As I have ventured the dark, haunting pathways of a nighttime campus, I have realized the importance of feeling safe while in college. While we hope that we are safe, the reality is that we don’t know when a dangerous situation is thrust upon us. Despite all the pepper spray, despite the groups we travel in, and despite the emergency buttons, there is always that possibility that you may be forced to rely on your own abilities to defend yourself.
For all my fellow females, shorties, and scaredy cats, this is a daunting task. I mean, what are you going to do against a 6’4” kidnapper with a gun? With a few flailing punches and kicks, probably not much. But with an observant eye and some quick thinking, you can do much more than you think.
Lesson #1: Observe, Run, Comply
Sadly, we can’t all be Jackie Chan running on the walls and twisting attackers into slumped pretzels along the ground. So, instead, it is best to avoid the conflict. Of course, you should stay with a large group, don’t go out at night, and stay away from the sketchy parts of town. However, you can’t always avoid that. What you can do is keep an eye out and observe your surroundings. Did you notice someone following you around corners? A car driving suspiciously slow? Just that itchy feeling of a pair of eyes watching? Recognize that feeling. Call someone. Make sure someone knows where you are and your situation just in case the worst happens.
Next, run away. Get somewhere safe. This could be your dorm, somewhere with police presence, or even just a public place. Anywhere with more eyewitnesses is better than alone in a dark alley.
However, you can’t always run away or find a safe place. If you are forced into a position with just you and an aggressor, evaluate. They might just be demanding your wallet or other material items. In that case, comply.
Is your wallet worth your life? Maybe you’ll lose your favorite keychain, a meaningful photo, and a replaceable credit card, but in the end, you cannot replace you. Even if you are the most experienced martial artist, you can’t know if they have a knife up their sleeve or a buddy around the corner. It only takes one wrong move to get a knife to the gut or a bullet in your head. Life is just too fragile and precious to take that risk. So, play it safe. Comply. Then, get out of there as fast as you can and notify the authorities of the incident.
Hopefully you will never have to use these tips, but should the situation arise, you are equipped with three simple but effective disengagement strategies.
- Observe your surroundings and avoid a dangerous situation.
- Run away and find a safer place.
- Comply if the aggressor’s goal is simply materialistic.
While these are in no way 100% effective, they are a few tools you can remember to help keep yourself safe.
This is insightful and informative 🙂
I think this post is great, and very informative. Doing this for a blog is definitely unique and I think it turned out great. I do want to make a comment about running back to the dorm as a safe spot. In general, that seems like a good idea, but you should be careful because you don’t know if they’re following you, and if they figure out where you live, that could be dangerous.
That’s all, I think this is a great idea, keep up the good work.
I really enjoyed the structuring and imagery of this post. I liked how you wrote your sections as ‘lessons.’ One sentence I thought was really great was ‘Sadly, we can’t all be Jackie Chan running on the walls and twisting attackers into slumped pretzels along the ground.’ Great use of imagery. In your next post, be sure to include pictures! Keep up the good work!