Due to the nature of my work, my hours and days are constantly changing. Sometimes I work days, sometimes nights…the only consistent thing is the inconsistency.
I know my family and I are not the only ones who deal with this. How many spouses of public safety personnel are home alone? How many othe jobs require shift work? Nurses, doctors, plant workers, and many others.
How many spouses are putting their kids to bed alone, going to bed alone?
How many of you know what to do in the middle of the night if an emergency happens?
The reality is that most of us probably don’t do a good enought job at preparing or planning with our family for those nights away. I used to be the same way. I fell victim to the “it will never happen to me” mindset.
Realizing we were lacking in this area, here are some things we did to help make sure our family is safe on those nights!
Get A Security Alarm
One of the biggest things we did to help with our security was to purchase an alarm. Having a security alarm helps us in a few different ways.
It acts as a deterrent when we aren’t at home. I know we have all seen those various security alarm stickers on the front of houses.
It acts as an early warning system. Ask this questions: If you were asleep in the middle of the night, would you want to know someone got in your house, as soon as they tripped a sensor? Or would you rather wake to find them standing in your bedroom?
Granted, it may not be much of warning, but the noise will also act as a deterent. Most bad guys don’t want to stick around once that alarm has gone off!
Make Sure Your Smoke Detectors Work
Again, this one is about peace of mind. Check to make sure your smoke detectors are in working order.
Like the security alarm, it is an early warning system. It notifies you of the problem and gives time to act! I know I would much rather be woken up by the smoke alarm versus the heat of a fire in my house.
This is such a simple step, but it can have a huge influence over the outcome of this situation.
Have A Plan
For me, this is one of the most important pieces! You must have a plan!
Take the time to discuss, as a family, a plan for various situations.
As an example, what do you do if your spouse is at work during the night and the security alarm goes off?
Do you call 911?
Do you go to your kids’ rooms? Or do you tell your kids to come to your room?
Do you grab some type of weapon?
These questions should all be asked and talked about frequently. Keep in mind that each specific floor plan, may have its own specific answer.
Take Some Type of Self-Defense Class
Now this one is easy to get off in the weeds on, but lets keep it simple!
Find a self-defense class and take it! Are some better than others, absolutely! Is something better than nothing though…of course it is!
I’m not saying you have to go to a Mixed Martial Arts gym 3 times a week. I am just saying, some knowledge is better than none.
Now of course some classes are more applicable than others. I recommend finding one that it taught by a reputable instructor, preferably a fighter. There are plenty of things out there that look cool, but we need to practical. You need a few easy to use moves that you can practice over and over again.
Hopefully these bits of information will help! Now you just have to go take action and do them!
Remember, it will be well worth it if needed!
