Thursday, January 3, 2013

What does it take to survive?


To prepare for the next unit, I would like you to explore some survival stories. As you read these stories, I want you to continually ask, "What did it take for these people to survive?" What trends do you see? What characteristics/traits do these people have that gave them the strength to hang on? Then I also want you to ask yourself, "Would I have survived? Do I have what it takes to survive a harrowing situation?"

Please respond thoroughly and thoughtfully--as though you were having a conversation with me about the observations you made about others AND what you think about how you would respond in these scenarios (which we hope will never occur!).

Here are some links, but feel free to explore on your own:
Reader's Digest Survival Stories
MSNBC List of Top Survival Stories
NPR Hurricane Katrina Survival Stories
Outdoor Survival Stories
Wilderness Survival Stories
National Geographic Survival Stories
Urban Survival Stories

24 comments:

  1. I read several of the stories conserning survial. Some people are prepared but overall most are not. How is it really possible that humans go through these freak of nature events and live to tell about it? One story that really caught my eye was about a tornado that went through Texas and how a grandmother survived and saved the children. The story says that while the storm was tearing through the house she was holding on with everything she had to keep her grandson safe. She was literally holding him by the arms and plaing tug-a-war with the storm. I feel like moments in stories like this really tell how the human race survives. This woman had so much love for her grandchild that she held on until the very end. People with something to live for do not give up easily.
    I believe that in that situaiton I would have held on until the very end. In all reality it is the storm that will try and tear me away but since I have something to fight and live for I will hold on as long as possible. Humans have power and stregth that comes out in these situations due to the adriniline. This is what could help in the long run.
    Now in the end there are many different types of stories about prepping and being prepared but when it comes to real natural desasters it matters more about making it through the initial situation then one can worry about how the will find food.
    http://www.rd.com/true-stories/survival/the-tot-and-the-twister/3/

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  2. http://www.rd.com/true-stories/survival/the-tot-and-the-twister/3/
    The article I read was called "The Tot and the Twister." It was about a tornado that hit a subdivision in Texas. In order to survive, the grandmother protected her three grandchildren in a windowless bathroom. The grandmother was completely selfless and was only worried about protecting her grandchildren and keeping them alive. Once the toddlers had been taken in by the tornado, pure luck and a miracle saved them from being almost completely uninjured. The characteristics that the grandmother possessed were selflessness and a desire to overcome a hardship. I am not sure that I would have been able to survive a tough situation like this. I feel like I would have panicked, and not lived through this hardship.

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  3. After reading a few survival stories, there seems to be a trend that shows throughout these stories and those who had to live through these horrible events. It takes traits such as determination and mental toughness to live through events like these. Everyone who was directly affected and had to endure these life and death situations all showed great amounts of mental toughness and determination. In order for them to survive they had to be willing to and willing to do the things necessary to survive. Also, there seemed to be an on-going trend that the people in the stories had reasons to stay alive such as love for a family member or care for a small child. These people were even willing to sacrifice themselves to save another. These trends were the motivation and extra strength the survivors needed to live and hang on. Asking myself if I could of survived these horrible events is a scary thought. I personally do not know if I would of been able to survive some of these events. I believe that I would be able to have the determination and strength to push through these tough situations. However, I do not know if I have the knowledge to help keep me alive if I was stranded on an island or lost in the wilderness. I think I would be unprepared in the mental knowledge aspect of these situations, not so much on the phyical and mental toughness aspects. I pray I never have to experience situations like these.

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  4. I read several stories from different websites and found a few common themes between them.

    In the first story, the man uses problem solving skills to find the best way to guide his family to safety. At that point, I feel I would have the cognitive skills and emotional regulation to find my way home alive, even though it may not be a pretty situation. In the second story, the mountaineer drew on his previous training to tediously pick his way down the mountain to safety. He used his intrapersonal strength to focus on his survival.

    I honestly do not know if I would have survived all of the unfortunate scenarios. I wish I could answer that question with confidence. There were certainly some events that were described that I think I have the interpersonal resources to survive. However, there are certain scenarios, for example the mountain climber that survived an avalanche where I question my abilities to survive. To be totally honest with myself I do not think I have the knowledge, skills, or mental discipline to have endured such a horrific event. The mountain climber in this story had to block out the mental image of his ice-covered friend dangling dead from the end of his rope on the side of a mountain. He then also had to overcome the loss of his other friend which he found dead in the snow.

    In conclusion, I believe it would depend on the specific circumstance and the skillset required as to whether I would be likely to survive.

    Sources:

    http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/outdoor-skills/survival/I-Will-Survive.html

    http://www.urbansurvivalstories.com/story.php?storyID=66

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  5. After reading several of the stories and have found common themes among them. One theme was knowledge. In each story, the victims had background knowledge that pertained to their situations. For example, in the story about the seven boys attacked by the bear, three of the boys had extensive medical knowledge gained before they were attacked. This certainly helped the boys stay alive until help came. Another common theme was determination. In several stories, the victims refused to give up no matter how terrible their situation was. If I was in any of these situations I do not know if I could have survived. It is hard to determine if a person could survive a desperate situation until they are in one and must choose to either do everything they can to survive or just give up.

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  6. http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/survival/wilderness/survival.htm#page=10
    There were 10 summarized suvival stories that I read and they all had similarities. One thing that I noticed was that many people were on adventures doing activities that they were familiar with. One guy was an Olympic hockyer player and had been out snowboarding. Another man was a very experienced sailor and got stuck on the Ocean for 72 days, since they both had experience they were able to get around certain obstacles that were presented. The sailor was able to patch up hole sin his raft, and was able to navigate because he could tell where he was. I think that if faced with a situation similar to these I might be able to survive. Many people, I noticed, were not so daring as to get into something they were nto familiar with. Assuming that I would follow suit, I think I would be able to sruvive. However, if I was faced with a situation that I did not know how toi get out of, such as mountain climbing, I don't think I would be able to survive. I would no doubt attempt to get out of the situation, but without much experience I probably wouldn't know what to do. However, if I was actually put to the test, my feelings might change and I might be able to do things I wouldn't normally do, which was another theme I noticed that ran through these stories. Many of these people might not be able to ration food the way they did or make some of the serious decisions that they did on any normal day but they knew that it was a matter of life and death.

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  7. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/your-story/survival-stories.html

    Once I read several of these short stories, I noticed a very common theme. It first of all took the people to think quick on their feet. They always had to find the best solution as quick as possible, because they had no time to waste. I think that their survival almost always relied on their mental ability to get them through it.
    One reason I think they survived, was because they obviously never gave up, but they also always set a goal for them to reach. They made sure they were going to reach it, because they knew they had no other way out. They had to be in the mindset that failure was not an option.
    I do not think I would have survived. I can put myself in the mindset that I can't fail, but I don't think I would be able to think so quickly on my feet. I also don't think I would be able to hang on for so long. I wouldn't necessarily give up, but I think I could just fail.

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  8. I read many of the articles on NPR that were talking about experiencing Hurricane Katrina. All of these stories were very interesting in their own way. Many of these articles showcase humanitarianism that is still evident in many people these days. They always try to help the best that they can with anything they can do. Many of these stories talked about how people put their needs aside and helped their neighbors and people that they didn't even know. They helped them reach safety and that is a very big character trait that is extremely helpful during these high stress situations. Throughout these articles many people had to endure challenges and mental stress that could have taken extreme tolls on people but these individuals took charge and kept an open mind and open heart to everyone. They maintained a strong mental attitude during these trails and in the end most of them were rewarded in some way or another for their works. I believe that I may have been able to survive during this mass disaster if I would have had time to get ready to brace myself for the disaster. All of these stories talk about hurricane Katrina and the aftermath of that tragic storm and some of the people knew that the storm was coming so they were not in desperate panic when the storm hit. I believe I could have survived because I had a strong will to overcome situations and if I really wanted to get through something I believe that I could set my mind to overcome that situation.

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  9. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/your-story/survival-stories.html
    One common theme I noticed was that all these people had a great amount of perseverance, they never give up. These people held on and did everything in their power to stay alive. All of them also remained positive and tried not to panic. A lot of them had innate If i were put into these situations I probably wouldn't survive. I've never been a positive person, and I tend to panic really easily and get flustered and not know what to do.

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  10. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/your-story/survival-stories.html
    I read seven short stories about people surviving. What I noticed in each one was the desire to survive and keep going and make it through. None of them overreacted when the time came and knew exactly what they had to do. My own survival in such a situation depends on many factors, but I think I could survive most any situation if I needed to.

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  11. In many of the articles, the people survived because they were persistent, determined, and resourceful.Many of the scenarios I read about involved weather. For the most part I believe I could have survived many of the weather situations, but it would have taken great caution and thinking.In the case of getting stranded somewhere an having an injury like in one of the articles I read, I don't think I would have had the best chance of surviving. I'm not really quite sure what plants are actually edible and I don't deal well with blood, guts, or broken bones. I do believe I value my life, so I hope maybe my natural instincts would kick in when a situation became life or death. Plus you really can do amazing things when you have no other options.

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  12. http://www.rd.com/true-stories/survival/in-the-jaws-of-a-polar-bear/4/

    After reading many of these inspiring and terrible articles, i noticed a trend of determination, heart, hope, strength, calmness, and a will to survive nomatter what means are necessary. One of the biggest most impactful stories i read was about the polar bear who snuck up on two kiyakers in the middle of the night. At one point, the bear had almost half the body of one of the kiyakers in his mouth, yet the second kiyaker managed to remain calm and steady and hopeful to be able to shoot the bear and kill him. It amazed me how fearless the kiyaker was to stick around possible death, and save his almost dying friend. It showed great courage and take a emotionally strong man to do such thing. Sadly to say, im not sure if i would have survived or not, since i do not know anything about the wilderness, how to shoot a gun, or anything about polar bears which would make it hard to know what their strengths and weaknesses are. I have great respect for both of these kayakers for never giving up hope or courage, and eventually getting back out to the wilderness that they love.

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  13. The first thing that I noticed while reading these survival stories, was that all of the survivors were very persistent. No matter the situation that they found themselves in, all of the survivors were determined to make it out alive no matter what they had to do. Another similarity between the stories that I noticed was that most of the survivors tried their best to remain calm no matter what the situation was. Most of the survivors knew that if they panicked, it would only make it more difficult for them to survive the situation that they were facing. Most of the survivors also tried to keep a positive attitude about the situation that they were facing, for it would have been almost impossible for any of them to survive the situations that they were facing if they had decided that they were just going to die without trying to survive. Finally, many of the survivors encountered their extreme situations while doing something that they were familiar with, which makes sense if you think about it. Personally, I know that I wouldn't go on a two-week hiking trip into the mountains by myself if I had never gone hiking before. I think that this created a false sense of security for many of the survivors in the stories, because they felt that nothing would happen to them due to the fact that they were familiar with what they were doing. I like to think that I would be able to survive a situation like this if I were faced with one, but honestly, I do not know if I would be able to survive. I think that it would really depend on the situation itself, and whether or not I was injured during the situation. I also do not know if I would be able to do some of the extreme things that many people have had to do to survive, such as amputate my own arm, however, if the situation called for it I imagine I would find the will to do it.

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  14. After reading several of these survival stories several things reappear in each story. Aside from courage and a fair amount of luck, in each story I noticed that the victim has to have a certain "want" to live. Not just an everyday want to keep on living, but many of the victims are faced with near death experiences and see life in a light that many of us will never experience. I think until many people are faced with challenges that a lot of these people were put in, we cannot know exactly what it takes to pull through. I read a story about three women who got stuck in death valley and had to survive. I think that when we are faced with life and death situations we truly find out what it takes to survive. I noticed when reading that each person must have strength, bravery, and courage, but above all I think they need motivation. They have to want it more than anything and and know that they will have to do the extreme to survive.
    If I was faced with a situation like this, in theory, I think I could survive. Realistically, if I was short on food or my insulin I would die very quickly. However, assuming that I i had those things I feel that in life or death situations I could muster up what one needs to pull through and survive situations that are incomprehensible.
    http://www.rd.com/true-stories/survival/survival-stories-hot-thirsty-and-lost-in-death-valley/2/

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  15. I read several stories about survival. There were a few things that they all had in common, some more obvious than others. Of course, they were all seeking shelter and food and clean water like most people involved in these tragedies. But the one thing I saw the most was that they were all with family and loved ones. I think being with them made it easier because they could all be encouraged to tough it out. I personally think I could make it through a situation like these. I have a lot of family in different places and lots of resources that would benefit me and my family in a hardship like that.

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  16. One of the common themes I see throughout these stories is the will never to give up. That seemed to be the one key thing that would keep people going despite anything that may happen to them. If I was placed in a sitution like this I don't know whether I would survive in a situtation like this. If I knew I had a chance to survive I probably would but I may give up if I knew it was hopeless.

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  17. http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/43941408/ns/today-today_news/
    In this story a pilot of a private plane crashed in a great lake. I noticed that the pilot had to think fast and make decisions because the airplane was sinking and he needed to get out of it so he wouldn't drown. If his survival insticts didn't kick in then he probably would have drowned. His survival insticts and quick thinking let him get out of the plain and float in the water for 18 hours. I think I could survive in this situation because I am a fairly good swimmer.

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  18. I read many of the different survival stories. The one that I thought was the most influential to me was the story about the man who was trapped by an avalanche and had to go down the trecherous mountain by himeself. When reading thses stories I noticed that they all had this undieing wiill to live, and they did whatever it took to push through the challenges that they were presented with. All of the survivors had to deal with different kinds of pains all while trying to survive. I think the characteristivs of the survivors were the same in all the stories. They mostly showed determination and leadership. The all had perserverance to push through their struggles. After reading these stories I askes myself if i thought i had what it took to surive, and I think I would have. I dont think I would have been able to just lay down and die, or be a coward. I think if i would have been presented with these situations I would have given my everything to live.

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  19. http://www.urbansurvivalstories.com/story.php?storyID=59
    In the story I read, it took a great deal of strength to ignore the pain in order to do what was necessary to survive and get the needed help. The author did not lose any confidence in his trust that someone would come and help him. He always kept a positive outlook that he would make it and nothing less. I probably would be able to survive the same situation but I would have handled with as much patience and confidence as the author. I would have added more panic to it.

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  20. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/your-story/survival-stories.html
    My reading consisted of seven short stories in which people had survived 7 different accidents and events. What each of them showed was determination to live and survive to see another day. These traits came from them through a mental calmness even though they had been in some horrific accidents. I feel that i could survive in most cases due to some of the skills I have learned through many experiences. It all comes down to what is going on and what I know that would help me survive.

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  21. This story was about a man who lived in Joplin during a tornado that had struck the city. He stated that a certain mode had kick in that in the end saved his life. He stated that one of his on the spot decisions saved his life. He had gotten into a hole below the ground. The main characteristic i got out of this was that he never gave up and a certain phrase, he fought for survival. During different survival stories it just seems like most of them make on the spot decisions that in the long run save their lives because they make a decision in order to save their lives.

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  22. I read multiple stories of survival. A recurring theme I happened to notice was the persistence of the people. The people who happened to be attacked or experience a catastrophe all were determined to survive their accidents. Their hope seems to be the thing that truly drove a lot of the survivors to succeed in the situations they were placed in. I also noticed that in the wilderness stories, a lot of them had some form of preparation for the situations, albeit, limited. Regardless of skills or preparation, all of the people in these stories had the will to survive and didn't just give up. Their instincts and their courage helped them to survive. If I were placed in these situations, I would hope that I would be able to have the same amount of courage and pull through. I think being placed in these situations really tests the boundaries of human strength.

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  23. In the stories I read, I saw common themes in determination. Every one of the stories I read had people with undying determination to get out of the situation alive along with their loved ones. I am a determined person in general. When something's in my mind, I stick to it until the task is done. If I were in a situation like these I feel I would make it out, but I would have to convince myself I could and have the determination to make it out. If others were depending on me, the undying determination would come out.

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  24. I read about Colby Coombs who survived an avalanche. His friends died and he had to hike back to shelter with several broken bones. He stresses that in order to survive you have to block out mental set backs. Her had to forget about the pain and the loss of his friends in order to keep pressing forward. It sounds difficult and I don't know if I'd be able to. I might be able to block out physical set backs, but the loss of friends might cause me to lose hope.

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