self-preservative
Guarding one's existence
Self-preservative describes something that serves to protect or maintain one's own existence, safety, or well-being.
The term applies to instincts, behaviors, or measures aimed at survival: The animal's self-preservative instinct kicked in when it sensed danger.
It can also describe qualities that help something maintain itself: The system has self-preservative mechanisms that resist change.
Remaining alive against odds
- self-protectionSafeguarding one's own wellbeing
- fight-or-flightAcute threat reaction
- defensiveProtective or easily threatened
- innateExisting since birth
primal · reflexive · adaptive · evolutionary · hardwired · automatic · vigilance · adrenaline
Managing under strain
- denialRefusal to accept reality
- repressionUnconscious blocking of thoughts
- rationalizationInventing acceptable motives afterward
- dissociationMental separation from surroundings
compartmentalization · suppression · avoidance · detachment · numbing · distancing · self-deception · projection
Careful to avoid risk
- risk-aversePreferring safety over uncertainty
- guardedWary and restrained
- prudentExercising sound judgment
- protectiveServing to guard
defensive · vigilant · wary · careful · calculating · shrewd · circumspect · self-interested
Substance mixed in
- antioxidantOxidation-preventing molecule
- stabilizerThing ensuring steadiness
- antimicrobialKills or inhibits germs
- shelf-lifePeriod before spoilage
inhibitor · retardant · embalming · curing · pickling · formaldehyde · sulfite · nitrate
survival
Remaining alive against odds
- self-protectionSafeguarding one's own wellbeing
- fight-or-flightAcute threat reaction
- defensiveProtective or easily threatened
innate · primal · reflexive · adaptive · evolutionary · hardwired · automatic · vigilance · adrenaline · wariness
coping
Managing under strain
- denialRefusal to accept reality
- repressionUnconscious blocking of thoughts
- rationalizationInventing acceptable motives afterward
dissociation · compartmentalization · suppression · avoidance · detachment · numbing · distancing · self-deception · projection · displacement
cautious
Careful to avoid risk
- risk-aversePreferring safety over uncertainty
- guardedWary and restrained
- prudentExercising sound judgment
protective · defensive · vigilant · wary · careful · calculating · shrewd · circumspect · self-interested · strategic
additive
Substance mixed in
- antioxidantOxidation-preventing molecule
- stabilizerThing ensuring steadiness
- antimicrobialKills or inhibits germs
shelf-life · inhibitor · retardant · embalming · curing · pickling · formaldehyde · sulfite · nitrate · antibacterial
self-preservativeself-sacrificing
Prioritizing others' welfare entirely
sacrificial · self-destructive · suicidal · martyring · self-immolating
self-preservativereckless
Carelessly ignoring danger
foolhardy · daredevil · death-defying · heedless · incautious
preserve, preserved, conservative, conservation, preservation, conserve, preserves, conservatory, preservative