Waking up Monday morning, social media was flooded by what happened in Las Vegas. Every news outlet updated constantly with the number of those inflicted. Well-known celebrities and public figures offered their "thoughts and prayers" to the victims.

Are those thoughts and prayers going to protect me from a future shooting? Although I am a practicing Christian, I don't want to pray every time I go out in public in the fear of me being shot.

I don't want people just thinking and praying for me, I want to be safe.

Although gun laws and mental health awareness are important, I don't want my article to be one of thousands picking a side to exaggerate on; I believe both factors are very important in stopping this madness.

Moreover, I am writing this article out of an underlying fear I have every single day. Some could argue that I have agoraphobia, however, I was not always like this until these shootings started really becoming mainstream.

Lecture halls, the concourse, the grocery store, movie theaters, bars, fraternities, my apartment complex.

Although the chances of a shooting actually happening are very slim, I cannot help but worry that it could. I want to believe the world is a great safe place but it's not. Every time I walk into a classroom I wonder how I would react if a shooter or any person whose intentions are to harm us. I look for the nearest escape routes in my lecture halls.

For God's sake, I even examine people who walk into the movie theatre I'm in.

You can call me crazy, or tell me I need to be medicated, but I am only one of thousands of people across the United States who feel this way. I feel like every time we finally move on from the last incident another one happens somewhere randomly in the United States.

It's not just popular places like the strip in Las Vegas, it's an elementary school in Connecticut, A college in Virginia, A nightclub in Orlando, an attack in San Bernardino and many other places across the nation.

My overall point is that I want to feel safe. Although this fear doesn't stop me from going out and about, I want to be able to go in the public and not have to worry that a lunatic is going to randomly attack us. And as much as your thoughts and prayers are appreciated and noted, they aren't going to stop the next person/group of people from attacking us.