DEAR ABBY: I am a 17-year-old girl who is terrified of going back to public school because of the fear of getting shot. I recently heard on the news that the number of school shootings will increase.
I am being forced to make a decision about going back to public school or staying in home-school. Please help me make the right decision. Your opinion means a lot to me. -- TERRIFIED TEEN, SACRAMENTO, CALIF.
DEAR TERRIFIED TEEN: The problem with fear is that, unchecked, it feeds upon itself and magnifies. While the school shootings of the last few years have received much media attention, the truth is that the vast majority of students in attendance are teens just like yourself -– sane, studious and functional.
You will become completely housebound if you withdraw from society because you are afraid of some lunatic with a gun, because shootings also occur in markets, post offices, banks and on residential streets. Far better to face your fears by talking them out with a professional counselor than to remain in home-school because of a fear of being shot. Please don't wait.