Safety should always come first, right? After all, everyone has seen the posters and heard the mantras that teach us to drive safe, keep away from hostile situations, and always be alert to our surroundings. But no matter how smart we are, no matter the amount of information we try to absorb, it’s impossible to know everything.

But fear not! A few months ago, Redditor drjallz rolled up their sleeves and set out on a mission to learn some of the best potentially life-saving tips everyone should know. Fellow members of the Ask Reddit community wasted no time in sharing their precious wisdom on how to act in some of the most dangerous situations. So if you ever pictured a harrowing incident and asked yourself “What if?”, we bet this thread has the answer.

We at Bored Panda scrolled through the responses and wrapped up a collection of the most practical and informative replies for times you have to enter into survival mode. Hit upvote on the ones you found useful, and be sure to share your own advice with us in the comments below!

Psst! If you’re eager to learn even more safety tricks, check out our earlier posts about them right here and here.

• Read More: “Don’t Expect It To Look Like The Movies”: 30 Lifesaving Tips That Might Save Your Life One Day

#1

If you get caught in avalanche and not sure which way you’re facing create space around your head and spit. Gravity pulls it down and you know which way to dig.

#2

A person who is drowning doesn’t look like people drowning on TV. When someone is drowning, they rarely cry out, can’t wave their arms around, and will often just bob/sink at the surface for a very little while, often gasping, before submerging. Don’t expect it to look like the movies when you’re keeping an eye on swimmers.

Image credits: mnschu67

#3

If you think you’re being followed, turn right four times. Since you’ll get to the same place, they shouldn’t be following you anymore. If they do, you might be in trouble. Since it’s a common warning that you shouldn’t go home when you think someone is following you, the smartest is to go to a police station.

Image credits: mnschu67

#4

If you go on a long, overnight hike, take a jar of peanut butter. If you get lost, that can keep you alive if you’ve already finished your food. Also, take a BLUE tarp. It’s the only color that doesn’t mesh with the environment and can make air search easier.

Image credits: Tiovivo1

#5

Get a Carbon Monoxide detector with a ppm meter on it.

Recently, I was experiencing intermittent bouts of nausea and lethargy, so I suspected CO poisoning despite my detectors being up to code. I bought a new one with a meter to check if there were trace amounts in my apartment.

I discovered that my oven has a leak, so whenever I cook I get exposed to CO ranging from 35 to 90 ppm, which is pretty high. How come the detectors didn’t go off? Turns out that they only beep when there’s 50ppm for 8 hours, or 150 ppm for 5 to 10 minutes——I was just below the threshold while still getting smashed with carbon monoxide.

#6

Expired epinephrine (epi pen) is better than no epinephrine

Studies show, if properly cared for, epi retains full practical potency for up to 5 years past expiration. Just dont leave it sit in sunlight, freeze, or heat it. All those things speed up its breakdown.

This is especially important to know these days, with epi being $600+, a lot of poor people with serious allergies may be throwing out epi that is in fact still good. When you dont need to replace it every year, its a huge game changer when youre poor and uninsured.

Image credits: Boogaloogaloogalooo

#7

If you see someone who may be unconscious and looks like they’re about to vomit ROLL THEM ONTO THEIR SIDE. Also do this if someone passes out drunk.

Image credits: Isosceles_Sandwich

#8

If you are alone and start choking, you can use the back of a chair or sofa to perform the Heimlich Maneuver on yourself. Source: had to do it to myself when I was about 15

#9

Pressure on the wound is more important than covering it. Ice can also stem blood flow.

#10

If you’ve swallowed something wrong in a restaurant and it’s blocked your throat, even if you aren’t technically “choking” yet, do NOT go to the bathroom out of embarrassment. The majority of female choking deaths occur in the restroom because they excused themselves out of embarrassment for “making a scene”

Edit: the advice of ‘don’t go to the bathroom or isolate yourself when choking’ obviously applies to both genders. I just don’t know the statistics for where men are more likely to die when choking or why it’s different than women. But I would imagine it has to do with: as women, we are more likely to stupidly be embarrassed and try to hide than men are.

#11

If you are lost in the desert, or a lot of places for that matter, the number one thing you can carry to increase your chances of being found is a small reflective mirror. Anytime a plane flies overhead you can reflect light towards them, and you greatly increase your chances of being found. This seriously is more important than carrying more water with you (not that water doesn’t help, it’s just not realistic to carry that much water on your back). Furthermore, if you get stranded in the desert with a vehicle, do not leave your vehicle to find people. You are a lot harder to see than your vehicle, and your car can provide shelter (your car has some good reflective mirrors to signal with, especially the rearview mirror). Finally, the universal sign for needing to be rescued is waving two arms up and down. If you can’t use both of your arms, there is another universal way to signal for help that is more versatile. The way I can best describe it is three of anything quick signal. Three gunshots, three whistle blows, three flashes of a flashlight, three flashes from a reflective mirror, etc. Just make sure they are spaced widely enough (at least one second) and that you spend a considerable time before making your next three signals.

#12

If you’re being tied up, puff yourself out as much as possible so it’ll be easier to wiggle out of. Tense muscles, inhale deep and stretch out your arms and legs to make more space.

#13

If your car gets stuck on snow and your tire(s) just spin, you can take out your floor mats and stuff them under the wheel that spins when you press the gas. This will hopefully give the car enough traction to get itself rolling so you can be on your way again.

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Image credits: diiejso

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