How to react/defend in emergencies?

i live in a shady neighborhood. I'd grab my Beretta 92 and tell them to get the hell out of my apartment. Either leave quietly or there's gonna be trouble.

Gonna get a gun someday when possible.

It's hard to think straight when you're stressed up because of fear. I know that very well.
Acting as your instinct tell you may be the best choice. If the voices inside you tell that you have to hide, then hide, and if your mind telling to do something and kick some ass off, then do it.

I'm afraid I have developed some kind of trauma, as I'm always filled with anxiety and fear that they may come back again T_T Even in my dream this morning, I woke up because in the dream they had come back again to our house...

Any way to cope with this? I'm seriously stressed. Do I need to visit a doctor?

People have different reactions when the adrenaline starts to pump through your veins. Fight or flight. I choose fight. Some choose flight. Its no reason to be ashamed and traumatized of. it's basic instinct. You'll get over it soon

Depends on what going on and who your with..

I hope you're feeling better about this, Freezing !

I think an important thing to keep in your mind, especially when faced with something that potentially causes trauma, is to remember that it's perfectly normal to be feel the way that you do right now. Within seconds, your world was flipped upside down and you were left on the whim of other people, helpless and afraid. Your confidence is shaken, I'm sure. I truly believe what you did during the event, was the right thing to do. Instead of escalating the situation and panicing, you tried to grab a hold of your wits. I also believe what you're doing right now, is also the right step. You learned about how unprepared you were, and you took the steps to be better prepared. You seek outside help, either from your friends or the forums, to learn and return to normal as quickly as you can, rather than choke it in and hiding your feelings out of shame.

All this is proof that you're smart enough and strong enough to get past this. :) Just keep doing what you're doing, baby.

I wouldn't say a doctor, but maybe just at least discuss it with someone you trust and can easily talk to.

It's scary to have any of your 'safe places' destroyed, and it's very hard to feel safe again once it's been violated (be it your body, your home, or someone close to you).
Try taking measures to ensure your safety, but also rationalize with yourself when you get upset: if it's happening in a dream, assure yourself that it's not real; if the memory is upsetting, try to think about why it is so, and learn from it to become more ready should anything happen again; if you're actually getting very paranoid in daily life (and NOT in dreams) then you might want to seek help.

[font=verdana][color=green]Hmm, it is always difficult to answer the question "What should I do in an emergency" as, more often or not, emergencies are never the same.

But, the first thing you should do is get that past experience behind you. Until you do that, you will never be able to prepare yourself for future emergencies; if the time calls. Just talk to someone about it; your parents are a good turn to, but maybe even the maid - if she still isn't traumatised by the event - might be even better, as she has a slight distance from you than your parents, and will be able to relate to you even more so. You just have to accept that it happened, and move on. Easier said than done, but it has to be done.

Afterwards, you need to assess, if you can, how exactly the burglary occurred. Maybe they assessed your house as a viable target. Maybe you were too open with your possessions, which then caused them to make your house the target. Also, it must be asked exactly how they got past your dogs; were they beaten, were they avoided etc. Then, you need to counter it; increase the number, change the breed etc. Then, comes the door. I don't know exactly how they could have broken through, but a tougher lock is the obvious option here.

So, preparing for break through. Keep some sort of weapon beside your bed at all times; even something just for you to get comfort from. Going bare-fisted is brave, but foolish. Having a hockey stick isn't as so. If possible, try to have a long ranged weapon; guns being an obvious example here (I prefer the bow and arrow approach, so they can see it clearly) Prepare for situation that might occur; they might have weapons visible this time, they might have greater numbers, they might not make a loud entrance, they might even take someone as a hostage - even you. In those situation, what will you do? Will you hide or fight? In the case of the hostage, will you be able to act calm enough to give them their demands? Of course, learning the local police's number is a given; in fact, it's rather foolish that you never knew it at all in the first place.

Then, there's acceptance that it can happen again. It's fine accepting that it has happened, but you need to drill into your mind that it can happen again. Can you accept that? Do you need to talk to someone about how your worried that it will happen again? We live in a world where burglars are quite common, so everyone is at risk. Heck, even I've had stuff stolen from our land before; admittedly not as bad as your experience, but you're not alone.

That's all I can think of now. I don't know how much it will help.

Thanks. I figured I haven't talked about it, maybe sometime would do. I'm being overly cautious now, thinking it might happen again. I am always calm even at times like this, although knowing what to do was a different story for me. As to how they got in, they were able to destroy the locks, so we had a lock installed inside to prevent that. The dog ignored them sadly >__> I don't know why we were targeted, but maybe because they thought there were always no people in our house since it's very quiet. I have no long range weapons and I think the much I can do is lock myself and call for help. I have a knife hidden in my pockets just in case, so I can fight whenever I need to. I have police numbers now and I'm always ready for speed dialing.

I don't think they'd come back, but it's best to think they would. The main reason why I think I'm traumatized is because they were able to go inside the moment I noticed it, but if I had known they were before that I think I would be able to feel less stressed. Hopefully nothing bad happens, and I guess it'll take weeks to months before I feel safe in our home.

Get a gun. Fire one at the floor so they can hear the shot. Yhey'll usually run away like a puss they are. or just put a beware of dog sign.

Like some are saying, swiftly yet calmly asses the situation, and get the proper authorities there as soon as possible. Memorize some important numbers just in case, and keep a phone with you at all times. No need to go rushing in like a hero all the time. Better to be robbed of other possessions and dignity than to be robbed of your life.

Still have trauma right now, and I have become so paranoid to every sound that I hear. Hopefully this will go away in a few weeks from now. We have steel bars right now to prevent people from going inside. Although going outside will be a lot harder...

I grew up in a war-zone in central Africa, and have lived with cops since I was a kid and although I don't think this makes me an expert in the situation, but I feel I do have a good grasp on the concept of it.

(I'm talking about criminals here, like thieves, muggers etc)

First and foremost, it is NEVER a good idea to attack a mugger/thief if you can avoid it. Ever. Even if you're trained in hand to hand combat. A gun will kill you even if you know Karate. Period.
If a man is robbing you, he usually doesn't want to kill you too. Its easy to get away with theft, murder is a lot more difficult. Just do what he says, and hand him your wallet/whatever you he wants. Get a good look at his face and take note of any key features like height, weight, shoes, anything you can see that are unique. Tattoo's are great markers. Call the cops when hes gone, call your insurance agency and you may need to cancel your credit card.

If he makes it obvious hes going to kill you or someone else, now is the only time to step up. Don't scream or do something stupid, wait until you have a shot and punch him in the nuts, throat, anything that will do damage. If a brawl gets started you'll both be pumping enough adrenaline that neither of you will feel anything, so end it first. If there's anyone else in the area they will most certainly take this opportunity to take off. As soon as you get a moment, get out. Don't stand there and stare at him, you don't know if he has (another) knife, gun, or any kind of weapon. Your life is more important than anything here.

Remember, if you can avoid it, do NOT get into a fight with someone who's got everything to lose unnecessarily. Its better to lose your wallet, then it is to lose your life.

My reactions
1. If I'm the only one in the house: Call police and arm myself with one of the many firearms in my possession. i will not let them get up the stairs.
2. If I'm alone with my dogs: Same as above, however I may (regrettably) use my dogs to see if they have firearms of their own. If they don't have firearms, I will do what I can to push them out of my house.*
3. If I have my dogs and a sibling: He will arm himself while I call the police. After arming myself, dogs will serve the same purpose as stated above. Whether or not they are armed, they will be forcibly removed.*
4. Whole family is home: They will not leave my home alive.*
*If my dogs are injured or killed, the interloper will be thoroughly "punished".

Thanks for all the responses, it relieved my anxiety even by just a little bit.

Now I'm not the same anymore. I try to be cautious all the time and check every now and then (I'm paranoid) to see if there is something amiss.

We now have steel bars on the windows and doors to prevent/stall them at the least.

I'm still in a state of shock, but I'm trying to cope up with it and I always remind myself that I need to be strong or else I will not be able to think rationally when another emergency comes.

Wish I had some arms though, as we still don't have a gun here. I only have a puny knife in my bed, and I hope I don't need to use this anytime. I wish this is the last time this happens to us.