This post is sponsored by SABRE. All views are my own, though. I only work with brands that I believe bring value to myself and you.

Current life situation: Thriving in the beautiful city of DC and loving every second.

Well. Except for that time I got on the metro by myself and some guy stared directly at me for the entire 25 minute ride. I felt super uncomfortable, mildly violated, and incredibly worried for my safety. I had 0 form of protection on me, as I had forgotten to pack my pepper spray when I moved to DC. I prayed and prayed that he wasn’t getting off at my stop. Thankfully, it turned out that he wasn’t, but when I got up to exit the metro, some old man asked me how my day was, and when I didn’t reply, he repeated the question forcefully and noticeably louder. “I said, how was your DAY???”

Y’all, I was absolutely terrified. I tried to keep my cool, but my God my legs have never carried me out of the metro and up the escalator so fast. Of course, on my way out of the metro, another random man called out “Hey, fancy pants!” to me. I just about sprinted to my apartment.

Feeling powerful again with SABRE’s pepper spray.

I did arrive in my room safely, but my palms were sweaty, my nerves were a wreck, and my heart was beating out of my chest. If any of this sounds familiar, you’ve probably seen me recount this story and my immense frustration on my Instagram stories.

There’s nothing I could have done to prevent these creepy men from doing that which frustrates me to no end. The way that many men in today’s society view women is beyond repulsive and street harassment is just one way that such views manifest themselves. The rise of intersectional feminism, the #MeToo movement, and more, have me feeling very hopeful about the future of myself and other women, but there are still some things, stress harassment included, that leave me feeling powerless and upset.

Pulling the chain on this alarm sets off an incredibly loud sound to alert those even 300 meters away that you’re in trouble. I wouldn’t wanna mess with me after the entire area started looking this way.

I would love to snap my fingers and undo patriarchy, but that’s just not happening. What I can do, however, is make sure that I have some form of protection on me at all times.

I partnered up with SABRE and they sent me a plethora of goodies. SABRE is dedicated to keep me safe and I’m so glad to have all these security products. As much as I believe in claiming my own power, I’m still a smol 5’4” bean and I feel even smaller when faced with a scary looking guy twice my size.

SABRE sent me:

Dorm/Apartment Alarm Kit, which I’m saving this for when I graduate and move into my first “big girl” apartment in a city
Drink Test Kit, which is infinitely helpful and honestly necessary for a safe night out when random people are buying you drinks
Personal Alarm, something I should have brought with me to DC to keep in my purse
Pepper Spray, another item I really should have had with me this entire time

The dorm/apartment safety kit came with another personal alarm similar to the one in the previous photo. I’m keeping one in my backpack for school and another in my purse so that I always have one on me.

The pepper spray and personal alarm are both in my purse now and will be staying there until… well they’re staying there. I haven’t had to use them (thank God) and maybe I never will, but the peace of mind they bring me are already incredibly useful. I’m still waiting for the day that street harassment, or more generally, the patriarchy, ends, but until then, I’m so happy that SABRE has my back.

Have you ever experienced street harassment? How do you keep yourself safe or at least give yourself some peace of mind? Drop me a comment below and let’s chat.

FIGHTING THE PATRIARCHY: Self protection with SABRE