Are you worried about events in Japan?

It's easy to get worried about the tragedy in Japan. Explosions at nuclear power plants are especially frightening!

Here are some things to remember:
1. The explosions were not nuclear explosions. These are not bombs. The reactors in Japan are well-designed and well-built, and they CANNOT turn into bombs. The explosions were caused by either steam or hydrogen gas. Some radiation escaped, but not much - only enough to be a danger for those living and working nearby.

2. Some people have been talking about the Chernobyl accident in 1986. That is wrong, and when the newspapers and television news talk about it, it is irresponsible! Chernobyl was caused by very different problems. What is happening at the Fukushima Daiichi plant is much more like what happened at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania in 1979. That is very close to where I grew up! I remember the day of the accident very clearly - I was nine years old and scared. Which brings us to....

3. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER. Learn about what is happening, but be careful where you get your information from. Some papers, like VG and Dagbladet, sell more papers when they scare people. If they scare you, stop reading them for a while. Don't assume everything you read is true. Don't believe that every "worst case scenario" will come true.

This blog post has a very good explanation (by a real scientist!) about what is happening. You can also trust the BBC's Newsround service for a simpler explanation.

4. If you are worried, TALK TO SOMEONE! If you have trouble falling asleep, concentrating on your schoolwork or on things you normally enjoy, or if you aren't eating the way you normally do, those are all warning signs. Find a friend, an adult you trust, or someone else you can talk to. High school is hard enough without worrying about things you can't do anything about.