Growing up, I was well accustomed to the frequent migratory routine my parents enforced because of the nature of their jobs. Circumstances led to me moving in with a different set of relatives every year in my high school years. By the time I graduated, I was an expert in assimilating to new environments and ideas. I had my share of scary experiences, learned to navigate the world largely on my own at a young age, but I didn't think there was a downside to becoming an independent person. I was an introvert by nature and I even came to enjoy the solitude my life offered me — until I was faced with a situation that changed my outlook on the world entirely.

I was compelled to instinctively react when walking by a parked car and two men with hoods over their heads got out suddenly, hurrying toward me, one holding a black garbage bag, without a word, I ran for my life.

Despite being told by numerous adults in my life about the real and scary existence of bad people who do bad things, what helped me most in dealing with the actual event was my own gut instinct.

There are three ways to categorize kidnappings in the U.S. which are dependent on the identity of the perpetrators. Victims are typically abducted by a relative, nearly half, the second most common method involves an acquaintance, quickly followed by stranger kidnappings.

Incidents involving women dominate the number of stranger kidnappings. Not unlike my circumstances, the women abductees were typically outdoors and near or in their neighborhood. When I look back at the three other attempts I was unfortunate enough to experience, I was able to identify similar or recurring factors. It's hardly something to feel good about, but with each occurrence, I learned to better protect myself when and if something were to happen, I was grateful for that realization.

In each case, including two that were abroad, I was on my own. In two out of three, I was approached by the potential abductor, Besides my first experience, in which I was almost black-bagged by two mysterious men and raced away like in a Hollywood film scene — there weren't any obvious signs that the people I met were criminals.

While in my late teens, I was in an airport waiting for a flight. Unsurprisingly, my flight had been delayed out of a popular European city. I had picked a seat in front of a random gate and sat back fighting the urge to plop over and sleep for days. Seemingly, out of thin air, a man appeared in front of me holding a dark cup. He started speaking a foreign language and smiling at me, nudging the cup towards me. I shook my head and smiled back, thinking he was just being kind.

Except... there was something that felt off about accepting the drink from him, no matter how nice he was coming off. I continued to politely decline. A pack of travelers walked by around that point and he slowly backed off when they stopped and stood nearby, chattering amongst one another. He waved goodbye to me cheerily as he walked away, still smiling up until he turned the corner.

It was only later that I connected the interaction to one that could have resulted in my disappearance. When I finally got on my flight headed back to the states, I got to talking with the passenger beside me. Apparently, there was an unknown man that was spotted frequently around the airport, he would approach females sitting alone and offer them food or drink, starting a conversation with them. From witness accounts, women would later miss their flights or be unaccounted for in some way. The suspicion by authorities was that the man drugged the women and led them away without attracting attention. After our talk, I couldn't stop shaking for the remainder of my flight.

I decided to go shopping one day while staying with relatives during a vacation break. It was almost midday and humid, I was walking down a busy street with a fistful of groceries. My relatives lived downtown in a major city and I had to carry the bags back, resting every few feet. During one of those breaks, I heard a woman yelling above me. After it persisted I looked directly up at her, shielding one side of my face from the bright sun.

She looked like she was in her late forties, early fifties, looking frantic. When our eyes met she suddenly nodded and pointed at me, "Yeah, you!" I pointed at myself, "Me?" I mouthed. She nodded again. "Can you bring my book back?"

I stood there confused, until she pointed to a spot a few feet away. where a book laid on the pavement. It clicked in my mind, her book had fallen from the balcony and she wanted me to take it back up to her apartment. Maybe it was the heat or just an uneasy feeling I got but I decided to keep walking.

When I got back to my relatives place later on and had the chance to tell them about the woman's strange behavior, my cousin abruptly gasped. She told us about a rumor in the city recently, one related to kidnappings that were planned out by using a woman to lure victims in. I couldn't help but wonder if I had nearly fallen for a trap.

There have been moments in my life that I've thought things seemed off. I didn't necessarily feel scared, I just felt off. By following those feelings I was able to avoid dangerous situations. There are some events you can't prepare for, not entirely. However, you can always stop and think about a decision you're about to make and reconsider it. That moment might save your life.