Self-defense is a
set of awareness, assertiveness, verbal confrontation
skills, safety strategies, and physical techniques that
enable someone to successfully prevent, escape, resist
and survive violent assaults. A good self-defense course
provides psychological awareness and verbal skills, not
just physical training.
Does self-defense work?
YES! Self-defense
training increases your options and helps you prepare
responses to avoid, slow down, de-escalate, or interrupt
an attack, and also empowers one to prevent violence. It
is important that the strategies and skills deal with
the potential violence from acquaintances and intimates,
not only strangers. Women usually know their attackers,
therefore it is essential that a person is training in
how to deal with the violence that can come from someone
you know.
Is self-defense training a guarantee that you will be
safe?
NO. There are no
guarantees when it comes to self-protection. Be aware of
advertising hype, or exaggerated claims of success from
marketers of guns, alarms, devices, and self-defense
training programs. Be a smart consumer and find a
self-defense training program that increases your
choices/options and preparedness and is committed to
helping you develop a wide range of strategies.
Must I train for years to learn to defend myself?
No. A basic course
can offer enough concepts and skills to help you develop
self-protection strategies that you can continue to
build upon. Self-defense training is not karate,
although some of the techniques are derived form the
martial arts. The skills and techniques do not require
years to perfect. Certainly, practice is important and
investing the time to review and perfect your skills can
build confidence and increase your abilities. The key is
to make a commitment to participate in your own safety
and to do what is necessary to reduce risk and become
empowered to act, rather than to be acted upon.
What is the role of Mace, Pepper Spray or other
'devices' as self-defense aids?
Any device is
useless to you unless you understand how to use it, and
you have it ready to use at the time of the attempted
assault. There is NOTHING guaranteed about any of these
devices. None are fool proof, and none of them can be
counted on to work against all possible attackers.
Realize that
anything you can use against an attacker can also be
used against you. While some of the devices can be
helpful in some situations, it is best not to depend on
them and to be aware of their limitations.
Your brain and
your body are the best primary weapons that you have
with you at all times. Everything else is a weapon of
opportunity.
Should I get a gun?
NO. It is not
advisable for anyone to "just go out and get a gun."
Guns are often presented as the 'equalizer,' but
actually guns can provoke more unintentional injury,
accidents and unnecessary deaths than random car
accidents. Ten children a day are killed by handguns,
and several studies show that the most likely use of a
firearm in the home will be against a family member or
an individual known to the gun owner. There is a lot of
debate surrounding the use of firearms as an effective
self-defense tool, with little data available to support
their effectiveness. Owning and operating a firearm
should not be taken lightly, and if you are a person who
is looking for a shortcut to self-protection, and are
not sure about investing time in self-defense training,
then gun ownership is certainly not for you. There are
no shortcuts to self-protection, and guns are not a
risk-free solution.
What kind of martial arts/self defense training should
learn?
There are many
styles of martial arts available to the public. Before
choosing one you must first decide the main reason, or
reasons, why you want to begin studying martial arts. If
it is mainly for self defense then a practical Aikido
school is without a doubt the right martial art for you.
Where do I look for a good
martial arts/self-defense training school?
If you live in the Tacoma, South
Puget Sound area you can
