"Self preservation training exists somewhere between tight black shorts and camaflouge pants."

-Demi Barbito

The word that best describes self preservation training is "reluctancy". There is a great sense of reluctance when it comes to violence. Violence causes immeadiate problems and secondary problems that ripple far beyond the self defense encounter. When it comes to fighting we know that the best laid plans do not survive first contact. So, consistant with that fact, no one is prepared for everything and anything could happen. Something that I routinly hasten to point out is that violence does not comform to any image. It is dynamic and ruthless in nature. Self preservation deals with being forced to respond to the immeadiacy of violence and doing what is neeed to STOP THE VIOLENCE. We need to keep in mind the totality of the circumstances. There can be no standardized way of doing things that excludes viable defense options due to preference, image or indifference.

This is not self defense. Self defense is a limited response to a limited threat. Self preservation is training to stop the violence against anyone, anywhere, anytime with anything, under any circumstances. We are not looking to fight. The goal is to launch a viscious counter assault and escape.

Threat Recognition

Self Preservation training begins with Threat Recognition and threat recognition begins with asking the question "Am I a threat to myself"? An example of being a threat to yourself would be thinking you can do things you would not normally do because you know martial arts. If you think that violence is a viable first option because you're prepared you're a threat to yourself. If you think that you can go places you would have normally avoided you are a threat to yourself. Self preservation training is not empowerment training. It doesn't allow you to act in a notorious, disgracefull or unlawfull manner. Other examples of threat recognition would be dealing with darkness, architechture, strangers etc. We need to think out certain situations in advance and have an idea of potential ways of dealing with them. For darkness we carry small, high powered, personal combat lights. With architechture you need to understand extreme angles. Interacting with strangers may require that you maintain an acceptable space cushion and understand pre assault set ups. The point here is that one must recognize potential threats before they materialize and make attempts to avoid them or at least be prepared, in some measure, to deal with them.

Unarmed Counter Assault Tactics

Weapons

This is a large part of self preservation training. Predators tend to look for victims, not challenges. They employ weapons and multiple opponents on the weak and the innocent because they are simply looking to impose their violent will upon others. One needs to be able to methodically use weapons and improvise weapons whenever possible. Likewise one needs to be able to counter weapons empty handed. Unarmed against weapons has been an area of neglect for many martial arts programs. Stick and knife training, offensive and defense, is vital for realistic self preservation. In our weapons training we use methods from Filipino Kali as well as other practicals that have come out of years of training. The goal of the weapons work is not to duel but to stop the violence. We also train to integrate modern weapons. Modern weapons would include OC spray and white light with strike bezels. These are very effective, practical items that play a role in self preservation training. Pepper spray and white light training does not boil down to "point and shoot". Understanding the strengths and weaknesses and specific tactics of each is a must. Another area of understanding is using weapons against an unarmed assailant. A woman defending herself against a larger, more aggressive, determined attacker must be prepared to use a weapon, as a first option, to stop the threat. Weapons against unarmed is an area the applies to other situations like multiple opponents. Some might argue that if you have a weapon you are going to win anyway so why even train this option? The reality is that weapons can be countered, dissarmed or otherwise made uneffective by an empty handed opponent.

Psychological Applications

It is possible to create a "temporarily more dangerous" individual through self manipulation. The purpose is to mitigate any cowrdice that may hinder your ability to respond to a threat. We call this Psychological Ammunition. You can be temporarily meaner, stronger and more tolerant to pain through a certain singlemindedness that comes through specific training methods. Integrating the physical tactics with the psychological is a difficult part of the training for many people. If you have no experience training this way the first time you get pumped psychologically or emotionally in a violent event your tactics may fall apart. It's not a matter of just "freaking out". The training is much more methodical than that. Psychological ammunition training promotes the ability to become spontaneously dangerous. There must be a willingness to become fierce for the sake of self preservation. This is an area that has been largely ignored by the self defense community. Some have made an attempt to delve into this area but far too often it is over complicated or unrealistic.

There was a time, about fifteen years ago, when I found myself desperately enthralled with all things martial. After a time, the reality of violence forced me to seperate the wheat from the chaff. Modern self preservation training, a program that is concerned with the totality of the circumstances, is the result. You cannot follow any ideology over a cliff. That's why there are so many options in the training. It is the methodical integration of these options that makes self preservation training functional and unique.