11 Pieces of Advice That Can Save Your Life in a Critical Situation

There is hardly anyone who would want to turn up in some dark alley with a strange man chasing them or get a flat tire in the middle of nowhere. That’s why knowing some useful pieces of advice for different life situations can actually be quite helpful.

Bright Side has prepared several ideas that can help you get out of a dangerous situation.

1. If somebody is trying to take you away by force, ’lose’ some personal belongings on the spot.

If you are being pushed into a car, try to ’accidentally’ drop as many personal belongings as possible (but remember, it’s better to keep your mobile phone with you). It could help the police find you faster.

2. If you are in an elevator with a criminal, press the buttons for every floor.

That will give you a chance to run away or signal someone. Also, it can baffle the criminal.

3. How to understand when a storm is coming:

Shake any drink and pour it into a glass. If the bubbles get spread to the sides, the weather will be good. If the bubbles are located in the center, stormy weather is coming.

This happens due to the effect of atmospheric pressure on air bubbles. High pressure dispels them to the edges, which means that you can expect sunny weather. When the pressure is low, the bubbles stay on their initial place, which means that the weather is going to be gloomy and rainy.

4. If you get a flat tire, stuff it with grass.

If you suddenly get a flat tire in the middle of nowhere, make small holes in the sides of the tire and stuff it with grass or thatch. Of course, after you get to a service station, you’ll have to throw the tire away, but at least this method will help you get home.

5. Stay focused during a plane’s takeoff and landing.

Stay attentive during the first 3 minutes of a takeoff and the 3 minutes during landing. Don’t get distracted! According to statistics, 61% of all accidents in the air occur in these time periods. That’s why your readiness to act in these moments can turn out to be the key to survival.

6. Put out a fire with baking soda.

If your kitchen stove or the oil in your frying pan caught fire, it’s forbidden to extinguish them with water. Instead, pour a package of baking soda onto the burning area — when interacting with an open fire, carbon dioxide will start to be produced and the fire will be put out. This method is only good for extinguishing small fires because it requires a big amount of baking soda.

7. How to quickly calm down when panicking:

Panic is one of the main factors that decreases your chances of survival in a dangerous situation. That’s why it’s important to stay calm and follow simple actions that will help you stabilize yourself:

• ’Ground’ yourself. Name the objects surrounding you, touch the ground under your feet, count the trees, or other objects that you see. These actions will help you get back to the situation of being ’here and now.’
• Breathe slowly. Inhale and exhale through your nose. Try to breathe with your belly, not your chest. Concentrate on a long exhale.
• Say everything you are feeling aloud. For example, “I don’t know what to do. My hands and knees are trembling. My heart is beating very fast.”
• Define the actions you’re going to take to rescue yourself.

8. Use your phone as a reflector when you cross the road in darkness.

You can use your mobile phone or camera as a light reflector when crossing a poorly lit road in the dark. It will help drivers see you on the road and react in time.

9. Smell camphor to remove signs of tunnel vision.

If you are going to drive for more than 6 hours, you can get tunnel vision while being on the road. This is when your attention is focused on the road and objects located right in front of the car. At the same time, you stop noticing things happening at sides and, therefore, you could miss a pedestrian.

In order to remove eye tension, take a fabric pouch with powdered camphor crystals in it or a bottle of camphor oil with you. Once you feel tired, bring the pouch or bottle closer to your nose and take a deep breath. You will feel better and become more attentive.

10. Start blowing or rubbing your nose to distract a predator.

If you are being threatened, act like a hysterical victim: cry, sniff, blow, or wipe your nose (even on your sleeve). You can think up some other, less disgusting actions. It’s likely that the criminal will look away and it will give you a chance to run away. By the way, policemen use this trick when they want to check if someone is stalking them. If you start blowing your nose, the person chasing you will look aside. In order to be sure, repeat this action after a couple of minutes.

11. Always carry a fake medical paper saying that you are HIV positive with you.

Not only will this advice be useful with a rapist (“I need to warn you that I am HIV positive. The paper is in my bag.”) but also with a robber. If he is not very literate, then he will probably get scared after your declaration and won’t even take anything because of the fear of catching the disease.

Are you aware of other methods that can protect you and your loved ones? Please tell us about them in the comments!