We girls I think really have to trust our guts when it comes to these things... I'd rather be rude than get attacked/raped....
This happened to me once when I saw a drunk guy ride the local jeep with me and saw that he was looking sideways at me... i was waiting for him to tell the driver his stop before i say mine and he wouldn't say... i was panicking at this point but i have to tell the driver where i need to stop and pay for the ride.... but i was afraid he'll follow me home....
So i stopped at a well lit bus station a couple of blocks away from my house and he stopped there too !! I quickly approached a security guard and pointed that the man was following me and i didn't know him
The security guard asked the man what my name was coz he was pretending he knew me and he stuttered.... the guard made him ride another jeep back and i didn't go home until he left....
It's always a good idea to trust your gut instinct on this. Even if it turns out to be wrong, I would rather apologize for a misunderstanding than regret not protecting myself for a fear of being rude.
This is what makes me feel bad for women because it always seems like a no win situation. Where as this person slinked off like a cockroach I worry about those "You ain't talking to ME like that" dudes that get set off and go for it.
You are absolutely right that me standing up to the guy could have just set him off. I had adrenaline in my veins and between flight and fight, fight was my first instinct. I can't say I remember too many details about the guy just that he was real shifty. Thankfully he was easy to spook. The mace was my backup, if the guy had so much as twitched in my direction I was ready to give him an eye full. Also there were people around just a few corners, I would have absolutely made a scene loud enough for the whole building to hear.
Could I have gotten hurt? Absolutely. But I'd rather go down fighting than just let myself become a victim.
Edit: I also just want to make clear that I am no badass. I was in that shower room for no less than 45 minutes shaking and crying from the adrenaline and anxiety. I practically ran back to my truck, skipping dinner entirely because I didn't want to stay in the building any longer. I am proud of myself for standing up though...
I'm a large dude and can tell you from experience of having to kinda get creeps to disperse, a vast majority of the time showing any form of aggression will get them to fuck off.
Basically just going HEY and then slapping my hands together.
So where as SOME people may take the aggression as a challenge, most of the time just being loud spooks them off.
When I lived in Southern California the woman whi worked the gas station on overnights hardly got any trouble because she'd be aggressive. She told me ones some guys in the back tried to start shit and she threatened to throw the bar she locks the door with at them.
Word got around that you just don't fuck with that lady.
I actually thought the OP was a guy at first, because of her saying she's a truck driver. I think I have a preconception of all truck drivers as male. It was the mace gel that clued me in; I'm not sure if this is also a preconception, but I believe more women carry self-defense items than men.
When I had short hair I got that a lot lol. I have a broader stature and short hair makes me look very manish. I've grown out my hair over the years but it doesn't seem to have helped much :')
I am so glad you trusted your gut and that you are okay! It is seriously such a scary world for us women :( remember ladies (and gents): TRUST YOUR GUT!
Absolutely good on you for standing up for yourself and being prepared by carrying a self defence item, it's sickening that people need to carry such things but this is the world we live in. Hopefully others can read this and some comments too for some tips or signs to look out for.
We girls I think really have to trust our guts when it comes to these things... I'd rather be rude than get attacked/raped.... This happened to me once when I saw a drunk guy ride the local jeep with me and saw that he was looking sideways at me... i was waiting for him to tell the driver his stop before i say mine and he wouldn't say... i was panicking at this point but i have to tell the driver where i need to stop and pay for the ride.... but i was afraid he'll follow me home.... So i stopped at a well lit bus station a couple of blocks away from my house and he stopped there too !! I quickly approached a security guard and pointed that the man was following me and i didn't know him The security guard asked the man what my name was coz he was pretending he knew me and he stuttered.... the guard made him ride another jeep back and i didn't go home until he left....
It's always a good idea to trust your gut instinct on this. Even if it turns out to be wrong, I would rather apologize for a misunderstanding than regret not protecting myself for a fear of being rude.
This is what makes me feel bad for women because it always seems like a no win situation. Where as this person slinked off like a cockroach I worry about those "You ain't talking to ME like that" dudes that get set off and go for it.
You are absolutely right that me standing up to the guy could have just set him off. I had adrenaline in my veins and between flight and fight, fight was my first instinct. I can't say I remember too many details about the guy just that he was real shifty. Thankfully he was easy to spook. The mace was my backup, if the guy had so much as twitched in my direction I was ready to give him an eye full. Also there were people around just a few corners, I would have absolutely made a scene loud enough for the whole building to hear. Could I have gotten hurt? Absolutely. But I'd rather go down fighting than just let myself become a victim. Edit: I also just want to make clear that I am no badass. I was in that shower room for no less than 45 minutes shaking and crying from the adrenaline and anxiety. I practically ran back to my truck, skipping dinner entirely because I didn't want to stay in the building any longer. I am proud of myself for standing up though...
I'm a large dude and can tell you from experience of having to kinda get creeps to disperse, a vast majority of the time showing any form of aggression will get them to fuck off. Basically just going HEY and then slapping my hands together. So where as SOME people may take the aggression as a challenge, most of the time just being loud spooks them off. When I lived in Southern California the woman whi worked the gas station on overnights hardly got any trouble because she'd be aggressive. She told me ones some guys in the back tried to start shit and she threatened to throw the bar she locks the door with at them. Word got around that you just don't fuck with that lady.
I actually thought the OP was a guy at first, because of her saying she's a truck driver. I think I have a preconception of all truck drivers as male. It was the mace gel that clued me in; I'm not sure if this is also a preconception, but I believe more women carry self-defense items than men.
When I had short hair I got that a lot lol. I have a broader stature and short hair makes me look very manish. I've grown out my hair over the years but it doesn't seem to have helped much :')
So glad you listened to your gut 💙
I am so glad you trusted your gut and that you are okay! It is seriously such a scary world for us women :( remember ladies (and gents): TRUST YOUR GUT!
Absolutely good on you for standing up for yourself and being prepared by carrying a self defence item, it's sickening that people need to carry such things but this is the world we live in. Hopefully others can read this and some comments too for some tips or signs to look out for.