Using Your Environment to Defend Yourself

Using your environment may be one of the best tools that you can have for self defense. The biggest problem with this, though, is that your mind is not likely to come up with ideas at the time of the altercation. That means that you need to explore, imagine and practice using the items in your environment before you ever get into a situation in which you will need them.

This will ultimately help you to use those movements, weapons and the situation in general to help you. Without this practice in your mind, you are less likely to find yourself in a place of safety.

These next self defense for women tips are meant to help you protect yourself in various situations with what's around you at the time. Take a look at your daily life and the situations in which you could be put at risk.

Everything Is Your Weapon

The key start to this section is this tip. When you are put in a situation in which you are being confronted or attacked, it is up to you to see everything near you as a potential weapon. That weapon is what you need to be well aware of.

What you need to think about is how can those items near you actually help you or even prevent an attack from happening? For most people, this takes some practice. But, stop now and look at the things around you.

If you were caught in a deadly situation or off guard, what items around you could be used to help you to hurt and get away from your attacker?

Remember that when someone attacks you, it is ultimately up to you to survive the attack. Therefore, you need to do and use anything that you can to make that happen. Your surrounding environment is a good place to start especially when you can not use your body as a weapon as we have discussed.

Anything and everything is a weapon and a potential tool to you to use.

Things You Can Hit With

There are several tools that you can use in many of the most frequented areas to help you to attack with. Things like stones can be very potent when it comes to attacking someone. Your surroundings may include items that can be used like stones, coins or even sand and dirt.

Using these items is simple as it only takes a handful of dirt thrown in the eyes of an attacker to get him to release you so that he can grab at his eyes. When you can use stones or rocks with sharp edges, you can hit into the calf of the attacker or even better aim for the groin area where you can do even more damage.

Whatever is within reach can be used to really cause enough force for your attacker to back off, leave you alone or at least provide you with release so that you can get out of the situation.

Sprays That Can Be Used

It is important for any woman to carry some type of spray in their purse that can be used to hurt or even blind her attacker long enough for her to get out of the way. A good option is pepper spray. Other options that you may have in your purse include any type of aerosol can, tear gas, hair spray, perfumes, or even a can of spray paint sitting near enough to you.

Using sprays can be difficult, especially if they have a lid on them. You should practice using them, for this reason. With just one hand, try to get the lid off of the can using the ground or any other method that you can.

Practice getting the spray can in the right position and aiming for a specific target. This will help you to know that you have the skill to use this tool. You should also practice opening up the zipper of your purse to get the can out of it so that you can use it. Or, practice carrying a smaller can of pepper spray on your keychain to use.

Weapons to Strike With

There are many additional weapons that you can use that are likely to be in your area when you are attacked. These are things that you can use to strike your attacker.

Items like pencils and pens, knives, any type of pointed object or even using your cell phone can help you. To use these items, reach for them, and use all of your force to hit the most sensitive areas of a man's body. This will help you to get the most result for the one or two strikes that you can take. Once you hit someone like this, get out of the area as fast as you can.

Again, practicing is necessary here. Pick up your cell phone now. How can you hold it and use it as a weapon? While you do not want to break the cell phone now, realize that in a bad situation, it can prove to be an ideal weapon that allows you to get away!

What Objects Do You Have?

Often times, the best weapons are those that you already have on your body that can be used to help you to get away from someone by inflicting pain on them.

One thing to note about weapons of this nature is this. Today it has become increasingly common for women to carry some type of actual weapon on them and even noticeably so in an effort to protect themselves. This could be a risk that you are taking, though. There are many laws about concealing these weapons and when you do not conceal them but place them on your body, they can be used against you.

The good news is that there are many weapons that can be used successfully that are fully legal to carry and that provide you with the same benefits as many of the weapons that you have found otherwise.

Some of these weapons we have talked about such as using the coins in your pocket or your cell phone. Many more objects are on your body potentially.

For example, whip off your belt and use it to defend yourself. You can use it as a whip with the buckle being the largest benefit to striking someone.

You can use your clothing to help you. By taking off your jacket, you may be able to get away. If not, you can wrap the jacket around the attacker's neck to choke them so that you can get away. Or, you can use the same jacket to blind them so that they can not see what you are doing or where you are.

Use Your Purse

A good option for you to use that you may be carrying is your purse. Your purse itself can be a weapon that works in your favor. You can easily swing and hit a man with it. When you do this and hit his groin, you can hit in hard enough for him to fall to the ground while you escape.

Also, look inside your purse; do so right now. What is in there that can help you to get away from an attacker? Thinks like your hair brush, your eye liner pencil, and your perfume all can be used. Use a hair brush to scratch at the attacker's eyes. You can use your lipstick case as a tool to hit the eyes of the attacker.

Again, all of these tools can be aimed at the groin to cause additional damage to their body and cause them to fall. When they fall, you can get out of the situation fast.

Using Various Angles to Attack

Now that you have some idea of what you have on you that can cause you to attack your attacker, plan on how you can use them in the best method possible.

For example, let's say that you have your cell phone in hand. How can you hold in it various ways to inflict the damage that you need to? This may be in such ways as holding the antenna outwards, or flipping the phone over so that you can use the flat side of it to hit with.

Hold your phone in your hand now. Turn it around and around and see which options you have that can offer you the help that you need in this situation. As you can see, there are many potential ways for you to use one item to your benefit. Try this with several of the objects we have listed so that you can see how they will benefit you in the right situation.

Where Can You Strike?

All objects that we have talked about can be used to your advantage. But, where can you use them? There are often various ways that you can do so to get a good strike in any type of confrontation.

For example, start with that cell phone again. You can use the pointed antenna to stab the attacker in the eye, in the gut or even in the groin to inflict maximum pain on them.

Or, if you can get it flat in your hand, try to use it in an upward jab to their nose area. That's more effective than you hand can be but ideal for getting them to the ground quickly.

Again, take the other items on your person or in your purse and look at the various ways that you can use them to attack someone. You may find that you can do this with great force too. The more objects you practice with the more likely you will be successful at defending yourself against the attacker.

Tip 32: Teach Yourself To React

One of the keys to being successful at defending yourself from an attacker knows that you have to react. If you simply sit there and let them do what they want, they realize that you are scared of them and that gives them the power over the situation.

Studies show that if you fight back and if you do try to get away you are more likely to live through the attack that you are facing. Sitting there makes you the victim.

For this reason, you need to do whatever you can to prevent yourself from being that victim and knowing what is surrounding you that can help is the prime method for making this happen. Take the time to see what you have in your environment and react to it.

Practicing can help you to become prepared in this manner. It gives you and your body the chance of escaping when desperate situations happen.

Practice in Your Situations

Go through your normal days. What do you do on an average weekday or weekend?

Step by step you should think about the situation and even live in it. For example, if you usually head to work at 6 am and you park your car outdoors, then one of your first potential problem areas is walking from your home to that car.

What objects are in your area or on your body that can be your weapons of defense in this type of situation? Could you take an umbrella with you to the car to use to hit someone? Perhaps you can carry sprays in your hand to protect you?

Do this same thing throughout your day. At each step of your day, have a mentally prepared plan of what you could do to get away from an attacker should they attack you in that place.

Determine which weapons are in the area that you can grab and use. Be sure that you have the tools and the practice in play in each of these situations to see yourself moving from being the victim to being the successful woman getting away from the attacker.

In conclusion to this chapter, realize that it is up to you to defend yourself. Yet, most women already have all that they need to do that in their purse, on their bodies and in their environment. There is little need then to carry weapons that can cause problems legally or even physically for you.

Protecting your body is up to you. Practicing what methods and ways you can do this is an essential part of getting away from your attacker. Take the time right now to plan how you can get away from an attacker at each step of your normal week day and weekend day. You'll be more likely to survive an attack when you do this.