The statistics are terrifying. All the things that so regularly happen to kids. All the things that could happen to your kids. All the things you see on the news.

No wonder we worry. No wonder we’re overprotective. No wonder we’re stressed.

But we should always remember who these statistics include: They include the neglectful parents. They include the stupid parents. They include the parents who don’t watch their kids in parking lots. They include the parents who ignore basic medical advice. They include parents who leave guns just laying around the house. They include parents who are on drugs, who are dealing with serious personal issues. They include parents who are just barely keeping their heads above water. They include parents who had neglectful or abusive parents themselves.

This doesn’t mean you should stop thinking about bike helmets or pool fences or stranger danger or vaccines. These are real concerns and it’s good that you’re on top of them. It does mean that once you have thought about them—once you have taken the basic precautions, listened to the expert advice—you can relax a little bit. You have done what it’s prudent to do, done what’s possible to do, and now you have to live your life. You have to let your kids live their lives.

It’s a scary world out there for sure. Lots of things can happen and no one—certainly no kid—deserves anything bad to happen to them. Yet many of these dangers are easy and simple to mitigate. There are things you can do—and you have done those things. Statistically, you are not the one who should be worried. You are not the one most exposed. You should not torture yourself on top of everything else you’ve done…otherwise, what was the point of doing it?