Whether or not you feel able to leave an abuser, there are things you can do to help yourself and your family feel safer.

In An Emergency

If you are at home and you are being threatened or attacked:

• Stay away from the kitchen (the abuser can find weapons, like knives there)
• Stay away from bathrooms, closets or small spaces where the abuser can trap you
• Get to a room with a door or window to escape
• Get to a room with a phone to call for help; lock the abuser outside if you can
• Call the police
• Think about a neighbor or friend you can run to for help
• Get medical help if you are hurt
• Take pictures of bruises or injuries
• Call Libra House or the Women's Center and ask them to help you make a safety plan

How to Protect Yourself at Home

• Learn where to get help; memorize emergency phone numbers
• Keep a phone in a room you can lock from the inside; if you can, get a cellular phone that you keep with you at all times
• If the abuser has moved out, change the locks on your door; get locks on the windows
• Plan an escape route out of your home; teach it to your children
• Think about where you would go if you need to escape
• Ask your neighbors to call the police if they see the abuser at your house; make a signal for them to call the police (for example, if the phone rings twice, a shade is pulled down or certain light is on)
• Pack a bag with important things you'd need if you had to leave quickly; put it in a safe place, or give it a friend or relative you trust.
• Include cash, car keys & important information such as: court papers, passport or birth certificates, MCP, LIA, INNU Nation, Social Insurance cards/numbers
• Get an unlisted phone number
• Block caller ID
• Use an answering machine; screen the calls

How to Protect Yourself Outside the Home

• Change your regular travel habits
• Try to get rides with different people
• Shop and bank in different places
• Cancel any bank accounts or credit cards you shared; open new accounts at a different bank
• Keep your court order and emergency numbers with you at all times
• Keep a cell phone and program emergency numbers into it
• Try not to travel alone. When you go out always make sure a friend knows where you are

If You Are in Danger, Call the Police: 896-3383 (HVGB) or 1-800-709-7267

Source: Libra House, Shelter for abused women and their children.