Fight, Flight, or Freeze?

Science says there are three reactions a person has when put under a sudden, immediate amount of stress, such as a surprise attack or jump scare. They are FIGHT, FLIGHT, and FREEZE. It's more of a reflex than a decision. Certain people react differently in different situations.

This guy, for example, is a FIGHT:

The badger is a FLIGHT:

I have tried for 56 minutes to find a video example of FREEZE, but such a video does not exist (unless it's goats which doesn't count). I promise FREEZE is a normal reaction. I have seen it.

There is also another reaction I like to call the "Riley" because my friend Riley is the only person I've seen do this. This is when you react by putting your hands over your ears.

This is not Riley but you get the idea.

For a long time I wondered how I would react in a seriously dangerous, startling situation. Then I had a couple of experiences where I learned exactly what I am. 

I am a FLIGHT. There are pros and cons to this, as illustrated in the examples below.

EXAMPLE 1 (CON)

October 2011. I was in my Sophomore year of college. Our apartment was festively decorated for the upcoming Halloween celebrations. We had some bats hanging from the ceiling, some webs on the door, and one terrifying decoration that I specifically remember. It was a scary mask-face that would shout randomized things when you pushed on it's tongue. Things like "Boo!" and "HEY! What're you doing?!" and "Gotcha!"

Halloween was getting close and we were feeling unprepared. We felt like we needed a good scare. And where's the best place to get scared? The cemetery, of course! So one night Camille, Molly and I decided to visit the cemetery and have a spooky good time.

When we got there, however, the cemetery was closed. The sign, at least, said "Closed" but on this particular night, the gate was still open. So maybe it was technically trespassing, but we went inside anyway.

We stood near the entrance, feeling a little spooked and wondering what exactly we were planning on doing.

SUDDENLY, out of NOWHERE, a man shouts, "HEY! What're you doing?!"

I took off. Fast. I didn't decide to, but next thing I know I'm half way across the cemetery looking back at Camille and Molly laughing their heads off. Molly had hidden Scary Face in her jacket and set it off at exactly the right moment. And it just happened to say "HEY! What're you doing?!" like a cop catching trespassers in a closed cemetery.

FLIGHT may seem like the best option at times, but not if it might involve the police - who will tase you.

This is Camille pushing me (holding Scary Face) in a lonely shopping cart we found outside the cemetery.

Example B (PRO)

March 2012. Ah, Spring...a time for budding flowers, budding romances, and construction. I was lucky enough to be experiencing 2 of those 3 things. (You have until the end of this post to guess which one I wasn't.)

There was an old house just down the street from our apartment that was being torn down to make room for a fancy new apartment building. It was a slow process, and at one point there were a few days where nothing happened. During this time, we noticed that they had knocked a big hole in the wall, where there was just enough space for a person to squeeze into the basement.

It looked nothing like this.

The house was obviously haunted, and Camille and I decided we wanted to explore it. One quiet and windless night, we convinced Julia and Molly to come with us. When we got to the house, however, we could not convince them to come inside because they were smart and we were dummies. So they waited outside on the sidewalk while Camille and I slid into the basement.

It was cold, dark, and very empty. There were a couple stray leaves on the otherwise bare carpet. Here is my drawing of the layout, which I made in Paint and is very important:

We slowly looked around the first bedroom, arms tucked up under our chins because of fear. We searched the closet. Empty. We entered and explored the second bedroom, searching the closet. Empty. We searched the hallway. Empty.

The place was a bust. We started to leave. I went out and up the stairs, where I was confronted by a decision. One escape route was mostly blocked by piles of rubble. The other was clear except for a line of caution tape, which came up to my ribs, approximately. Naturally, I wondered if I could jump over the caution tape. I sized myself up and lifted my leg, testing the height and distance. I quickly decided it was much too high to jump over.

While I was doing this, Camille stood at the bottom of the stairs, taking one last look at the empty basement.

SUDDENLY, THE DOOR SLAMMED SHUT. Without thinking, I leaped right over that caution tape and ran faster than I ever have. As I rounded the corner of the house, I saw Molly and Julia and realized that they couldn't have slammed the door, which caused a second jolt of adrenaline.

"RUN!" I yelled. By the time they heard me, I was already passed them.

This is about the time I thought to look behind me, where I saw Camille running several yards back. She froze when the door slammed. I know this because Camille has long legs and runs marathons and I am built like a funsize Hershey bar...

...which is also my diet.

I was almost two blocks away before I thought to slow down (Camille had passed me at that point). We were all safe.

We played a joke on our other roommate, Claire, when we returned home. Camille waited outside and we told Claire the whole story, pretending we'd just left Camille behind. She was super concerned and worried that we didn't seem concerned. We had to end the joke when she went in the kitchen looking for weapons.

Anyway, this is when I learned to appreciate being a FLIGHT because it could have been a psycho hobo, runaway murderer, or vengeful ghost. I could have been chewed, stabbed, or ghosted to death. But I wasn't because I ran.

Later, I was walking passed the construction site and noticed a baby daffodil struggling to grow. I knew it would be killed by bulldozers and tractors if I didn't do something. So I went out with a spoon and dug it up and saved it. This is a picture of us.

I hope you all get spooked this October, just for fun. And it could be useful to know how you might react in a dangerous situation!