Going opposite directions at night, what should men do if approaching a woman? (lemmy.blahaj.zone)

submitted 3 days ago by BeardededSquidward@lemmy.blahaj.zone to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

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Scenario: It's night, and a man is walking home. He sees ahead there is a woman going in the opposite direction as him. Knowing not to stop or approach her, but his presence makes her nervous. What would help further in this scenario if anything?

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[-] FishFace@piefed.social 30 points 2 days ago

Make eye contact. No eye contact is creepy. It's best to err on the side of more, rather than less, eye contact, because you probably don't make enough.
Pick up the pace. If you're walking slowly, it's going to look like you're trying to prolong the encounter, so go at least at a trot.
Hands are threatening, so keep one or both behind your back to prevent spooking her.
Smile! You look prettier that way. Two birds with one stone here: if you keep a smile on your face, you'll look less threatening, and you can tell her to smile to inform her that you want her to be happy.
Pay her a compliment to put her at ease. Something non-sexual like, "you have beautiful teeth."
It will be clear you're not a threat if she knows you've got something else. You could communicate that you're going home to eat by licking your lips. Make some smacking noises too, if it's dark.
Clothes conceal threats, so take yours off.

HTH

[-] ParadoxSeahorse@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago

It’s almost the same if you’re a woman and see a man who’s looking a little skittish

Unbuckle your teeth, nobody like a tight toother
Tie one leg behind your back and strap on something and pop it in your shoe
Wave both hands in the air in a jazz fashion so they can see you coming
Say something normative like mshnklfcknwoshlstf
You can communicate by sucking in your lips and pretending you don’t have any
If possible wear the skin of the last man you crossed

[-] FishFace@piefed.social 0 points 1 day ago

More like the last man who crossed you!

[-] majster@lemmy.zip 16 points 2 days ago

See a woman in distance. Puts hands behind his back (could be a weapon). Picks up the pace. Looks straight into the eyes, lock on, force a smile so you look like a psycho and say: you have beautiful theeth.

If she doesn't call the police or starts screaming then you surely didn't follow all the points.

[-] FishFace@piefed.social 11 points 2 days ago

Calling the police is normal, as it helps her to feel safer. Don't worry, this is a synergistic response to the situation.

HTH

this post was submitted on 24 Aug 2026

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