One of my favorite classes to teach is “Self-Protection for Women” and my favorite version of it is: “Women’s Self-Defense, Inside and Out” where we combine both protection tips and tools against an attacker as well as discussing ways we can protect ourselves against early death by preventable diseases.
Today I thought I would share a few of the self-protection tips against an attacker. First and foremost, I always stress the point that our moms were right: who you hang out with can get you in trouble.Over 80% of the time women know their attackers. So right there, if we just pay attention to who we are with, don’t put ourselves in compromising situations, and speak up for ourselves, we MAY be able to prevent ever needing to defend ourselves.
I say “MAY” because some of these bad guys that prey on women they know are very good at looking like good guys until they have their opportunity to show their true colors (plus there are those random attackers too).
The second main point I always share is that we need to do a better job of trusting our gut instincts. If you get a feeling in the pit of your stomach or a general sense of, “I shouldn’t be here” that would be a good time to change your circumstances. You don’t need to make a big deal out of it but neither do you need to allow someone to talk you into something you are uncomfortable with or shame you by saying, “I wouldn’t do anything, are you afraid of me?”
I once had an uncomfortable encounter with a man who had been riding his bike up and down the sidewalk in front of our martial arts school. This happened to be one of the two days a year that all of the classes were being held at a local park and I was the only one in the school. He came in and he had a wrench in his hand. I was behind the counter and he started asking a few questions. He was holding the wrench in one hand and kind of lightly hitting it in the palm of his other hand. I politely asked, “Would you please put the wrench away?” He replied, “I’m not going to do anything with it.” (In my head I am thinking…”I’ve seen CSI and I know how much damage a wrench can do.”) I said in a polite and slightly more firm tone of voice, “The wrench is making me nervous, please put it away.”
At that point he put the wrench in his back pocket, we finished our conversation with me being constantly aware of where he was, that I stayed behind the counter and I did a mental inventory of what was at my disposal to use as a weapon if I needed it. Thankfully, I didn’t need it and he left, never to be seen in our business again.
I think back to who I was several years ago and I don’t think I would have had the confidence to ask him to put the wrench away. And if I had asked him the first time, I am pretty sure I wouldn’t have asked again the second time. It isn’t about getting angry and spitting fire. It is about being kind and firm (there IS a time to spit fire but that is when you are 100% sure you need to defend yourself).
If all women could be trained to both trust their inner voices and speak up for themselves, we would all be happier and healthier; not only because we would need to defend ourselves less but also because we will have better relationships, both personally and professionally.
Donna Copeland is an Independent Shaklee Distributor who is available to give women’s self-protection seminars. For external self-protection, you can visit: www.Quest-MartialArts.com. For help creating a healthy body, go to: www.DonnaCopeland.MyShaklee.com Donna is compensated by Shaklee for products purchased through Donna or her website. As a partner at Quest Martial Arts she is also compensated through Quest.
