One of the most traumatic events anyone can undergo is to be robbed - check out these tips on how to survive!
One of the most traumatic experiences any person can have is being robbed. Whether or not there is any sort of physical assault involved or just a purse snatching it can have a devestating effect on your mental and physical health. But a major part of how you recover from being robbed is how you deal with the situation in the first place and survive the initial trauma.
There are a plethora of self-defence courses out there, from videos to books to classes that will all offer different approaches for you to take when confronted with this situation. But all of them will agree that the only person who can make the final call on what options you have is you, the one who is actually there on the scene. And despite hours of self-defence training and exercises and kicking punching bags you may choose to simply hand over your purse or handbag and let the criminal go - it depends on how you read the situation.
The first thing to consider is the physical appearance of your attacker. A wild look or profuse sweating may be indications of drug use or possibly drug withdrawal, placing you in danger since logic and reason may not be able to break through the mental block here. Reasoning with the robber is likely to fail since he/she is only out to get enough money for their next dose of the drug they're addicted to; they don't care about your family nor your health or even how poor you are. As well, take into consideration the relative sizes between you and your attacker. Even the best martial arts experts will warn you to not overestimate your skills when dealing with someone who may literally be twice your size. Yes, you may have trained for such an occasion but drug addicts are known to have spurts of energy and strength that are shocking to those who have not dealt with them before. That thin twig may literally be able to toss you across the room due to having drugs in her system.
Most robbers are just after one thing - the money in your wallet or purse. They may ask for jewelry or your watch, but the goal is to parlay that into cold hard cash as soon as possible. The majority of robbers have no wish to initiate a physical confrontation, wanting to just take the cash and run. You may want to just hand over the items requested and remove yourself from the situation as quickly and painlessly as possible, delivering as accurate a description to the police as you can. Insurance companies can cover your losses; credit cards can be canceled and cell phones disconnected. Depending on the type of jewelry you may even find it at the local pawnshop within a day or two and return it to your collection quickly.
What most experts agree on is that no one can tell you how to react to being robbed. Each situation is different due to each person being different. You may be able to talk your way out of being robbed by a drug addict who may be coming down from a high and not able to put up a defense or you may end up confronting an angry addict desperate for his/her next fix. The major goal here should be for you to leave the scene healthy and uninjured and to file a report immediately with the authorities. That will go far to discourage further robberies in that area and give the police more information to help them catch and incarcerate these lawbreakers.
Being robbed is a traumatic event for anyone, whether you're a karate expert on the way home from class or a harried homemaker heading in for a night school course. And while many people like to say that their possessions are so valuable that they'd die for them, it's probably a better option to hand over your purse or wallet. Then remove yourself from the situation as quickly as possible with as little danger to yourself or others in the area. You can always replace a watch or a cellphone; a life is much more difficult to replace. By using a little common sense and a bit of logic you can survive the trauma of being robbed and recover quickly from this event.
