Share your Personal encounters with

[suthdj]

I ended up with a Whatachicken instead of my nice stir fry but I wasn't going to complain. I was feeling pretty lucky.

See now thats the real crime....joking. Good job, great story

[CHLLady]

Texasgal, your story is chilling. I'm so glad you were so aware of your surrounding and such a quick thinker under such stress!

Do you think you felt it was all happening in a rush or did time slow as you went through your thought process and reactions?

[TexasGal]

That much adrenaline has a profound and almost instantaneous effect. I know the whole thing probably took only 5 minutes but my thoughts were racing so fast and clear through assessing my options depending on what the guy did that it seemed to take forever while it was happening. I am normally not able to be that "sharp" mentally. Quite the opposite. Nothing is that great mentally after 50. You can find yourself wondering where your basic intelligence and language skills have gone off to. But it was like getting a shot of youth suddenly. I felt strong and clear headed. Every detail of his body language, and what I could see of his face was so much sharper than would be normal. I was afraid, but was so aware my safety came first and I could not be paralyzed. I was relieved beyond words when he turned away. I am certainly not eager to ever have to use deadly force. It is my last resort. In a few minutes, as my heart rate slowed, I felt drained, sluggish, and began to shake and feel somewhat disoriented. This is the normal physiological reaction to adrenaline. I don't think any of us know how we will react to an imminent threat until we are faced with it, but the things I have learned and running scenarios through my head of as many situations as I could think up over the years was very important to "knowing" what to do fast enough.

[TomsTXCHL]

@TexasGal, scary story but thanks for telling. If you said, I missed it: purse is wrong, so you've switched to... what?

My wife has a couple of pocket holsters and an IWB I think, and recently I got her a Flashbang holster, and she has not yet figured-out what she's going to do exactly (doesn't have her license yet) and of course her choice(s) will depend upon dress-of-the-day (but typically t-shirt).

You had said "scrubs" and I don't know if scrubs are tucked at the waist or just open. But your opinion will be valuable given your scary encounter with reality. I salute you for handling it!

[The Annoyed Man]

TexasGal, I read your story to my wife this morning, and I begged her (again) to stop carrying in her purse. I have purchased belt holsters for her, a Kangaroo Carry, and finally a Pistol Wear Underarm Holster. She tries them all on, says she likes how they fit, and then goes right back to purse carry. Worse yet, she stopped carrying in a Coronado Leather concealed carry purse she's had for years and started carrying in some godforsaken little red purse, with the gun buried in a pocket at the bottom of the purse; where she will NEVER be able to get to it in time. In fact, all she's going to do is arm the bad guy, who may well use her gun to kill her, or someone else. I know she won't be able to get it out because I tried the other day, just to see how long it took me to get it out of her purse (I was borrowing the gun to let a friend try it at the range who's thinking of getting one like it), and it took forever. I even told her once that if that's how she's going to carry the gun, it's probably better if she doesn't carry one at all.

Finally, this morning, after my begging her to stop doing it that way and reading her your story, she finally went and got out the Pistol Wear Underarm Holster and put it on. We'll see how long that lasts. She's partial to CAbi clothing, and she doesn't think that a gun will conceal well under those styles, but it's just not true. It conceals just fine. Hopefully she'll get used to this way of carrying.

[TomsTXCHL]

BTW I found a VERY good site, for anyone but especially for women, at corneredcat.com

Now if I could only get my wife to look at it, and/or the flashbang videos I downloaded for her to look at.

[TexasGal]

This is taking the thread off topic a bit and is long winded, but I will try to answer the questions posed concerning how I carry as an alternative to purse carry and while wearing scrubs;

I worked in a dental office at the time so I wore the typical medical scrubs which was an untucked loose shirt and lightweight pants that had an elastic waist. This left no belt to hold up a gun or hold it "in" against me. After the attempted mugging, I was determined to figure out how to carry on body in spite of this limitation. I carried a S&W 642 snubbie with a crimson trace grip. I tried a belly band but found it still didn't seem to hold the grip in against me enough. The only position that would work for me was at 2 O'clock (appendix). I was a hygienist which meant I had to twist and lean over or back from the waist all day and be mere inches from patients' heads and shoulders and my chair arm and the patient's chair.

I found a solution that worked for me with a simple small clip holster: http://www.amazon.com/BLACKHAWK-Inside- ... B002IEMCNY There are others that are similar. The material has a nap that helps it stay in place. I chose a size 0 that actually let the gun ride a little deeper in the holster and had a sweat guard to protect my skin and the gun.
It has no retention so I sewed a little line of stitch part way round the trigger guard to add a slight retention. I could still reliably draw the gun without pulling the holster off my pants. The biggest drawback to this style holster is it collapses after the gun is drawn making re-holstering unsafe. A small kydex might work or perhaps the N82 Tactical but I haven't tried these this way.

I solved keeping the grip from sticking out or the weight pulling my pants waist down by adding a short elastic band that had the kind of clips used on suspenders on each end. http://www.createforless.com/Fashion-Fi ... 16220.aspx
One end was clipped on the bottom of my bra near the center. The strap was positioned so it came diagonally across the gun and the end clipped behind the grip on the pants. This did three things. It kept the weight of the gun from pulling down on the elastic waist of the pants. It kept the grip tucked up against me even when I leaned over. And it prevented the gun from being able to fall out of the holster or migrate out of place. The clip on the pants was very easy to "flip open" as I initiated a draw so the strap was no impediment to accessing the gun quickly. I chose scrub tops that were a little oversized and had print patterns. You can't tuck a shirt in with this set up. I carried comfortably this way while working and no one ever knew.

Everybody has to experiment to figure out what works. Purse carry is the easiest and most comfortable carry there is. It is no wonder so many women prefer it. It's just the worst place other than on a platter held out for the thief. I feel for the husbands and boyfriends who are trying to talk their loved ones out of carrying this way, but it really is a personal commitment to carry on body and give up some clothing choices and comfort. Being pressured to probably isn't going to work and may discourage a woman from carrying at all.

The vast majority of the time, appendix carry works best for me in a small clip on. I'll use the Betty as an example of a small footprint kydex; http://www.thewellarmedwoman.com/the-betty-holster (great website by the way) or a hybrid kydex holster like the kholster or crossbreed, or the blackhawk clip holster mentioned earlier. One reason I like clip ons is if I am removing the gun from my belt, I can do that the safest by leaving the gun holstered and removing the whole thing.

I personally would caution against appendix carry with any gun with a very light trigger pull and no safety due to the danger from the gun pointing at the femoral artery especially while seated. It requires really good safety habits. When I reholster, I do it standing up rather than sitting down. I usually wear jeans or slacks with a belt and print shirts simply because they conceal best. But I do have some solid color shirts that conceal very well too. I can access the gun one handed and quickest from under an un-tucked blouse.

A note here for women; If you are a more modest cup size then the appendix location may not conceal as well but you can easily improve that by using a padded bra that enhances the way the blouse is lifted to create the drape needed to hide the gun better. Same goes for using a flashbang.
I have a flash bang. I have found it does not want to stay in place very well for me unless I use an elastic strap to pull it up higher under the bra. Some women really love it and some can't make it work. It is all dependent on the choice of bra and that woman's physical characteristics.

I own an ankle holster but dislike the weight on my ankle and the difficulty of drawing it in too many situations. It's a better possibility for a back up gun that is smaller and flatter than the snubbie.
I use my belly band now and then if I don't have to wear it too long. They are always nice to have.
I do think a small gun such as the LC9 in a small waist pack is a viable option when also carrying a purse. A mugger will likely go for the purse rather than the little waist pack.

I don't like to wear vests or cargo pants, but the right size gun in a pocket holster in one of these might work for some and still be very accessible and concealed.

Ladies, please keep your guard up especially now around Christmas. Be safe out there. And patient with your worried loved ones who would be heartbroken if something happened to you. :)

[CHLLady]

Thank you for sharing! I really appreciate it.

Yes, be on guard this Christmas! I was shopping with my MIL in Austin recently. When we went out to the car, there was a cop peeking into her window and left something on her windshield. It was a reminder to keep your doors locked and valuables hidden. At the bottom he wrote, "Good job!" I spoke with him and he said he had 20 cars unlocked and many with valuables in the seats. He said someone left their purse and iPad on the front seat.

I'm so relieved to be carrying on my person instead of my purse now. I'm still happy that it has given me such a boost of confidence!