Everyday life isn’t just about sunshine, rainbows, and cat memes. It’s also not the harsh, joyless reality that we often see on the evening news. Life’s… complicated. That means that you have to be ready to dodge or take the punches that it’s guaranteed to throw your way. Part of that is knowing about the things that could save your life. Forewarned is forearmed, after all.
The internet is a great resource for learning new things (as long as you take all advice with a large grain of salt and double-check everything), and the people of Reddit have been sharing some insightful tips and tricks over on r/AskReddit that might end up saving your life. Bored Panda has compiled this list of handy advice for you to look through, so go ahead and have a read. From health tips to help about what to do if someone attacks you, you’ll find everything (and more!) below.
Remember to upvote the bits of advice that you believe are the most important. Meanwhile, let’s go expand our minds and learn something new, dear Pandas. It might make the difference between staying safe and getting hurt. Also, be sure to scroll down for Bored Panda's chat with fitness expert Jack Bly.
Fighting mental health sometimes requires medicine and counseling. Don't be too proud or scared to seek help.
If someone breaks into your home and you use a bat to protect yourself, put a sock overtop of it so if they grab the bat, you can take it back because the sock will slide off.
I reached out to Jack to get his opinion about how important fitness is when it comes to surviving unexpected emergencies. Especially in modern times, as compared to way back in the past.
"Realistically, having a good level of fitness isn’t as important as it was hundreds of years ago," Jack told Bored Panda. He noted that "massive technological advances" have improved our chances of survival, meaning that we're capable of a lot more than our ancestors. However, this doesn't change the need to get fit. There are plenty of upsides to doing this.
"Having a high level of fitness grants you the best life possible," he said.
When in an emergency situation, tell someone to call 911 by pointing at them and saying "Hey you, in the [descriptive] shirt...call 911].
Shock is a real thing and some people need to be delegated roles explicitly.
"You there, control the traffic around the scene." "Run to the nearest library or mall and get a defibrillator, you will see a sign of a heart with a lightening bolt through it."
Delegate and be descriptive. Get them working for you.
If you're at a bar or club and some as*hole antagonizes you don't let your ego get involved. Seen so many people get hurt when they could just walk away. Funny thing is most people think fighting back will defend their pride but to me and a lot of other people you just look insecure. Be the cool guy who just laughs it off. Yours sincerely. Former bartender.
Crawl out of a burning building, breathing as close as possible to the floor as you move.
Toxic smoke rises while air remains more breathable nearest the floor.
Fitness expert Jack listed the positives that come from getting and keeping fit: "More energy, better mood, longer life, and higher quality of life."
Meanwhile, he added that getting a check-up at your doctor once a year is generally enough for most people.
If you are deep frying something and the entire freakin pot is on fire, DO NOT PUT IT OUT WITH WATER!!!.
1) Turn off the gas/electric range. Don't pour water on it.
2) Cover the pot with a lid. Don't pour water on it.
3) If you don't have a lid, dump baking soda on it. Don't pour water on it.
If you pour water on it your house might burn down and your face might melt.
If you ever get held at gunpoint and asked to get in a vehicle, you fight with everything you've got to not do that. Run zig zag, punch and kick, do whatever even if you die in the process. Because 99% of the time, people who get in the car do not come back. Especially if being moved from a public place to a private place.
If you are being chased by a swarm of bees, do not jump into a lake or other body of water to escape. This isn't a cartoon. The bees will simply wait above the water to sting you, and now you have created a situation where you move slower, can't breathe as well, and suffer worse if the toxins affect you. You may even swallow a bunch of bees gasping for air. Also, water has unseen predators that you've now introduced to the equation. If pursued by bees, just keep running and running. They will defend their hive to a large proximity, perhaps even a mile. Just run until they feel they've won.
Staying safe is a weird state of being when you think about it. There is never any guarantee that you won’t get hurt. No matter how prepared you are, something will always (eventually) go wrong (given enough time). In short, you can’t be ready for everything, but you can be ready to overcome at least some of the challenges that will undoubtedly come flying your way. Trying to think of all the possible ways in which you could get hurt can lead to analysis paralysis and you won't get much done in life this way.
Keeping physically and mentally fit can make you better suited to tackling those challenges. Having a few survival skills and the willingness to reach out for professional help when you’re unsure about your health are things that also don’t hurt your chances of living a long and happy life.
However, just because the internet is a wonderful place full of animal memes doesn’t make it 100% accurate. Unfortunately, the net is full of misinformation and fake news that can be a tad tough to separate from the kernels of truth in between.
Never hesitate to call police to report a missing person the "24 hour rule" is a myth.
Trust your gut, if something doesn't feel right then move to the other side of the street or change direction or don't go down that dark alley that moans.
Lee McIntyre, from Boston University, explained to me how we should approach fact-checking. He told Bored Panda earlier that we should prioritize finding accurate sources of information and reliable news websites. Though all sources make mistakes from time to time, reliable ones make fewer and they’re less likely to be biased.
“It would be exhausting to fact check every single news item we hear. In fact, insisting on this degree of skepticism is something that demagogues use to get us to be cynical, because when we doubt that it is possible to know the truth—even when it is staring us in the face—we are riper to their manipulation. So I'd say the best thing with news is to do a little investigation into finding a reliable source," Lee said.
If you're outside in a lightning storm and your hair starts floating, seek immediate shelter. You're about to be struck by lightning.
When you're waiting to make a left turn, keep the wheels facing forward until you're ready to go. If you get rear-ended, it can make the difference between just a fender-bender or getting launched into oncoming traffic and getting t-boned. They used to teach this in driver's ed, but I don't think my kids ever heard this from their instructors.
If you are taken to the hospital and the doctors ask you if you have taken any drugs don’t just think about the illegal stuff also tell them if you’ve had small things like Advil or Tylenol it could save your life.
"Look for an organization that does investigative journalism (and doesn't just repeat information from other sources), double sources its quotations, discloses conflicts of interest, etc. Once we've found that we can relax a bit and trust the reporting behind the stories. Do we still need to be on guard? Yes. Even The New York Times can make mistakes. Or individual reporters can have biases. But that doesn't mean 'all sources are equal.'"
Lee explained that media literacy is vital. It’s also something that kids are taught from a very early age in some parts of the world. So we don’t have an excuse not to give it the attention it deserves.
If a canker sore in your mouth or on your tongue isn't healing in about 2 weeks, it might not be a canker sore.
I'm going in to surgery today, and they will likely remove 100% of my oral cancer, because of early detection.
If someone gets stabbed, do NOT take the knife out if possible. If it stays in it acts as a plug to the hole and will reduce bloodloss. Apply pressure around the wound as best you can and call an ambulance.
“There are various sources for media literacy that can help. They teach this to KIDS in Finland! It's easy to learn. Is the story copyrighted? Is it dated? Is there a byline? Are other stories by the author solid? Is it published in a source that has been reliable in the past? Does it seem plausible— if not then you can do some research," the expert said.
"Will we get fooled sometimes in doing this? Yes. But we're going to get fooled sometimes anyway. It's analogous to how scientists form their beliefs. They are skeptics, but they also—at some point when the evidence is sufficient—give their assent. Scientists deal with warrant, not 'proof.' They are what philosophers call 'fallibilists.' You give your belief to things that are well-sourced with evidence, while always holding out the possibility that if further evidence comes to light that contradicts your belief, you should give it up because you might be wrong."
Assume other drivers are out to kill you... healthy paranoia when paying attention to other drivers is a great basis for successful defensive driving
A lot of choking deaths are actually due to embarrassment. If you're choking, fight the urge to save face. Don't go to the bathroom to fix it yourself, don't sit silently and try to spit up the food yourself. Ask for help asap
Actual fires spread shockingly fast. We all like to play "What's the one thing you'd grab if your house was on fire?" but the real right answer is that if it's not alive, you should leave it and get the hell out. People tend to imagine a fire burning on the floor in a corner somewhere, but the reality is often that it's running across the ceiling and circling around the walls. Just get out.
Don't swim in Florida waterways at night, dusk, or dawn, because teeth. But if you should find yourself in the mouth of a hungry gator, don't go for the standard eye poke, go for the nostril poke. Jamming your finger in their nostril breaks the seal they use to keep water out of their airways when submerged and they will release you instantly.
If you feel uneasy like someone is watching you, someone or something (animal) likely may be watching/stalking you. Trust your gut feeling. Your brain picks up on things subconsciously that you do not notice.
There is no such thing as a fair fight. If it's a life threatening situation, fight dirty. Attempt to bite if you are pinned down, and press the base of your thumbs onto their eyes if necessary. As soon as you get the opportunity, run towards the nearest place with people around, and report to the police
Obvious, but often people view fighting as a boxing match.
If you EVER get bit by a wild animal, no matter how it acts. Get. A. Rabies. Shot.
Rabies becomes a death sentence upon the onset of symptoms.
If you are stranded in the desert do not drink the “water” in a cactus. It will induce vomiting which will dehydrate and kill you faster
If you have been driving for a while and you find yourself or your mate, in the car starting to micro sleep. Pull over immediately and get some rest (~ 20 minute power nap with an alarm to wake you). Your/their reward is being alive and not wrapped around some tree.
Don't be afraid to go to a psychologist.
It's nothing to be ashamed of. I keep telling this to a friend of mine, but he keeps refusing. I try to help and listen, but in the end, there is only so much a normal person can do
If you get pulled out into a rip current at the beach, swim parallel to the shore to work your way out of the riptide rip current before trying to swim back to shore. Fighting against it directly is only going to exhaust you a ton faster.
Yell at a knife, whisper at a gun.
If you yell at an attacker with a knife, there is a small chance that could startle them and they drop it. At the least, you are attracting attention, and can get out of the situation.
Always whisper at someone with a gun, or at least, speak slowly and calmly. If you yell, that could startle them, and you could get shot.
Most weapons are used as intimidation, so if it's your wallet they are after, talk calmly, give them your wallet, and back away slowly.
Get a carbon monoxide detector for your home and regularly check to make sure it has fresh batteries.
If you happen to be walking near a downed power line DO NOT take your feet off the ground. This can create a potential between you and the ground and cause a discharge through your body. Take small shuffling steps away (without picking your feet up) from the power line and call the authorities.
If you've gone two and a half or more days without water, and you have to choose between drinking water without any way to sanitize it or not drinking water, drink the water. If you don't, you'll definitely die soon. Most of the diseases you can get from bad water take a couple days to set in, which gives you more time to find help.
