A thank you to Lauren, an author who mentioned this to me yesterday during an interview we did in preparation for her book project.
Note that the general topic in the article below is fear vs. physical health. We always emphasize that folks need to prepare for threats out there in a logical, systematic way, and that the greatest benefit is not necessarily readiness, but peace of mind. Do it to ease your anxieties. If you can make that work for you, then you are in a very good place.
Living in Fear and Paying a High Cost in Heart Risk
By JOHN TIERNEY
Published: January 15, 2008
Excerpt:
“The fear response causes the heart to pump harder and faster, the nerves to fire more quickly,” Dr. Siegel said. “Excess triggering of this system of response causes the organs to wear down. For a person who is always on the alert, the result is a burned out body.”
It’s not fair to blame public officials alone for this fear epidemic. We in the news media have done our part to scare people. (More on how the “terrorism industry” distorts risks can be found at tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com.) But since there hasn’t been an attack in America for six years, for domestic drama we’ve had to rely on dire predictions of politicians and security officials.
What if the alerts stopped? What if the security officials looked at this new medical evidence — or at their own perfect record of false alarms — and decided that the nation did not need to be in a perpetual state of yellow alert? What if they even decided that Americans could survive without any color at all?
I guess that’s a hopeless fantasy. No politician wants to be blamed for failing to anticipate a terrorist attack. No bureaucrats willingly abandon a system that keeps them employed.
But maybe these officials could be induced to take one more precaution. The next time they raise the threat level to orange or red, they could add, “Warning: Heeding this alert may be hazardous to your health.”
Get Ready ... Seriously - www.safecastleroyal.com
If you are the sort of person who is worried about something bad happening then of course preparing is prudent. Minimizing things that stress you is a good way to have a better, longer life.
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