We were so terrified my mother actually had to lie to us and tell us that the police had killed a man who confessed as he died that he was Zodiac. That's the only thing that would get us to calm down. And it worked.
Sympathize COMPLETELY. I was afraid of watching news because I was a child during the Korean war and was certain that the bombs described were going to fall on our house. Took years to realize that’s why I left the room every time the news came on.
As for blessed mothers, when I dreamed of being chased by a white polar bear, mother brought home a white fur trimmed hat and explained she’d caught the bear, turned it inside out, and had a hat made from the fur. Now all I think is YUCK!