Universal Combat Arts Academy Ireland

Be a Hard Target!!

By making yourself a hard target you lessen your chances of being chosen as a potential
victim. An attacker will always go for the easier target. The best way to make yourself a hard
target is to stay alert and be aware of your surroundings. This is called ‘being switched on’.

If you are not switched on you cannot evaluate a situation because you will not have noticed it
developing, nor can you prepare for fight or flight if you have not seen and evaluated a
danger. You are only likely to know about a dangerous situation when it is too late and
unfortunately that is the state most people are in most of the time. How many times in news
reports when someone was attacked have you heard them say ‘the attacker came out of
nowhere’. Or have you ever walked up to someone you know on the street and say hello and
they nearly jump out of their skin? These are simple examples of someone not being aware of
their surroundings.

When you're out walking / jogging

If you regularly go walking or jogging, vary times and routes so that a potential attacker
can never place you at a certain place and time. Never walk or jog in remote areas
alone.
If you wear expensive jewellery or have an MP3 player try to keep it covered until you
reach your destination. The opportunist criminal may only attack if he sees the chance
of taking something expensive.
Try to avoid wearing headphones as your ability to hear traffic, strangers and potential
trouble is severely restricted
If you think someone might be following you, a good way to get a good look at them,
without making it look obvious, is to cross the road. Since you are then looking left and
right as you would normally do before crossing the road, take a good look at your
potential attacker (but make it look natural). If you feel he is following you trust your
instincts and head for the nearest place where there will be a lot of people around or
walk into a nearby shop.
Walk facing oncoming traffic - If you have to walk in the same direction as the traffic and
a car stops, turn around and walk the other way so the car cannot follow you.
If someone stops you to ask for directions, the time or for a light, stay alert as they could
be trying to distract you.
If someone in a car stops to ask for directions keep back from the car. They may try to
show you their map and ask you to point somewhere out to them. Just say "sorry I don't
know, you could ask in the shop up the road". A lot of people have been kidnapped by
going close to the car window to look at a map. Before you know it they have pulled you
into their car.
If you do find yourself in trouble make plenty of noise. Scream or shout, "Call the
Gardai" or "Fire" as loud as you can. This may make the scum-bag think twice. Don't
shout out "Help" as most people are reluctant to get involved.
If you find yourself in trouble in a busy place, (as a lot of criminals know they will get off
lightly if they are caught and they could attack you anywhere nowadays) and you shout
out for someone to call the Gardai, make sure you pinpoint a couple of individuals. For
example shout out, "You with the blue jacket and cap phone the Gardai for me, please I
need help!". If you don't pinpoint someone, everyone will just leave it for someone else
to do it, and in the end no-one will phone for help.
Remember if you feel you are in danger, do not be afraid to ask for help.

When you are out socialising at night

Do not go to a pub or club you don't know by yourself.
Be cautious of passing dark lane-ways or doorways
If you drink, drink sensibly and not to excess. Don't let people take advantage of you
because of having too much to drink
Do not accept a drink from someone you don't know.
If someone is buying you a drink make sure you have seen the bar man serve it. It only
takes seconds for someone to tamper with your drink.
If you have to leave your drink to go to the toilet, do not drink it again when you come
back. Either drink it before you go or get a new drink when you come back. Anyone
could have tampered with it when you were away. Asking your friend to watch your drink
isn't good enough unless they are going to sit and stare at it till you come back. It only
takes seconds for someone to put something in your drink.
If you can, book your taxi for going home. When booking, ask them for the driver's name
and the type of car they will be driving.
If you are using a taxi rank then make sure you see the driver's ID and preferably don't
use it alone. If you have a phone, let the driver hear you ring home to say where you are
and at what time you expect to be home. Like I said before, trust your instincts! If it
doesn't feel right don't use that taxi.

Adrenal Dump

If a situation does become ‘live’ your body will usually experience a huge injection of
adrenaline, called adrenal dump. While adrenaline can add speed and strength to the body’s
responses and dull pain, the adrenal dump causes sensations very similar to those of fear.
Consequently many people freeze when the adrenal dump happens.

These are some of the effects that adrenal dump can have on the body

   Dry mouth
   Voice quiver
   Tunnel vision
   Sweaty palms
   Nausea
   Bowel loosening
   Time distortion / time loss
   Memory distortion / memory loss

But the side effects of the adrenal dump can be lessened or even prevented by being alert and
aware of your surrounding as you will not have been caught by surprise. The important thing
to remember in a confrontation is that the adrenal dump is there to help you so try and stay
calm and think clearly. As long as you recognise the side effects, the adrenal dump will make
you faster and stronger.

These are just some simple tips. The most important thing is to stay aware of what is
going on around you and use common sense, avoiding any potentially dangerous
situations.