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Overexposure to violence linked to desensitization, American Academy of Pediatrics says

A collection of flowers, candles and notes accumulate on Langford Green on Friday, April 18, 2025, in honor of the victims of the shooting at FSU a day earlier. (Sydney Johnson/ WUFT News)
Sydney Johnson
/
WUFT News
A collection of flowers, candles and notes accumulate on Langford Green on Friday, April 18, 2025, in honor of the victims of the shooting at FSU a day earlier.

A school shooting like the one at FSU last week has another unintended consequence: desensitization to tragedy.

Tragedies like the COVID pandemic, and the Sandy Hook and Parkland school shootings are events that affected so many people, especially Generation Z.

With the easy accessibility of social media, Gen Z is becoming more desensitized to devastation.

The recent shooting on the Florida State University campus has left many feeling saddened.

But it feels as if the story has been told before, that is because it has.

The American Academy of Pediatrics says that overexposure to violence has been linked to desensitization for outsiders looking in.

According to the organization, the average American sees over 200,000 violent acts by age 18.

How do we bring back the emotion of tragedies?

“Just like communicating with others about the events and kind of putting like some personalization to it and understanding that kind of really diving into how it makes you feel, and what kind of actions could people potentially take to try and create change,” said Audrey Metzger, a licensed mental health counselor in Gainesville.

Metzger suggests taking a mental health break from social media to lessen the overexposure of tragic news.

Copyright 2025 WUFT 89.1

Caitlyn Schiffer