subject: The Pros And Cons Of Violence Prevention [print this page] "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."
- Benjamin Franklin
What Benjamin Franklin meant was that if you are trying to stop or fix something after it has already happened, the damage has already been done. If you can prevent it from happening in the first place, things will be much easier and better overall.
I have come up with some ideas as to the PROS and CONS of violence prevention, to help you prepare yourself for the day when someone tries to perpetrate an act of violence on you!
Follow these steps, and you will be ready to protect yourself at all times!
First, there are the three pros of violence prevention.
PROACTIVE:
The most important step of any journey is the first one. Most people that I have met are in denial that violence will ever happen to them. This type of thinking disables you in a violent encounter, because your body is unable to conquer the denial of "I can't believe this is happening to me."
It is happening to you, and the best way to deal with it is to accept the fact that it can happen, and happen to you. Then, you should find somewhere local to you to train in personal protection skills.
Making self-defense training an everyday part of your life is the most proactive way to address the subject of violence.
How many times do we get into a car or a boat and put on our seatbelts and life jackets? Now, how many times do we actually get into car accidents or fall out of boats? Exactly, hardly ever. But, all it takes is once, and we're glad we had that belt or jacket on.
Ask any victim of violence, and she will tell you that all it takes is once to change your life.
Be prepared.
PROVISION:
In addition to training in self-protection skills, it is imperative that you make environmental provision for your personal safety.
What does that mean? It means making sure your everyday environment enables you to protect yourself when necessary.
Some examples of this would include:
Regularly checking windows, doors and locks for malfunction and replacing them if damaged. Find all local emergency numbers and put them on speed dial for quick access. Keep items like a flashlight and first aid kit near you for these emergencies. If you have a personal protection tool or device (knife, gun, pepper spray, personal alarm) make sure it is within reach when you are lying in bed (and keep it in the same place all the time for consistency).
Also, make sure you have a pre-planned escape route from your apartment, house, office, and car - in the event that the primary exit is inaccessible.
PROMISCUITY:
Multiple partners. This is where it's at!
No, no...this is not what you're thinking. What I mean is in your personal protection training, make sure you investigate and absorb information from as many sources as possible.
Training with multiple partners in your self-defense skills will allow you to get a feel for different body shapes and sizes, and different perspectives.
This is a HUGE advantage in training. We live in such a small world now that gone are the days where you sign up at your local karate club and stay there for 10 years. There is nothing wrong with loyalty to a particular school or teacher, but augment your regular training with ideas and insights from other sources.
Next, are the three cons of violence prevention.
CONTEXT:
During a violent encounter, your ability to think logically is essentially GONE. You become very reactionary and if you haven't done the necessary mental prep work PRIOR to this fight, you will be in some serious hot water!
Contextualizing your self-defense techniques allows you to decide beforehand what strategies and techniques are suitable for varying levels of force.
For example, what level of force is suitable for a person screaming at you from behind a counter because you gave them the wrong order? What about when some shoves you at a nightclub because you looked at them for a little too long? How about when someone puts a gun to the back of your head demanding you go with them.
This process begins in the mind, but we need to make a connection to the body, so that when we are not thinking straight, we can use the appropriate amount of force.
CONVERSION:
This is where we make a mind-body connection and make our contextualizing a physical reality.
The key here is scenario-based training. It is widely held and accepted knowledge that you are going to fight like you train. If you practice varying levels of force in a variety of training scenarios, you will be able to respond appropriately when the rubber of reality meets the road.
CONDITIONING:
Conditioning is the final step. Here is where you form neural pathways that allow you to access your training in high stress situations.
Adrenal stress training is when you purposely induce stress and cause your adrenaline to course through your body, and THEN have to defend yourself against an unpredictable attacker.
With repetition, this is an extremely effective self-protection tool.
When someone attacks you in reality, and your adrenaline flows and your heart rate increases, and you find yourself in a crazed emotional state, your body will naturally "click" into your self-protection mode that you have created by conditioning yourself with training. The reaction is instantaneous.
If you take these steps to heart, and make them a part of your life, you will ensure your safety in the midst of an increasingly violent world. We all need to take the necessary steps to protect ourselves, because the street it out there.
