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Flashlights
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WISD - What Is Self Defense?
You do not need to be strong, brave or male to be able to defend yourself. Awareness, confidence, verbal skills and physical self-defense techniques are skills we can all learn. There IS a lot more to it than just physically hitting someone in order to protect yourself.
This article will give you the big picture.
Here's what the Collegiate® Dictionary defines as self-defense: 1 a plea of justification for the use of force or for homicide 2 the act of defending oneself, one's property, or a close relative Someone once told me that there are only two sure things in life: You will pay tax and you will die. This may not be entirely accurate, but I think it is safe to say that there are a lot of uncertainties in life, self-defense is one of life’s uncertainties. To spend some time or a lifetime studying all the aspects of self-defense will not guarantee a successful outcome if confronted by an attacker.
There are no guarantees! However, every little bit counts and will give you the options you need, that could one day save your life. Most people think of self-defense as physically hitting someone in order to stop that someone from hurting them. There is a lot more to it than that. Awareness gives you options. How you look and feel makes you look confident. What you say and how you say it, gives you strength. Physical techniques are for when all else fails. There is a lot you can learn about awareness. It is your first line of defense, which makes it VERY important. Your awareness will keep you a safe distance from most dangerous situations… it has so far! Most people don’t take the time to learn about self-defense and the role awareness plays in it. Why? Because when you use awareness skills, you never really know what could have happened if you did not use them.
A simple example: As you are walking along, you look ahead and see some people who give you an uneasy feeling inside. This uneasy feeling is your survival instincts saying "bad news ahead, avoid it!" So you listen and avoid those people (cross the road, go back the way you came or change your route). What would have happened if you did not listen to your survival instincts? The answer is, "You will never really know!" Awareness is having or showing realization, perception, or knowledge. You do not need to be strong, brave or male to be able to defend yourself with awareness, just aware! To have options that you can use when confronted by an attacker, you need knowledge and a few strategies for putting your option(s) into practice. Pick the right option(s) for a given situation and have a pre-planned strategy for each option, and you stand a good chance of getting out of the confrontation safely. How you look and feel - confidence Have you ever heard of people who have been attacked and/or raped more than once in their life? There are people out there who LOOK like victims. Watch a documentary on "animals of prey." Animals use their instincts to find weak or sick animals for their food and survival… the weak are easy prey. Attackers use their basic animal instincts to find and attack people who look and feel weak. Why? Because they stand out as easy prey! What you say and how you say it People who are attacked, are often attacked by people they know. You have probably heard the saying: "first impressions last." The first impression you make on someone may determine whether or not he or she attacks you. What you say when you talk to people, and how you say it, will result in you being categorized by the people you talk to. You will be seen as someone to respect – strong. Or you will be seen as someone who can be dominated – weak.
Physical self-defense techniques
Physical self-defense techniques are what most people understand self-defense to be, and that is all. I hope that by reading this article, you are beginning to see that there IS a lot more to it than just physically hitting someone in order to protect yourself. Physical self-defense techniques should be low on your options list. You should however, learn as many strike techniques as you can. Strikes to the feet, knees, groin and strikes to the head. Learn some techniques for standing, sitting and lying down positions. Also learn techniques to use on someone who is behind you. The simple techniques are the best, so KISS - keep it simple self-defense! Conclusion As you have learned, self-defense is more than just knowing how to hit someone. Awareness plays an important role and it is something that anyone can learn more about, and use. A look of confidence and the way you talk to people will cause a potential attacker to look elsewhere. A variety of physical self-defense techniques, although low on your options list, should be learned with K.I.S.S in mind. That is self-defense!