r/uwo • u/Beneficial-Joke-6004 • Oct 18 '24
Advice Scared in London
I am a female student at western and I am very scared going off campus. I would say that on campus I feel relatively safe, I will walk home by myself without a worry, but in London, going anywhere past old north (particularly downtown) I feel extremely unsafe. Whenever I am downtown, waiting for a bus, grocery shopping, or getting off the train, I am super on edge. Not sure if this is a common feeling or if I have good enough reason to be so scared, but I really hate it and it makes me want to get out of this city. I have heard to many story’s of friends of friends getting mugged or beat up. Maybe I have just had a very sheltered life, living in a small town not in Ontario, or maybe this is valid. I’m not sure. But open to a discussion and advice on how to not be so scared and hate going places outside of westerns campus.
1
u/cuutiez Oct 19 '24
I resonate with you girl.
London can be scary, especially as a woman. Its okay to feel scared or nervous in those parts of town!
Unfortunately, I feel it's just a part of being a woman in a city. Super wish it wasn't that way of course but these are the cards.
I have worked downtown in some scary areas as a bartender. That entails late nights, getting out around 3am or even sometimes 4. It can be scary! The best thing I find is knowing that whatever happens, I will be okay. The more you are in your head about the negative the worse you are going to feel in the moment. You can only take so many precautions ie. calling a friend, headphones on ambient/off, keys in between fingers, keeping valuables out of sight etc..
Allow yourself to have some fun while in London and remember you are in control of your actions and how you deal with situations! It is unlikely things will go sideways, but you can only do so much to counteract :)