Being followed can be scary, but what if you don’t know you’re being followed until it’s too late? It’s helpful to know how to know for sure that you’re being followed, and one woman learned a few tips on Reddit that potentially saved her life.

Reddit user aggressivelycanadian shared her story in the hopes that it would help others. She wrote about a time when she and her husband were away from home, and she needed to go to the bathroom. She knew about a bathroom at a nearby mall, and she knew that the bathroom was near the entrance, so it would be a quick and easy stop.

“It was recently announced that we are going back into lockdown, so we did a final window visit with my grandmother in a neighbouring city. I had to use the bathroom before our drive home, so I popped into a mall that was desolate even before Covid times, because I knew the bathroom was right in the entrance, down a hallway to the other side of the mall, but still visible from the front doors. Quick and easy.”

What aggressivelycanadian didn’t count on was seeing a man eye her when she walked towards the bathroom.

“As I walked in, I passed a man in a yellow mask, leaning on the opposite side of a pillar in front of the entrance. I felt him turn towards me as I passed, but I carried on my way.”

For whatever reason, a post she read on Reddit suddenly popped into her mind, and she decided not to ignore it. Instead, she tried out the tips in the post.

“The top comment I had read at the time said to never go into a public bathroom if followed.”

She didn’t go into the bathroom. Instead, she used another piece of advice she learned on Reddit, a way to know for sure if the man was following her or not.

“I remembered another comment saying that if you aren’t sure whether or not you are being followed, to go into a store that the suspected person would not typically have interest in.”

This Reddit user saw a store that sold dollhouses and went inside that store instead of going to the bathroom. Sure enough, the man in the yellow mask followed her inside. She didn’t see anyone at the register. There wasn’t an employee to easily notify or ask for help. Instead, she knew she needed to get back to the car where her husband was waiting for her as quickly as possible.

“I fought back paralyzingly fear, and reached for my phone in my pocket. I turned abruptly, and quickly walked back toward the exit as the phone ran for my husband, who was waiting out in the car for me.”

The man in the yellow mask continued to follow her and picked up his pace to match hers. Thankfully, her husband answered the phone.

“With the phone on speaker, I loudly said, ‘I am being followed by the man behind me,’ and without missing a beat, my husband was out of the car and assured me he was coming.

Many people took to the comments to thank aggressivelycanadian for sharing her story and what she did to get to safety. Some Reddit users even added their own safety tips.

Reddit user SlackAsh commented, “It. Is. Terrifying. I’m so so glad you’re okay! Solid advice!! To add, if you’re being followed in a car, my favorite is driving directly to a police station but brightly lit crowded places are great too. You did all the right things!”

A comment written by you-create-energy reads, “Keep in mind, you don’t need to wait for the call to connect before saying this. Just start describing him into the dialling phone, say you are almost there, ‘are your brothers with you’, etc. Anything to escalate the implied threat. These men are cowards, they will bolt every time.”

Reddit user hemaristhysbe shared another tip. “In grocery, department, or big box store go straight for the feminine hygiene aisle. If a man follows you there, find a store employee immediately.”

Have you ever been followed? What advice do you have for someone who thinks someone is stalking her?