Free Book Chapter Excerpt: WHAT EXACTLY IS SELF DEFENSE?

What exactly is self defense? Here is an excerpt from Chapter 1 in Self Defense and Personal Safety, available on Amazon. This ebook can be read on Kindle, smartphone, iphone, tablets, and PCs. If you read the book, please write an Amazon review. Many thanks.

Excerpt/Chapter 1

Self defense is what you think and how you think. It is not about fighting, fancy moves, or techniques. Forget what you see in the movies. We are talking about real life where you do not do a fancy kick, followed by a karate chop, knock the guy out, and then walk away unscathed. In real life, you jab your thumbs in his eyes as hard as you can and then run away as fast as you can, screaming at the top of your lungs the whole time. Real life is about survival, not complicated martial arts techniques that take years of practice to master.

Self defense is about your body belonging to you and no one else. It is about making your own choices and controlling your own life, and doing whatever is necessary to stop someone else from hurting you. If someone is trying to hurt me, I will do whatever I have to do to stop that from happening. If the easiest, fastest, and safest way is to poke my fingers or my car key into my assailant’s eyes, I will do that without thinking twice. Many women are understandably squeamish about the very idea of doing this, but you do what you have to do. I may not like it, but I would do it in a split second without even thinking.

Self defense is much more than learning a few simple techniques, yelling "fire," and carrying a spray canister on your key chain. It is a specific frame of mind that becomes habit and it shows in the way you walk, dress, and think. It is about learning to trust your instincts and about choices. Self-defense is about how to make choices coolly based on knowledge, awareness, and training. YOU decide whether to talk, run, fight, or maybe even do nothing in a particular situation.

You need to develop safe habits and practice the techniques you will learn. They are simple and effective, not difficult at all to learn, and easy to remember. But you must have them ingrained in your mind so that when faced with a dangerous situation, you do not have to take time to think. Instead, you just react. You must always be ready to make split-second choices and respond accordingly.

Speed, surprise, and accuracy are most likely the only advantages you will have on your side in a dangerous situation. These strategies work if you know when to use them and have the confidence to do so.