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Help stop the spread of fear
Originally appeared online in the teen series: UpFront - March 10, 2020
At my friend’s high school, some students have been wearing surgical masks for weeks. Even the announcement that the masks won’t actually protect them hasn’t really changed anything.
“People are afraid,” my friend told me. “The masks give them a feeling of safety.”
It might seem natural to feel afraid when words like contagion, pandemic, and quarantine are floating around. I’ve even heard people argue that fear can be helpful—motivating us to take action to protect ourselves. But actually, fear can distort our view of what’s going on and inhibit our ability to think clearly by inciting panic … or paralysis. The experts agree, and many have taken to social media to try to calm people’s fears with reassurances and facts.
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April 27, 2020 issue
View Issue-
From the readers
Uta Kuehnast, Caroline Long
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Finding immunity from sickness
Michelle Boccanfuso Nanouche
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A prayer for mutual respect and cooperation
Name Withheld
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One powerful fact can bring healing
Steven R. Wennerstrom
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Weathering life’s droughts
Sandi Justad
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Bullying doesn’t have the last word
David Clark Scott
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Re-engaging with Christian Science
Joan Mikkelsen
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Help stop the spread of fear
Jenny Sawyer
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No more flu symptoms
Carol Vaughan
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Child’s fever gone
Jessica Joy Charlston
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Sports-related elbow pain healed
Brian Kissock
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Enlightened children
Cicely Gallagher