All of us are horrified by the murders at the Colorado movie theatre at the midnight showing of "The Dark Knight Rises" this past week. Details are just now being released about the events of that evening. We are hearing that a man opened fire at this premiere, killing 12 and wounding 59 people.
Stories of bravery have been coming forth such as a man who leaped in front of the gunman, saving his girlfriend and her brother while he himself was killed. Stories of fear and terror have been recounted by those who were present in the theatre.
Why and how did this happen? I think all of us are asking that question today. Places like movie theatres are considered safe places to go for everyone. Now many families and teens are questioning whether it is safe to go anywhere after witnessing this horrible tragic event.
We do not know the motive or thoughts of the gunman. Knowing this might help us understand what he was thinking, if he was seeking revenge for something, or if he was developing delusional thinking. And sometimes understanding how something occurred can help all of us cope with fear and anger.
Talk to your teen about this. Help him understand that we do not have answers as to how this happened, and that we need to gather more information. Have him discuss with you how he feels about this and ask him if this has changed his thoughts about where or even if he is safe anywhere.
If is so important that we help our teen have a sense of being able to function in the outside world and not let them become paralyzed by events such as this. But to do that we need to help them by talking with them and getting them to talk to us.
My thoughts and prayers are with the families of those who did not survive this assault and with the survivors who were injured and witnessed this tragedy.
Dr. Debra
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