The unfortunate reality is that knife attacks happen much more often than we would like to think. You might not be able to prevent a knife attack, but there are certainly things that you can do to help survive one. Therefore, how to survive a knife attack is exactly what we’re going to talk about today.
Tips on How to Survive a Knife Attack
Right now, we’re going to go over some very important tips on how to survive a knife attack. Now, these are not tips as much as they are a step by step instructional. First, you’re going to start with trying to deescalate the situation, followed by defending yourself, and if the worst case arises, keeping yourself alive if you do get stabbed.
1. Try to Deescalate the Situation
The first thing that you should always try to do is to deescalate the situation. First and foremost, this means that you should try to stay calm. Don’t try to be a hero.
Don’t make any sudden moves. This may startle an attacker or cause them to escalate. Take deep breaths, stay relaxed, and don’t make any sudden movements.
You want to try to determine or judge what type of attacker you are being faced with. Are you faced with someone who has a mental instability or is being influenced by alcohol or drugs? Are you faced with someone who was caught in another crime and doesn’t want you around so you can’t tell on them?
Maybe you are being faced with a mugger who wants to steal something from you. If you can determine what the person wants, you may be able to stop the knife attack in its tracks. For instance, if it is a robber, your best bet is to just give them what they want. You can replace money and your keys, but you can’t replace your life.
However, if the person you are faced with is mentally unstable, under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or just wants to pick a fight and hurt you, then de-escalation may not be an option. If this is the case, move on to the next steps.
2. Call for Help and Run
If the person is not willing to listen to reason, your next best bet is to yell for help. This is especially effective if you are in a crowded place. Many attackers won’t stick around if you draw attention to them.
Therefore, scream and yell as loud as you can to grab the attention of anyone who might be within earshot. If you can, get out your phone and call 911 or the emergency services. Attackers often won’t stick around if they see that you are calling the authorities.
If this still doesn’t work, your next best bet is to just run away. Sure, you might think that you can design your attacker, but this often doesn’t work. Your next best bet is always to run away. However, if this is not an option, you might have to face your attacker head on. In this case, you will want to try to disable or disarm them.
3. Disabling or Disarming a Knife Attacker
OK, so disabling or disarming an attacker with a knife is not easy, nor is it really recommended. However, if it’s your only option, then you will have to try. Keep in mind that defending against a knife attack is something that martial artists study for years before they become good at it.
Therefore, although we can give you some tips on how to disable or disarm an attacker, this is generally something that you need to practice for a long time. Below, we have created a bullet point list of some of the best ways to disable or disarm an attacker with a knife.
- One of the best ways to stop an attacker is with a solid strike through the throat. If you can hit the throat hard enough, you will damage the trachea, which will stop them from breathing. If you can, use either your forearm, your elbow, or the palm of your hand to strike the trachea. Always strike as fast and as hard as you can. If successful, your attacker won’t be able to breathe, at which point you should run away.
- If the person attacking you is a man, the best way to incapacitate them is always with a kick to the groin. If the attacker is very close to you, use your knee, and if they are further from you, use your shin or foot. If you have managed to incapacitate your attacker by kicking or kneeing them in the groin, you should run away.
- The next best way to incapacitate an attacker is by going for their eyes. People will usually flinch and pull away when they see an attack going for their eyes. Therefore, you do have to move fairly quickly. However, if you can really press your fingers very hard into the socket of the eyes, you will do some damage. Try to really push into the eyes right into the skull. Once your attacker is incapacitated, you can try running away.
Of course, there are plenty of other things you can do here. If you happen to be familiar with martial arts, you may try to disarm them. There are many different disarming techniques, many of which involve grabbing the wrist that is wielding the knife. However, trying to disarm an attacker with a knife is not recommended unless you are a trained professional.
If all else fails, you may also want to look for your own weapon. The longer the weapon is, the better. This will allow you to put some distance between you and your attacker. Something else to remember here is that you should never make the first move. If an attacker comes at you with a knife, it will put them off balance, which gives you the opportunity to make a move.
4. Keeping Yourself Alive If You’ve Been Injured
Unfortunately, the worst could happen, leading you to have been stabbed. What do you do? If you are lucky enough to still be conscious and living, there are a few steps you should try taking, if at all possible.
- Immediately put as much pressure on the wound as possible. Use anything and everything possible to cover the wound and put pressure on it. You need to stop yourself from losing blood.
- If you need to or are able to, use a piece of clothing to create a tourniquet and tie off a limb. This will help prevent excessive blood loss from occurring.
- The only other option at your disposal is to call for help. You can yell for help to get the attention of people nearby. If this is not an option, try calling 911. Your best bet is always calling the emergency services as fast as possible.
Conclusion
With all of the tips listed above, surviving a knife attack becomes more realistic. That said, you never know what can happen in these situations. Therefore, always use your common sense; this is one of the only things that will save you at the end of the day.