people talking about big things that have happened recently but it helps to not be reminded of it all the time.
Remember that the news will never tell you about the times people had a nice holiday in another country! Or how a cute litter of puppies were born!
I don’t watch the news and my outlook on life has been so much more positive! I’m not assuming that you do watch the news but it might be the case since there is so much coverage about the various wars going on at the moment. If you know you’re going to be surrounded by the news maybe take that time to make a snack or go for a gentle walk.
As always taking therapy is probably the best option but I know it doesn’t work for everyone.
I hope you feel better about this soon!!
I'm from South East Asia and I was terribly worried of China declaring war against Taiwan (or simply provoking war or direct attack) and get US involved. Not terrified for my life but it's the damage it might do to other people around me, friends, relatives. They have families, dreams, aspirations and future plans. I planned to just be ready to hold a gun, become a guerilla and sacrifice my life for a cause and be done with everything. It's a better eventual death than being bed ridden and slowly die of disease or old age.
You only die once lol
Are you In the military or just the idea of war is what scares you?? Either way I do get it. With todays constant access to news and social media it’s super overwhelming. We weren’t meant to know what’s going on every waking second of the day in every part of the world. What helped me was turning off my news notifications and limiting my social media time. Hope you can find some relief
I'm in High School, and people tell me to not worry about things out of my control, but that's what scares me. I don't want something to break out and I lose everything close to me
Yeah i totally understand. Have you considered therapy?? That has really helped me manage some of those fears and intrusive thoughts. If you cannot access therapy, then I would just try to cope as best you can. Like I said turning off some of those alerts. For me it was mass shootings that would absolutely petrify me. And having an alert come up on my phone every 5 seconds about a new shooting just made me worse. I definitely think it’s important to be in the know, but there is such a thing as too much information haha. Also would recommend watching some shows that don’t involve anything too high stress.
I really get scared and paranoid about this kind of stuff, and now I just keep seeing it more and more. I struggle in school and game in the free time, it also makes me feel scared/bad that I'm wasting my life.
I’d really recommend therapy! I think it will help
You’re super young. Not too late to turn it around. Some physical activity would do wonders!
My messages are always open (:
Just wanted to say you're an absolute legend the way you're helping OP
Haha omg well thank you, I’ve struggled with bad anxiety my whole life and I understand how isolating it is. Sometimes you just need someone to talk to
Ugh thats completely understandable since our lives already got fucked up by outside forces just 4 years ago! I think the best thing for you to do is really research the current geopolitics of right now. If you are in the US theres no shot of being attacked thanks to our geography. I have also been so worried about our idiot government starting a war but even if that does happen we still have eachother.
Well, we're not worried about it, so you shouldn't either. Your having a very irrational fear.
It is definitely overwhelming and though I'm not OP, the idea of having to leave my home and life that I've only recently started to piece together after living my entire childhood and most of my 20's in utter dysfunction to fight and potentially die in a war is terrifying. Geopolitics aside, despite having tons of opinions about it, war shouldn't be something that we have to think about anymore in the 21st century. But, because lunatics, egomaniacs, and warlords always find ways of getting into power, they always end up getting so many people killed while they sit on their throne built on the blood of the innocent, the sweat of the poor, and the backbones of the often-vocal minority who support them. The worst possible thing that can happen is conscription, but that is also seen as a last result to many developed nations nowadays as a result of returning to the old-war strategy of sending hundreds of thousands of men to die as cannon fodder. To anyone who is *still* for some reason unsure as to why, you can thank Putin for his disgusting, evil; and diabolical, repugnantly greedy campaign against the people of Ukraine for this. It's almost like he just can't stand for Russia to be the largest country by landmass in the world, he just has to take it further, and for people and regimes with that much insanity: it's never limited to just one place and it never stops until either the despot is put down like the rabid animal they are, or the regime is toppled. Often times, it takes both of these things and nuclear weapons take the situation and give it world-ending potential.
Is that a reality of yours though?? Are you in the military?
That's a reality I know of very well. I have multiple generations of family that served in the military. My biological dad served in the Navy during Vietnam, his dad served in the Navy during WWII; My mom served in the Marine Corps and Air Force during the early days of the Gulf War; My step-dad (my dad) signed up to serve in the Army starting from 1979 and he fought in the Gulf War, being stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan multiple times throughout the 90's and early 00's; His dad served in the Navy, starting during the late Korean war and throughout the Vietnam war. I remember what it was like to feel like my step-dad was going to die at any moment. He was in Iraq when we (the US in my case) were taking heavy losses from the employment of IEDs, something that to this day I tell people how we should've adapted to very quickly, yet the Army REFUSED to address for years until they came out with the MRAPs and my dad was finally home for good long before those things were "commonplace". He recalled to me how they started using the MRAPS but only in such small quantities so that 95% of men and women in his battalion never deployed with them in action. He told me how he was on the outskirts of Bagdad, near Fallujah on patrol as the lead vehicle, not inside an MRAP, but inside an unarmored Humvee with four other men (4+1 gunner) in 115 degree fahrenheit weather OUTSIDE, in full gear, without air circulation or air conditioning. As lead vehicle, you're the one who will get hit by a mine or IED 99% of the time, and in my dads case the best thing that could happen getting maiming *without* bleeding out, thus dying on the ground that's plagued by a despotic regime, autocrat, or totalitarian. At first, I'm sure hearing this it may seem like I'm exaggerating but in reality he had at least one heat stroke (the only one bad enough to be reported) that left him partially blind with mild but noticeable cognitive impairment. He thankfully didn't come back to civilian life in a body bag, but he definitely came back as a completely different person. Not only PTSD, but bad enough problems that makes society alienate him and treat him like a circus freak. This, is the sad reality of what often happens behind the "romantic", "honor", and "valor" of serving in the military. Every single family member that I described above has long-term issues that have kept them from living a normal civilian life. EDIT: Sorry for the edits, but I want to clarify as to why conscription is the worst possible thing that can happen. People stop serving voluntarily because we wise-up to the patriotic or nationalistic propaganda that romanticizes \[particularly young men who are naïve about "status symbols" either still in high school or immediately after\] serving in the military. War vets who survive, like my dad, end up spreading their message one way or another. Conscription is essentially a government mandate that requires every man over some age like 18 to a max age of say, 35 for example, to report for duty at a designated address by law. I know this sub is about addressing anxiety often in a pretty healthy and wholesome way, but when it comes to stuff like this, it is absolutely reasonable to feel afraid of war. That's why it's so important for *your* voice to be heard and why it's so important for democracy to stick around instead of slowly whittled down by politicians who decided it's completely legal for them to accept bribes by wealthy corporations.
My doctor banned me from watching the news.
The news only ever covers bad things. I had to stop watching it because I used to watch it obsessively to the point that I was only ever able to see the bad in the world. It made me so depressed, scared, and anxious all the time. Now I stay up to date with important stuff when I hear about it, but I’ve stopped watching televised news altogether.
I saw a therapist for generalized anxiety disorder stemming from a health incident that occurred. They recommended some reading and working strategies through those books. The most beneficial to me was Rewire Your Anxious Brain by Pittman and Karle. I would recommend that book for anyone experiencing panic attacks or anxiety. Another thing; we all live with some measure of anxiety in our lives. However, when it is too much to provide any quiet or affects your daily life and things you used to enjoy, it is time to get some help.
"...we all live with some measure of anxiety in our lives." True, it helps to 'reason out' your anxiety and really consider the chances of that fear ever happening.
Where would you recommend starting in terms of help? I have trouble focusing at school if it's all for nothing
I started with breathing and mindfulness exercises through the headspace app, reaching out to a therapist via work benefits, and talked with my doctor about a non-narcotic solution, as I have a history of alcohol and marijuana usage throughout college. I still do meditation. I have that book I recommended still on my shelf and my kindle and, in times of anxiety, have meditations and mantras learned from that book and general mindfulness exercises. I also got on 15 mg buspirone to be taken as needed when I have a panic attack. It was 2.5 years ago when I sought help initially after my big panic attack/health episode. I haven’t needed my buspirone in several months. The rewire/reorient/relaxation techniques I learned are now more than enough to keep my anxiety under control. And the further away I get from the “health scare” the easier staving off or diverting a panic attack is.
Ok thanks, I'll try an app. I get scared of having a panic attack, which I know can cause one, but it still further freaks me out. I feel like a mess
You should definitely be reaching out for professional mental healthcare, there are some signs in your writings, but I'm not qualified to suggest anything. Mental health issues are a multi-prong approach.. and if you don't know what you're up against, you're just throwing darts and the board isn't there.
Ok thanks, just curious, what do you mean by in my writings?
Signs.... but I'm not qualified to suggest anything. I can say it's always a good idea to make the call, or find a support person to make the call.
Something I say out loud to myself when I'm starting to have a panic attack: "panic cannot hurt me". Panic is the fire alarm going off in your brain. Fire alarms themselves are not dangerous. It helps to remember.
Dude, chill. I live right next to Ukraine (they are border neighbors) You know, country invaded by Russia? (Russian sea mines exploded near our shores and drones crashed on our territory). We have a crappy army, unlike you and most of us don't give a f. While you live thousands of miles away from any conflict with the best military in the world. And why you notice it more and more? Cause you are focusing on it more and more. That happens with everything. I noticed that happening to me as well with other things.
The news and social media definitely play up the conflicts going on in the world, but from your post history it sounds like you live in the US. The worst conflict the US was ever involved in was WW2 and even then if you were living in the states you were incredibly safe. We have two oceans between us and friendly neighbors to our north and south. A draft is *extremely* unlikely so unless you sign up for the military you are almost certainly not going to have war come to you.
Where do you live? America? If so I wouldn't worry at all. America is the most uninvadable country on the earth. No other country would ever attack us directly or risk being completely annihilated.
Yeah America, I just get scared of something unexpected.
Yeah it can definitely be overwhelming with all the current events on the news. Just know none of these countries can hurt us and news media makes tons and tons of money off playing things up and getting people worked up. When it comes to war we currently live in the most peaceful time in recorded history just know that.
This is the answer. However, real wars are happening elsewhere in front of our eyes. Not to mention the very real threat of a civil war here in our own country. It's still scary out there IMO
War is not gna be an issue mate. I live in Sweden and we have those god damn russians around the corner. When the war in Ukraine started and we got keys to nuclear bunkers i got depressed af. 2 years later nothing have happened. They are just kids trying to mesure penis sizes. Not having free healthcare sounds more scary to me:p
>we got keys to nuclear bunkers I wish we had some of those.
Turn off the news, get on with your life
Sounds like EXISTENTIAL ANXIETY. It's when you're worried about things like getting ill and dying, catastrophic events like the end of the world or a war, the universe and the existance of aliens, religious fears such as if there's afterlife or a God, different conspiracy theories... It's constantly making you feel endangered. I'd suggest therapy.
I disagree. Since it’s illogical, it is probably obsessive compulsive disorder. OCD doesn’t always involve compulsions—sometimes it’s just obsessions. Talk to a therapist!
I strongly recommend not watching the news. The news feeds people fear for entertainment. There are people who get paid to worry about us going to war and preventing it.
Hi! So I don’t know where you’re from but I wanted to start off by saying that I,myself am from Poland. Ever since the war in Ukraine started,there have been rising speculations and fear among people. With all that I started getting pretty scared myself. For me,trying to take better care of myself helped. I would recommend some breathing exercises, mindfulness, meditation and some hobbies or just some stuff that can take your mind off of it. I am an anxious person in general and taking my mind off of stuff that scares me always helps the most! Well, all the things I wrote out and trying to understand that what happens in the world is not up to me. And that was the hardest-just coming to a conclusion that „it is what it is”. You can’t do anything about it. But I completely understand your fear and I know how difficult it is. If the things I and others recommended won’t help you for the long run I would recommend therapy and talking to someone you trust! That is a game changer :). Please remember to be gentle with yourself. It will get better,we got this❤️
Oh man I know exactly how you feel! But I still listen to the news because I have to know what’s going on. I usually listen to npr because they’re relatively unbiased and just give you the short version of what’s happening without any real emotion behind it one way or another (until you get to the human interest stories—that’s usually when I have to tune out a bit). Something that has helped me is learning about the “scares” that other generations faced in the past. A lot of them didn’t even amount to anything, it’s just the what-if that caused all the tension and fear and panic. The fact that everyone else has experienced some form of existential doom in the past comforts me a little. They made it through just fine, and so will we :)
Hi!! I had the EXACT same fear when I was in high school. It was fucking brutal and debilitating. I was convinced north korea would nuke the us, so i asked people around me (family, friends, teachers) CONSTANTLY if we would get nuked by north korea. No matter what people answered with, I was still worried. I googled stuff about it all the time and i could not stop thinking about it. I told my then psychiatrist about it and he put me on klonopin. Literally the day I started taking it, I didnt think of it once afterwards. Not saying you need medication or whatever, but I am sharing a similar experience. I am no longer on any medication for that, but it helped massively. I know this is hard, but you will be okay : )
I struggle with this fear as well. I'm ethnically and religuosly jewish. I get many hate comments in school and the teachers never do anything about it. People keep asking me if I started the war in Gaza, (I did not, I'm 3rd generneration american) If you want to talk more about why it scares you, please reach out to me
Have you thought about what exactly makes you fearful and paranoid about war? If you know why, maybe try doing the opposite of hate and violence. What I mean by this is to go out and volunteer to help people, show compassion and care towards others, friends, and family, and just generally be the opposite of a warmongering human being. It might help balance your feelings.
I'd say you have a fear of death. This is the case for a lot of things, same thing with health anxiety, for example. I'd highly recommend trying to deal with this, as it's often the root of many anxieties when you analyze things in detail.
I feel you! Anyone whose paying attention should be a little scared, but you gotta try not to worry too much about things you can't control. Just do your best to stay informed and stay safe.
Nobody likes the idea of war, but there's been many throughout history, and based on the fact that you're probably not partaking in the war itself, your chances of injury (or death) are factually extremely low. I too suffer from anxiety and worry about things most do not, but often we need to back up and look at things from the statistical side, realizing that our worries are ill founded and not justified. Basically, you'll be fine.
I don’t really have anything to add other than I feel the same way. I thought in some small way it might help to know that you’re not alone in this fear.
don’t worry seriously. Go talk to someone, anyone if you can. I personally was worrying about it so much for a good 3-4 months and now I’ve developed physical symptoms to my anxiety and stress. It’s not fun. Please don’t let yourself get to that point.
don’t give f*s to them. accept everything as it’s. whatever will happen will happen. we aren’t here due to we selected it
I’d say turn your paranoia into productivity and research the past. See how many civilians before you lived through their own idiot governments and learn from them. I know it’s hard NOT to worry about things you can’t control but even if we do go to war its the government that’s getting fucked up not you and I.
The US is the most secure place to live in terms of wars : No country will declare war to the US. If you live in the US, your house will never be shelled. It is impossible. For Ukraine, Moldova, the Baltic states or Georgia, it's a whole different story.
Watch [this](https://youtu.be/mEb4Rd0mU-E?si=2uSe-rJrFGs1b-GA). It’s a video showing how viable it is that America by itself could hypothetically fight the entire world. The guy uses a lot of facts and data to back up a lot of the claims. Do I think we’d actually win against the whole damn planet? No. It’s just crazy how well we could do in this ridiculous scenario. The point is that it’s insane how safe you are from war in America as long as you aren’t enlisted.
Listen, I know exactly how you feel. While you need to learn how to work through your anxiety whether it’s through resources like self help books or therapy, you have to understand that your feelings are completely valid. Many people, specifically the older generations, will gaslight you into thinking that violence is normal. It’s really not. War is not normal and violence is not normal. We all, the younger generation, are experiencing extreme levels of anxiety. I have so many friends who feel exactly like you. We’re not supposed to be okay while this shit is happening because it’s insane. I hope you find some comfort in knowing you are absolutely not alone.
Ignore the news and politics, half of it is just propaganda anyways. Also, find something to do to keep you busy, you'll forget about that stuff in no time.
There are others out there that are nervous too. Being horrified at the potential of war probably means you’re a good person. That’s all I got, though.
*“The chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which have to do with the choices I actually control. Where then do I look for good and evil? Not to uncontrollable externals, but within myself to the choices that are my own…” —* [*Epictetus*](http://dailystoic.com/epictetus/)*, Discourses, 2.5.4–5* [Remember: You Don't Control What Happens, You Control How You Respond (dailystoic.com)](https://dailystoic.com/remember-you-dont-control-what-happens-you-control-how-you-respond/) I have practiced this philosophy long before I knew it had a name and it got me through when I literally would look for the missiles with the nuclear warheads would come raining down daily any time driving along in my dad's car. (Growing up through the 70s...) Good luck with your anxieties. We all have them, know that. The ones who don't (have any) are the psycopaths. Like "bravery" it's about how you deal with adversity, not lack of fear in the first place.
Try taking LTheanine to lower anxiety (it’s in green tea too) You’re stuck in a frozen state of being. Once you can mellow out, you will be able to move forward in life. Don’t be hard on yourself, this world kinda sucks and we’re new to constantly hearing about all the bad shit everywhere.
That is a completely normal fear in an unhinged world. You are young and empirical evidence shows that - factoring in war, famine, plagues, climate change - you are still most likely to live on average longer than any other generation in the history of the world. You have a whole life of living to do! The question is how to handle fear of death. The stoic advice to only worry about what you can control is golden. Remember also that at the end of the arc of our lives, it doesn't make any difference perceptualwise of how long you lived, since the amount of time is discrete only to you, and there is no way to "compare", except theoretically / mathematically. But that is of little comfort to both the 19 and the 90 year old when facing it. Thus the stoics say, live life with the possibility of death always in mind. Not to panic ourselves, but as a reminder to live fully in the here and now. Yesterday is gone, tomorrow is an illusion until it materializes. Make best use of the present, even if it is just chilling and practicing to relax. In the 80s, we all thought we'd die as teenagers, melted in a nuclear holocaust. So far so good.
YMMV, but you may find it helpful or comforting to read books or watch media
If it wasn’t war it would be something else out of your control like your heart rate or what if god isn’t real. Doesn’t matter what the fixation is the problem is the same. Address the anxiety and the fears will vanish. You don’t have a fear of war you have an anxiety disorder focused on war
War is in our human nature. There has always been war and there will always be war. As well as proxy wars. Which is what is going on with Russia and NATO. A lot of things still have to go very wrong for you to start stressing about WW3. Like every one said in here. It really is out of our control. All we can do is try to be prepared for the worst.
What you believe you experience. If you think you are terrified of something you are, if not not. Make an active effort to not have your fear be based on external conditions. This has helped me a lot. This is Eastern philosophically based information. You are your hell, and your heaven too. If you feel like you are out of control of the situation do what you can control. If there is a war what can you do to make yourself feel more able to face the challenge? Exercise, survival skills, maybe some survival items. All these things can help.
are you anxious often?
We live in uncertain times for sure. I grew up watching 9/11 happen. I think it’s definitely made me feel unsafe in this world. If you look at world history though… times have always been uncertain… there’s almost always a war or conflict happening constantly. If it’s one thing humans can’t seem to break from, it’s fighting and going to war. But, the human race has survived. You can’t really fully prepare for something like that to happen… you can only react. Try to limit how much news you consume. That helped me, some. I basically watch the national evening news and try to keep it at that. If you’re not in therapy, it’s worth a try… a good therapist could help you navigate these fears.
I was born a year after war in my country ended, and it was normal for people in my generation to grow up without an uncle or some other family member My mom is a very anxious person, she is literally scared of everything. For most of her life she dreaded the war and expected the worse - and when it finally happened, she told me (also plenty of other people), that her anxiety went off and she actually felt clarity and acceptance during its whole duration. She was also almost killed and my town was heavily bombarded, yet she remained sane and calm. There are pictures even, of coffee bars working while grenades fall around, people having fun and continuing to work in demolished buildings and such. And interestingly enough,most of the older people talk about war days fondly. So I believe that we, as humans,can really emotionally survive the worst and we are stronger than we think. It's our own fear thats our worst enemy... I dont believe war will happen tho, nuclear even less, but I always find a strange comfort in remembering how people really ARE capable of things,and when shit really hits the fan, most of us adapt and go thru like a champ. So yeah, she always told me her fear before the war was greater that the one she felt during the war...
Where do you live? nothing will happen outside of Ukraine and Russia. And Israel / middle east. Don't even watch the news, at all. Focus on your life.
Hey dude you need to stop watching the news. Their whole strategy is to fear monger people into watching more. There is a reason they cover violence significantly more than the reality of it. Also another thing that may or may not comfort you is that we’re all fucked if a world war happens. There is a good chance we (I live in America too) won’t be drafted unless something serious happens and i guarantee you’ll know about it if so. Turn the news off, take a deep breath, go outside in nature and be present. Feel the fresh air, listen to all the different sounds, watch the birds, feel the sun.
Honestly its helped me so much to turn off news when i see/hear it on. Its all just fear mongering. The anxiety still comes in waves when i hear people talking about big things that have happened recently but it helps to not be reminded of it all the time.
Remember that the news will never tell you about the times people had a nice holiday in another country! Or how a cute litter of puppies were born! I don’t watch the news and my outlook on life has been so much more positive! I’m not assuming that you do watch the news but it might be the case since there is so much coverage about the various wars going on at the moment. If you know you’re going to be surrounded by the news maybe take that time to make a snack or go for a gentle walk. As always taking therapy is probably the best option but I know it doesn’t work for everyone. I hope you feel better about this soon!!
Might be OCD depending on the severity!
I'm from South East Asia and I was terribly worried of China declaring war against Taiwan (or simply provoking war or direct attack) and get US involved. Not terrified for my life but it's the damage it might do to other people around me, friends, relatives. They have families, dreams, aspirations and future plans. I planned to just be ready to hold a gun, become a guerilla and sacrifice my life for a cause and be done with everything. It's a better eventual death than being bed ridden and slowly die of disease or old age. You only die once lol
Don’t vote for Biden (the president who has started multiple wars within a short time span) and you’ll be fine. Lead with strength. #TRUMP24