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being a victim in the first place. When most people think of self defence training they think
of being able to fight off their attacker. But in reality physical defence techniques are only
about 10% of good self defence training. However you need to be 100% effective at that 10%.
The other 90% of the training should focus on learning how to avoid being a victim in the
first place. Prevention is always better than cure!
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- Awareness is one of the most important elements of effective self-defence. An awareness
of the reality of crime and violence, as well as an awareness of your surroundings, are the
main elements to your personal security. - Have a survival mind set. Nobody has the right to harm you, your family or your friends.
But unfortunately violence does exist and it could touch your life at any time. If you do
become a victim of crime, and you aren't mentally prepared yourself to deal with it, you will
more than likely become frozen in fear (adrenal dump). The sudden rush of adrenaline
you will receive could cause you to freeze on the spot and prevent you from doing
anything to protect yourself. The best way to avoid this is to develop a survival mind set.
Imagine yourself in a dangerous situation as clearly as you can and visualise what actions
you might take to survive and escape. While it is unpleasant to visualise yourself as the
victim of robbery or assault, it is necessary to prepare the mind to deal with the trauma. - Avoid presenting yourself with a victim's profile. Victims of crime are frequently chosen
because they are easy targets. Criminals prey on the weak or unsuspecting, and usually
avoid people who are aware of what's going on around them and who might put up a fight.
When out in public, look people in the eye (don't stare at them but let them know you have
seen them), keep your head up, and walk with a confident stride. This tells the criminal
that you are more likely to see him coming and resist. Without the element of surprise, the
criminal will likely pass you up for someone who will put up less of a fight. - Trust your instincts. Learn to trust your instincts and listen to what your intuition tells you.
If something or someone for whatever reason just doesn't feel right, trust your instincts.
There is a good chance they are right. - Keep to well lit and public places. Just use common sense and remember to pay attention
to what's happening around you. This will go a long way towards keeping yourself safe.
Whenever possible travel in groups and in open, populated and well lit areas, especially
at night. Stay clear of dark areas or isolated places where criminals will have the
advantage, especially if you are by yourself. - If you feel you could be heading into a dangerous situation your first priority is to escape,
not to fight. If you are confronted by a criminal and you cannot immediately escape, then
complying with your attacker until you are able to escape may be your best option
(depending on what their demands are). When faced with someone who demands your
wallet, handbag, jewellery, MP3 player, phone etc... - give it to them, and get out of there
as fast as you can. No possessions, however valuable, are worth risking your life over. - If escape is not possible, you have handed over your possessions and you still feel in
danger of being attacked (just because you have handed over your possessions does not
mean they won't hurt or kill you) then you must trust your instincts and preemptive strike
your attacker. Hit hard and run don't stay to fight. Self-defence is not about standing toe
to toe with your opponent and fighting. It is about using whatever you consider to be
reasonable force at that particular moment in time to stop your attacker and escaping to a
safe location as quickly as possible. - Once you have escaped report the incident to the Gardaí giving them as good a
description of the assailant as you can. Being able to identify your attacker is also part of
being aware. If you can't remember what the attacker looks like then the Gardai will have
a hard time finding him/her. Make mental notes of key features to remember i.e. what the
attacker was wearing, what colour was his/her hair, did he/she have any scars or tattoos
etc. Any distinctive features will help the Gardaí find the culprit.
word there is reported, as a lot of crimes go unreported. especially sexual assault and
rape. So in reality those figures would be a lot higher.
Everyone needs to know how to defend themselves. I hope the information on this
website will help you become a Hard Target. But information is only good if you use it!
| Copyright Universal Combat Arts Academy 2007, All rights reserved |
