Self Defense- Protection for you, by you.

What is Self Defense?

Well, people usually misunderstand self defense as the ability of a person to block and counter attack. Some even consider it as fighting back to the harasser or the attacker. According to me, Self Defense means the ability to escape the situation without getting hurt. Self Defence is not only about protection from physical attack but also from mental abuse or some such. It can help you protect yourself from sexual assaults, mental tortures, Ragging, Bullies, etc.

Who needs to learn Self-defense?

Self Defense is not just for women but also for men and children. Daily, millions of people go through or witness assaults but are unable to respond. Even a well-shaped body builder goes through mental or physical tortures, HE LIFTS BUT HE CAN’T FIGHT (Size of your biceps or Six packs abs won’t help you fight).

Why Self Defense?

Self Defense is an art that makes a person able to respond and escape assaultive situations without getting hurt. It makes you both physically and mentally alert all the time. Your confidence increases and makes you strong from inside as well as outside. A Martial Artist may find it easy to defend, but it is important for a Non-Martial Artist to learn few basic techniques. What if you are surrounded by more than 5 people? Can you protect yourself? How will you deal with them?

How to avoid getting into situations?

In order to avoid getting into assaultive situations, you should avoid getting into arguments. Sometimes losing an argument is better than getting into wrong situation.
Trust no one except your Family. Keep updating them about your location and activities (at least after sunset).
Learn to say “No” and not just that but also to reply to every act that makes you feel uncomfortable. Don’t let people think that you are an easy target.
For Boys- If you are with a girl (she may be your friend, girlfriend, sister or even a stranger) during public transport or sometimes at less/more crowded places, consider her as your responsibility and not an opportunity.
Be confident whenever you are in a situation. Your fear will encourage the attacker. We live in a World where female is considered less strong than a male. Which is not true.
Ragging is something which many college students go through nowadays. According to Google, 3299 cases of ragging of students have been registered across India between April 18, 2012 and December 12, 2017. Incidents of ragging has increased by 70% since then. But only 957 students were punished in these cases. Resistance to ragging lead to arguments and later the stronger party dominates the weaker by murders, rapes, assaults, etc.
Dealing with ragging is quite difficult but not Impossible. Handling the situation in a tricky way is what you need to learn.
Mental pressure forces people to commit suicide. Dealing with this is the toughest among all other situations. You have to fight yourself to get out of it.
Woman gets mentally harassed at workplace. Boss asking for Sexual favours for promotion is also considered as mental harassment. Teacher threatening student to fail in exam and asking for physical relations in return puts the student into mental pressure. In this case the student should be clear of what his/her rights are.
50% of times peer pressure is what makes a person to commit crime. Work on reducing it by not comparing your life with others.
Posting news about rape cases on social media won’t stop it from happening. Taking part in Awareness programs and actually spreading awareness will help.
Joining Martial Arts dojo may help you to some extent. Karate will not only condition you physically but also mentally.

Some basics you need to know:

Strong parts of a Human Body (which you can use in order to protect)

Head
Shoulder
Teeth
Elbows
Knuckles
Nails
Hip (in case if you know hip throws)
Knees
Heel

Objects that we usually carry with us which can help us protect ourselves:

Hair clips (for girls)
Hair bands (you need to learns techniques for it)
Book (corner of the book can be hit)
Keys
Newspaper (to know how to use this, contact me)
Sandals with pointed heels
And many more

Weak points of a Human Body (where you can attack)

Eyes
Nose
Ears
Throat
Ribs
Armpit
Fingers
Groin
Knees (when legs are straight)
Toes

While attacking is not the only thing you can do to escape, you just have to disable the attacker for some time and just run away from that situation. Running is one of the most important things you need to learn. Sexual Harassment can happen anytime, anywhere. You need to be prepared to deal with the situation anytime. If you ever witness anyone being harassed, being raped, bullied or being beaten then take a stand against it. Do not wait or expect someone to save you in such situations, learn to protect yourself. You can protect yourself like no one else. Just be confident and don’t let anyone underestimate you. You are a lot stronger than you think. Using correct self-defence techniques at the right time is what you need to learn.