This is a subject that I feel extremely passionate about....I have had 2 creepy experiences in my life: in San Jose in April 2000, and in Halifax just last week....I did not end up physically fighting anyone, but it SURE FELT GREAT knowing that if I had to fight back, I could!!
"Knowing how to defend yourself is ordained by Mother Nature. And Mother Nature rules. What other animal sends their young into the world without self preservation skills then tells them, if attacked, to NOT resist? Self defense isn't a luxury; it's an essential life skill."
Take a self defense course NOW. (Excellent for sorority programming too)
I took courses from "Model Mugging", where you learn to fight back. Fighting back is the best thing that you can do. Things like mace and pepper spray....are you going to root around in the bottom of your purse looking for it while someone is attacking you? Also, with pepper spray, unless you have a perfect 100% aim at the assailant's face, it isn't a great tool (and if there's wind in the air...it could blow back in your face). What's more, women are taught that rapists and sex-offenders try to verbally subdue a woman first.....in the courses, you're taught to take no heed, and get ready to fight, if need be.
Please look at these websites:
http://www.dr-ruthless.com/ http://www.realworldsafety.com
and sign up for a self defense course.
From the Dr. Ruthless website:
Top 15 Reasons to Learn Self Defense....
1. Because fear sucks. The fear of attack is every woman's fear and every parent's unspoken fear for their daughters. It crimps women's sense of freedom and causes undue stress. For some it creates generalized anxiety.
2. Because relying on the “Good Guys” to protect you from the “Bad Guys” is a fundamentally flawed strategy: women are typically alone when they're assaulted, and that Good Guy/Bad Guy line can get blurry fast. And by the time help arrives, the damage has likely been done.
3. Because acting on your own behalf beats divine intervention nine times out of ten.
4. Because women CAN effectively defend themselves AND escape deadly harm. Contrary to the myth that fighting back “makes things worse”, research has shown that, “forceful resistance strategies” ARE effective in thwarting attacks. On the contrary, pleading, reasoning or appealing to a criminal's humanity is “almost universally futile”. (See “Fight Back Against Rape”.) Fighting back might be your only chance at escape, at survival - and you deserve a fighting chance!
5. Because violence happens. It is estimated that 12.1 million women have been raped and that 1 out of 8 will be assaulted in her lifetime. A violent crime occurs every 21 seconds, and every 15 seconds a woman is battered. In the time it takes to read this page, more women have been assaulted. Your chances of becoming a victim of crime or attack are greater than your chances of attaining the perfect physique. Yet, in spite of epidemic violence against women, dieting, not learning to protect ourselves, remains the female right of passage.
6. Because even our best efforts at combating violence (better law enforcement, stiffer punishments, more funding for programs) and all our coveted beliefs (Love Conquers All!) become meaningless sound bites when you're faced with an aggressor who is about to go ballistic or stick you with a knife.
7. Because gone are the days when being prepared meant leaving home with clean underwear and enough change for a phone call.
8. Because knowing how to defend yourself is ordained by Mother Nature. And Mother Nature rules. What other animal sends their young into the world without self preservation skills then tells them, if attacked, to NOT resist? Self defense isn't a luxury; it's an essential life skill.
9. Because contrary to popular myth, confidence does not come in a roll-on.
10. Because you would be riddled with guilt if you passed on feelings of helplessness to your children. Anxiety is passed down, often unconsciously, and YOU are the medium! Fear makes us a magnet to predators; the more fear you/your children harbor, the more risk you/they become. When you empower yourself, you empower your kids.
11. Because learning to kick ass just plain feels good. It plunks you smack dab into your epicenter of power, reminding us that, “...our bodies are not decorations. They are strong, they are powerful and when violated they can be deadly.” (Geneen Roth, author of “Feeding the Hungry Heart”)
12. Because when women own their own capacity for aggressive self protection, we not only become safer, but we become more whole and lay claim to our power. Truncating women from their aggressive potential diminishes our being. It dims our fighting spirit, prunes back our ambitions and passions and cleaves us from our healthy BIG GIRL appetites.
13. Because being a wuss is unfashionable. In a culture gone warrior-chic, who wants to be a weenie?
14. Because being defenseless is a lot scarier. It keeps women fearful yet dependent on men.
15. Because criminals and predators are a step ahead. They have a plan and have likely "done this before". Assaults are swift and vicious. The heat of the moment may be too late to ruminate about what to do (or not do!) You must decide in advance what's worth fighting for and have a plan.
Fight back! Sure you may get hurt, but what's better, hurt or dead?? If someone wants you to go with them, it is because they want to take you to a secluded area, and your chances of getting out alive are virtually 0%. Robbers do not isolate their victims...they want the goods and they run....murderers and rapists do move their victims...they need isolation where they carry out their crimes where they will not be detected.
WestCoastGirl, you didn't mention where you're from...but here is a website for Model Mugging in the San Francisco Bay Area:
http://www.bamm.org/
and if you get in touch with
http://www.realworldsafety.com/ (I know these people personally, they were my instructors), they can help you find someone in Seattle (there is a group that does self-defense courses in Seattle...I just don't have their email address...)
[This message has been edited by CutiePie2000 (edited March 27, 2001).]
Self defense
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