Self Defense

What's Your Escape Plan?

What's the goal of successful self-defense? Escape.

Actually, the primary goal of successful self-defense is to keep away from danger altogether. Habits like locking your doors, having your keys out and ready in the parking lot, and taking the elevator instead of the stairs are your first form of defense against theft or violence.

But when you do get into trouble, the ultimate goal is to get out of it.

A barrier to getting out of trouble can be the lack of a well-thought-out escape plan. It really does pay to take some time and imagine what you can do in dangerous scenarios. When you get into trouble and are threatened, your brain releases adrenaline and other related chemicals that arm your body for action. Blood rushes into your large muscle groups and heart rate goes up. Your brain goes into auto-pilot, scanning the internal file that holds the "what you do in this situation" directions. If you haven't previously considered how to handle this situation, you will "freeze" and escape will be more difficult.

So, a good place to start your self-defense training is to imagine a scenario and think about what you can do to get out of it. When you take some time to think about what you would do in any of the above situations, you are arming your subconscious with directions for action. You want to put some information in each "what you do in this situation" file for your stressed-out brain to access when you're in trouble.

Now, imagine what you would do in the following situations:

How do you escape from your upstairs bedroom if you hear an intruder downstairs?

How do you escape from someone who wants to take your purse in the street?

How do you escape if someone is following you in their car while you're driving?

How do you escape from someone who wants you to go with them and is trying to hit you?

How do you escape if someone grabs your wrist and tries to drag you with them?

If you need more information, do a little research and get some training. This will help your subconscious find the right thing to do when you're in danger. It's even better when you take a self-defense class and physically practice breaking away from a wrist grab or avoiding a punch.

When you have practiced, or at least thought out, what you can do in a dangerous situation, your changes of escape increase. When your chances of escape increase, you are climbing the ladder of self-defense success. Congratulations for taking responsibility for your own safety and the safety of those you love!

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