Perspective

Last Thursday I was held up at gun point after returning home from one of my late night classes. Two males were involved, one held a gun to me and demanded my bag while the other shouted out helpful hints like "Just shoot the btch". They made off with my bag. I remember chasing after them a bit and having the one with the gun aim it at me then screaming to try to get someone in my neighborhood’s attention. I managed to flag down a car as it was pulling into my neighborhood and asking to use their phone to call 911. Then came the squad cars, the K-9 units and a helicopter. Either my county is well funded in that department or armed robbery is taken very seriously.

Since I was able to give an accurate description of the two involved, description of their weapon and the direction they were headed in they were caught. They ran back to their homes, which happened to be in the adjoining neighborhood, and had thrown the weapon in their backyard. As they were fleeing from the actual mugging they started emptying my bag. My full wallet, iPhone, back up insulin, Ping meter, text book and jump drive were all recovered.

I don’t know why they did it if they didn’t even try to hold onto any of the stuff (including the $40 cash I had in my wallet). I suspect they were looking to be bad as
es and were thinking of just shooting someone. Just to be able to do it. Or they panicked after they robbed me. The latter would be good, given that the former is just too terrible to exist in my rational.


Now, why do I write about all of this in a forum about diabetes? Where I hardly talk to anyone? I guess because I want to share. And partly because all of that up there really puts having diabetes into perspective. I’d rather deal with diabetes tribulations then deal with armed robbers. Then having someone tell someone else to shoot me.

I guess I hope it puts life into perspective for anyone who happens to see this posting. I know a lot of people come here to vent about diet changes, finger poking, needles and so on. But you know what? There are things out there far worse then having type two or type one diabetes. Life is so freaking short - why waste it feeling bad about having to add some extra care steps into your day? Be thankful.

Lauren,

What an absolutely terrifying experience. I’m shaking just thinking of it. Wow, you were brave! How are you doing now?

Thankful you’re ok, they were caught (due to you being smart) & your possessions were recovered.

Testing & injecting sure is a walk in the park compared to someone with a gun.

Hi Gerri - I dunno, I was probably a little more in the ‘stupid’ range for chasing after them at all. Haha! I’m doing ok. A little nervous about going out alone at night now - my husband has been driving me to and from my night class (I think it makes us both feel a little better). But I am trying to have a good sense of humor about the whole thing.

And hopefully they’ll be in jail for a long, long time. Or at least until the husband and I can afford to move to a new complex!

Yeah. I had been feeling a little bad about the whole pumping ordeal prior to this. It really made me stop and think that there are bigger things out there. Keeping it in mind keeps me more grounded, across the board, I think.

Thank’s for your story Lauren, that is a perfect way to look at it. For everyone of us, even those without diabetes, every breath we take, every morning we wake up to, is for everyone, one less to our last. Every moment each one of us has here on this planet should be cherished and enjoyed. Even bad days have their good moments if you look for them. Great real life story of how fragile life can be and how uncertain. Having diabetes can remind us of this if we choose to look at the choices we are so aware of every day as a positive reminder to live every day like it was our last. Great Perspective! Thanks again.

Thinking about it you probably chased after them because you’re a fighter, you choose not to live like a victim. That’s very inspiring.

I think it’s great that you chased after them. Bet you were angry & rightfully so. I been braver than was probably safe when angry.

Glad you’re ok because the shock can linger. A gun! Horrible enough to be robbed, but at gunpoint. Eeeek! Hope they’re in jail for a very long time, too!

Many years ago when I lived in Atlanta, I was walking my dog when a van came zig-zagging down the street. It was going slowly. As it got closer I heard a woman screaming. All I could see was a man at the wheel. My dog went nuts barking, which he never did. Without thinking, I stood in front of the van. How stupid was that! He stopped, I ran to the driver’s side & kicked his door. He opened the door & a woman fell out of the van. He had one hand on the steering wheel & the other was holding her down. He flew down the street.

Realize this sounds like a TV plot. The woman was a hooker. She wouldn’t call the police even though she was convinced he was going to kill her. I called the police & later had to identify him from photos for the GBI (GA Bureau of Investigation). This man was suspected of murdering prostitutes. They didn’t catch him.

Anyway, after that experience I realized that we can do things that we never think we can. When “heroes” are interviewed & say they really didn’t think & just acted, I know what they mean. I think we have an innate instinct to help when needed.

Hi Scott - Thank you!

I think that having diabetes from a young age had kind of…conditioned me to try to look on the bright side of things, if that makes any sense. It is totally one of those “Well, now you have it and you won’t ever not have it so let’s move on with life” kind of things. It’s easy to get lost in the mundane details of diabetes though, I think, and that can bog one down. But little jolts like this reminds me that the mundane things can be kind of beautiful and awesome, if only because I get to do them every day. :slight_smile:

Haha - it might have also been a little bit of the much fabled red haired person’s temper coming into play as well! I was pissed!

Gerri - that is an amazing story! I mean, you not only saved that woman’s life but you reporting it and having it on file with the police may have helped to get him caught later on. Any more details that can be given about person has to help.

But things like that help - the people who were kind enough to stop for a freaked out looking woman in a red pea coat that night made all the difference in this case. The fact that they stopped got the police to the location faster, and them getting there faster ensured that they were caught. Now two jerks with a gun and no sense of community or humanity are off the streets, and lots of people are safe.

(Though I’m beginning to think that self defense classes and learning how to handle a gun (had never seen one in real life up to that point!) would be two good skills for me to learn.)

Man, I was shaking afterward. Not right to judge a person’s appearance, but this creature was really creepy looking with flat, dull, dead eyes. I was never contacted about this case, so who knows. Like to think they caught him at some point.

Lovely how the people helped you & assisted with the wheels of justice.

Self defense classes sound great. You already kick butt! I’ve never seen a gun either & hope never to.

A redhead huh? Man, criminals are so stupid!

wow, thank God you are ok… if you want self defense, look into Krav Maga - it is an Israeli technique developed for their military. It trains you how to hurt and incapacitate attackers, not to mention the endurance you will gain from the training. A lot of police departments train in this. Anyone can use it, no matter their size, you learn how to defend yourself, find an opening and exploit it

Good Lord…Poor You!!!. I thank God they didn’t hurt you. I hope that something Bigger scared them…their conscience. LOL! You’re Brave! Since you ran after them, you probably scared them. Good for you. I agree with your perspective. Also Nice to know that you have help when you need it, fast. It’s a scary world. Take Care Lauren!

Gerri, you’re a Real Time Hero. Way to go!

glad you’re ok and they caught the bad guys. take care

Makes me glad I live in a smaller community, that has little to no crime. Sometimes, though, we jump in to help, before we think of the consequences. I saw a car accident, and, having medical training, ran across to see if I could help the guy. The first thing I did, was kneel down and checked his pulse. As I did, I felt this pricking sensation in my fingers, and looking down, saw a piece of glass sticking out of my thumb, and this guy’s blood was all over my hand! After the accident, I strolled over and checked with the paramedic, and they sprayed my hands. I STILL have to be checked for HIV/AIDS, because of that incident, but I wasn’t worried about that at the time. We just do things, just to help, never mind consequences. That’s why we are humans, with souls…

Honestly, though, Everett you’re safe up until the point that you are not. My husband and I felt safe in our neighborhood up until that night - we have an alarm in our apartment, a security guard, etc. Crime isn’t exclusive to larger cities. I grew up in a smaller town and had money stolen out of my wallet when I was in high school. These things happen anywhere.

But really, the point of what I wrote wasn’t that I live in an unsafe area or that we are ‘heroes’ in our own way. It was that incidents like the one I went through can put things back into perspective. Diabetes is nothing compared to being held up, in fact it is really just one small part of being alive. That is one of the things that I walked away with after all of this.

What a scary and anxious way to put diabetes in perspective. I’m glad you’re safe and the morons were caught. Here’s hoping they get some serious jail time. Are you having any kind of nightmares or panic attacks over this?

Wow, it got my interest but I am a retired police officer. I myself was robbed the same way last April stopping by my local grocery store at 9pm on my way to the Austin airport. Sounds like you did the right thing. You shouldn’t resist as nothing is worth your life. I bet your adrenaline was going good. You were also a good witness which when you are caught off guard and face a gun is tough to do. I was able to identify my guy in a line up and he got ten years in prison. Let’s hope your guys get the same. J

A similar thing happened to me when I lived in the South Bronx, NY. A thug jumped out of a doorway with a knife and tried to rob me. I was relieved to see he had a knife. I’d just gotten discharged (because of DM) from the Army - former Special Forces. I disarmed him and broke both his arms in the process. I flagged down an NYPD patrol car, told him I’d just been mugged and gave them a detailed description of the thug. They said "So? That fits half the men in the Bronx. Again I was ticked off, and said “oh, by the way, he has two broken arms. Do you need any more clues, Kojak?” Long story short, they caught him in a local ER. He plea bargained down to something akin to jaywalking, then sued me for assault - for defending myself.

I understand your reaction completely.

Oh my gosh…unbelievable! Are you recovered? It’s enough to send you to the loony bin!
And you too Tom!!! Typical isn’t it…it’s the victim who has no rights!

My neighbor just had an experience like this! she was so shocked the two guys took her car and hit her husband, they almost take her little son too!

Don’t get the false sense you are safe because you live in a safe neighborhood or small town. I had a man approach me with a shot gun in my neighborhood and I was stuck behind my car and couldn’t get back into my house. I pulled my cell phone and dialed 911 crouched behind my car. This was at 3:30pm in the afternoon and was going to get my kid from high school. This would probably never happen again. The police got there, I showed them where he hid the shot gun which was stolen and he was wanted. I went to the police dept. to give a statement and ended up keyboarding it myself as the cop was too slow. Crime has been popping up in the little communities outside where I live.