My gun freak out

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So today my mom my brother and I went to Walmart to get me some new shoes. I hate shopping. In fact I hate leaving my house. When we where walking through the store I saw the big man in a leather coat walk down to the back of the store. No big deal. But out o the corner of my eye I saw he had a gun on his side. I only remember a little of what happened next since I was freaking out. I stopped in my tracks and just sat down and started rocking crying. I feel really embarresed about it and my brother has been teasing me. My mom asked what but I couldn't respond. I was just freaking out with this man going through my mind. I imagened him robbing the store and taking me as a way the police won't follow. I was the most scared I have ever been in my entire life. I know that I said gun and my mom looked around. The man was actually walking right at me. Looking at me. I don't really remember what happened next but it turns out he was from a money truck and people who drive it have to be armed at all times. He was very nice. But I am still a little tramitized. I have a way to overactive imagination and I keep imagining him shooting me or my mom. I can't get it out of my head. I am also embarresed since my brother keeps calling me a ret*d for the way I reacted. I really couldn't help it. I think the reason I am terrified of guns is my dad was shot when I was young. I don't even remember how it happened. All I know is that I couldn't help my reaction

I think this is one of those unusual situations that won't come up too often. Still, if you want to desensitize yourself to guns, you may want to see if someone you know has a gun that they will let you handle (unloaded, of course). This will let you be more used to having them around in non threatening situations.

As far as it goes, I saw a woman shot in the head and killed by her estranged husband when I was in my late teens. It was not a pleasant experience. I was fortunate that he did not turn the gun on me as it was in a wide open parking lot where I was sweeping at the restaurant I worked at at the time. However, I am not afraid of guns as a rule today and would own them. I don't really like shooting them but have probably put around 100 rounds down range with a 9mm semi-automatic handgun. I've also cleaned and field stripped a few AK-47's for fun (I wanted to look at the mechanism). This doesn't mean I am not a little nervous with other people around me having guns, but I can generally handle it if I know they are mentally stable and respect what a weapon can do.

I think I would likely freak out if I saw a man with a gun in a store. In Canada we have stricter gun laws and not many people own them in the city I'm from , Toronto. I'm not sure what I would do but I might have a meltdown like you described or I might run out of the store.

I have two Colt 1911 BB guns. Yeah, I know. They're not the real thing. One of them is full metal so it's as heavy as the real thing. Still, I wouldn't take them outside. That's too big of a risk especially with all the shootings in town recently.

You're in luck, phobias and irrational fears can be treated quite well.

Around here, guns are a common sight. Some guys carry openly with it on their hip and others carry it concealed and many women have guns in their purses. Over half the pickup trucks have guns in the gunracks, probably loaded.

If you are in a store and there are 7 people in line, 2 of which have guns on their hips in plain sight and you don't know how many others have hidden guns, you aren't going to rob that store. You are going someplace else where there is less of a chance of you getting shot.

Guns won't hurt you. Idiots with guns will. Regular folks with guns won't and deter the idiots.

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I have never seen a gun on anyone except for officers. I know my great grandma used to carry one.

I think it's reasonable to be scared of a gun because for one, you don't know the person and you don't know if they are going to take it out and start shooting with it or hold it up to someone's head. I would hate to witness such a crime and they could shoot you too if you saw it. I would probably hide and then call the cops after the person is gone and not even bother touching the body. I would hate to put my finger prints on it and be covered in blood framing myself. Yeah I watched too many crime movies and read too much on crime, you can probably tell. But I know these things are rare and it's rare to be at the wrong place at the wrong time and be accused of doing the crime and evidence pointed towards you doing it because you touched the weapon and the dead victim so it made it look like you did it. Yep, rare.

In UK, guns are illegal and they really freak me out. The first time I went to the US, I was in a cafe and two policemen came in with guns in their belt, and it really, really freaked me- I had to get out the cafe and as far away as I could. The idea of people carrying guns really scares me, although I know now that it's common in US.

I'm sorry. It must have been very traumatizing for you.

Guns are illegal in the UK and if I went to the USA, I probably wouldn't feel safe as I'd be consistently paranoid about being shot.

Also, your parents shouldn't allow your brother to call you a ret*d.

Firearms aren't illegal in the UK. Handguns are (people in Commonwealth countries don't seem to like handguns all that much), but not firearms.

UK is the land of the shotgun.

I'm really sorry - it sounds like that was a very scary experience for you. If I saw someone in a store carrying a gun (and he wasn't a security person or cop), I'd be anxious, too.

I'm actually pretty desensitized to guns. My dad owned seven of them, my step-dad owns two. I've even shot guns myself.

Guns are also a common sight around here, as I'm not far away from good target practice areas.

It's not the guns that scare me, it's the idiots carrying them.

Generally, if someone is carrying a firearm appropriately, i.e., holstered or in a bag (if long arm), then there's really nothing to fear, rationally.