A child plays dead to escape his mother’s abusive grip; a woman plays dead and likely escapes a serial killer; a student plays dead to escape a gunman in her classroom. Conscious decision or simply the body’s primitive response to danger? On this episode of The Escape Pod, the co-hosts discuss true stories of people who “played possum” - pretending to be dead – to escape horrific situations and how, in these cases, that response was likely their key to survival.
Bullet Points of Key Topics and Markers:
- Topic #1 6:08 Co-hosts shares story of “freezing” in traumatic situation
- Topic #2 16:53 10-year-old boy plays dead to escape his mom’s abuse
- Topic #3 21:12 Shop owner plays dead to escape gunman
- Topic #4 31:11 11-year-old plays dead to escape school shooter
- Topic #5 37:55 Escapism, co-host-style!
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