Does carrying concealed make you more paranoid?

[mississippi revolverman]

Lot of good post here to this thread. I reallydon't like the word "paraniod". I am aware of my surrounds and the sitution but don't feel paranoid. I feel while carry and a sitution starts to get bad I feel much more comfortable of my position knowing I have some control.

 

[GatorFarmer]

My therapist said that I wasn't technically paranoid, I had simply adapted (maladapted? shrug) to life experiences. My shrink said the same thing. Though I did forget to tell her about the EBEs trying to steal my blood while I slept. But I digress...

I don't mind the word paranoid. Paranoid doesn't mean that one is afraid of a threat that doesn't exist. It simply means that they pay special attention to potential threats. Other people may choose to ignore these threats or be unaware of them, but that doesn't mean that other people made the right choice.

 

[Poohgyrr]

We're armed because we are aware.

Maybe they're lucky nothing bad has caught up to them ~ yet.

Violent street crime exists, and our society releases violent thugs back into public to continue preying upon us.

Kind of puts things into perspective.

 

[gold40]

Webster's Dictionary describes PARANOIA as:

"a mental disorder characterized by systematized by delusions and the projection of personal conflicts, that are ascribed to the supposedl hostility of others."

Surely you don't mean you suffer from a mental disorder! If so, you should not have a CCW.

PARANOIA is probably not the proper word for your concerns.

gold40

 

[38-44HD45]

Webster's Dictionary describes PARANOIA as:

"a mental disorder characterized by systematized delusions and the projection of personal conflicts, that are ascribed to the supposed hostility of others."

Surely you don't mean you suffer from a mental disorder! If so, you should not have a CCW.

PARANOIA is probably not the proper word for your concerns.

gold40

My point exactly, Gold. That's why I get annoyed at people misusing the term. Many of the sheeple of the world would like to characterize all who would be sheep dogs as being mentally unstable or downright deranged.

 

[Spotteddog]

Because it's always easier to be the one's framing an argument 38/44. They've been doing it to us for decades now, and for the most part have been successful. Demonization is the first arrow drawn from their quiver. That's why they just stick with what's worked so far!

 

[Len]

Barb, you remind me of a psychiatrist I know really well, who said, "If you question whether or not you're being paranoid, you probably are not."

I do not consider myself paranoid when:

1. I buckle my seatbelts.
2. I slow down in my truck on ice and snow.
3. I lock the doors at night.
4. ...try to eat well and take vitamins.
5. Legally carry a concealed firearm.
6. Keep my dogs up to date on their vaccinations.

...and the list goes on.

Maybe it's because I've worked the mean streets and city ER's in EMS, or had two attempted car-jackings...but it seems normal to me to cut down the odds on bad things happening. That is not paranoia, it's simple sense. [I don't say common sense anymore, because I'm not sure that "common sense" exists....]

In other words, no, you were not paranoid, you were prepared.

"The definition of a conservative...is a liberal that's been mugged."

Len

 

[Ogandydancer]

Only one it makes paranoid is the wife. Doesn't bother me at all.

 

[jkc]

An acute Condition Yellow situational awareness no more makes you "paranoid" than habitually and fastidiously checking the condition of any firearm coming into your possesion makes you a victim of "Obssesive Compulsive Disorder". These behaviors are not indicative of aberrancies, rather, they're indicators of a wholesome and savvy regard for the immediate environment --- skills we've lost for the most part since having to avoid large predators and hostile tribesmen was a survival necessity. These are still useful skills for many of us. Your foolish associates, oblivious to the dangers around them, unaware of rudimentary survival skills, are perhaps "normal" in terms of modern urban lifestyles, but I think you're seeing things more rationally than they are...

 

[Hook686]

Join the force. On the other hand, if you want to waste your day with 'Mall ninga' illusions ... go right ahead and enjoy. I suggest you leave the ladies out of it. If they are adults, then they are responsible for their actions, reactions and inactions, not you.

 

[Hook686]

"Paranoid" is one of the most overused and inappropriately used words in our language. Paranoia is fear of that which does not exist, or that which is so improbable that it borders on impossible. Carrying a firearm, concealed or otherwise, is no more an indicator of paranoia than is carrying a fire extinguisher or a spare tire in one's car, or coming in off the golf course when a thunderstorm is approaching. Armed robberies, murders, rapes and other crimes do occur, and they have victims, and these events are documented. They exist, undeniably. Preparing to counter them is not paranoia, and while being so prepared is one aspect of being aware, one's level of awareness should be the same, whether armed or unarmed. In fact, those of us who are regularly armed are probably more likely to have heightened awareness when we are not armed, since our tools have been limited.

from: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paranoid

Paranoia
Symptoms, Treatments, More. Depression Related Info Online.
www.healthline.com


Main Entry: para·noid
Pronunciation: \ˈper-ə-ˌnȯid, ˌpa-rə-\
Variant(s): also para·noi·dal \ˌper-ə-ˈnȯi-dəl, ˌpa-rə-\
Function: adjective
Date: 1904
1 : characterized by or resembling paranoia
2 : characterized by suspiciousness, persecutory trends, or megalomania
3 : extremely fearful
— paranoid noun

If you wish to go through life suspicious about everything around, feel free to do so. That strikes me as extremely fearful. However, once you relax and enjoy your surroundings, they are going to get you.

 

[CarolinaSpecAppraisal]

Don't know about ya'll but packing puts me at ease

especially when out and about..... I feel more relaxed & at ease with my concealed firearm(s)....depending on my attire I may have a .38 or .25 on my person or both in my USA made concealed carry handbag, very nice & affordable... http://neadesignnc.com/neadesignnc/index.htm
I pray everyday I never have to use my firearm but still must be prepared, aware and ready to respond in any situation. Crazy people are everywhere - that's not paranoia, that's a fact. Homeland Security starts right here at home so keep ya eyes peeled, ears open & ammo handy!

Love, Peace & Chicken Grease
Crystal
http://www.carolinaspecialtyappraisal.com/

 

[BarbC]

If you wish to go through life suspicious about everything around, feel free to do so. That strikes me as extremely fearful. However, once you relax and enjoy your surroundings, they are going to get you.

I like that quote!

I am usually just alert and aware within my own familiar surroundings, neither hyper-vigilant nor lapsed into comfortable oblivia. But being in a strange, run-down (sorry, Wilkes-Barre people) city makes me a little edgy, especially when you're with people who not only seem not to have a clue at all but dress and act like shark bait.

 

[elcruisr]

especially when you're with people who not only seem not to have a clue at all but dress and act like shark bait.

Having spent some wonderful times in "exotic" (read that no tourists especially) places I never cease to be amazed by some folks. Where ever I am I try to be the one dressed and acting in a way that blends in. I try to tell people that in many out of the way places the first step in security is to be unnoticed. The same thing applies here. Yet they go out in clothing and jewelry and expensive watches and then scream bloody murder when they are attacked, robbed, harassed, etc.

The whole "Grey Man Principle" really works well and is a good first line of security.

 

[Filbird]

paranoia vs. simple active awareness...?

I have a master's in counseling, and I'm still not going to jump in too deep as to the difference between paranoia and simple active awareness of danger. To the question, "does carrying concealed make you more paranoid," the only thing I will say is that psychology has long grappled with the definitions of mental health and mental illness; the field has a far easier time defining what is illness than it has defining what is health, as the size of the latest Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) will tell you.

I think Freud said that you are mentally healthy if you can love and work.

Personally, I like the catch phrase often used in the DSM: "... impairment in occupational functioning or in usual social activities or relationships with others." Which is really not all that far away from, "can you love and work?"

I am ASTONISHED by the number of my friends who seem oblivious to the potential dangers around them. By the same token, I'm pretty tightly wound up myself, thanks at least in part to being raised by an alcoholic and periodically violent father. I simply see more of EVERYTHING than most of my friends do (birds, animals, cars, potentially problematic people, etc.).

A professor of mine spent many years counseling Vietnam vets who had substance abuse problems, and he talked a lot about how for them the experience of combat "broke the shell of safety and predictability" that most of us have erected around ourselves. So, I would say that if that "shell" has been broken for you, for any reason (even just a very active imagination, or a close reading of crime statistics, etc.), then you may seem paranoid to those for whom the shell is still whole. Which of you is crazy? The one who thinks that nothing bad will ever happen, or the one who constantly prepares for something bad that may never happen? As long as you are both loving and working, I'd say neither one.

And I have a 442 in my pocket as I type...

 

[38-44HD45]

Excellent post, Filbird! Thanks!

 

[flop-shank]

I like that quote!

I am usually just alert and aware within my own familiar surroundings, neither hyper-vigilant nor lapsed into comfortable oblivia. But being in a strange, run-down (sorry, Wilkes-Barre people) city makes me a little edgy, especially when you're with people who not only seem not to have a clue at all but dress and act like shark bait.

I'm an alert person, but really don't worry. My habits, and vigilance keep me safer than most people. Situations like you were in, Barb make my stomach crawl. Neither of us ever would have put ourself in that situation if the choice were ours alone, and the chum (pun intended) you were with made a bad situation worse and more complex. The hair would have been standing up on the back of my neck.

 

[natnlp8re8]

I don't carry concealed yet. Monday the 21st will change all that. But I do take advantage of Nevada's Non-Concealed carry. One time I saw a guy with a "Proudly Unarmed" button. He glared at me because I was carrying. I just wonder if he would have thrown a piss fit if someone mugged him and I stopped it by pulling my gun. Some people are stupid. I believe that if more citizens carried firearms crime rates would be lower. I.E. the criminal doesn't know who's packing heat might rethink the attack. The return of public executions might help too.

 

[Spotteddog]

8re8,
I'd argue that both laws are one and the same. And that's very likely why, they would have the same desired outcomes.

 

[bigt5150]

I wouldn't say I'm paranoid although some of my friends would disagree with me. But then again, none of my friends have been the victim of a random drive by shooting then stalked by the same gang bangers becuase they thought they were recognized. I'm always aware of my surroundings. I hope for the best, but i'm prepared for the worst.