Know yourself

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The first word in self-defense…

A central philosophy of You Defense is the simple truth of “I am not you.” My situations and problems are not your situations and problems; therefore, my solutions cannot automatically be your solutions.

A central philosophy of You Defense is the simple truth of “I am not you.” My situations and problems are not your situations and problems; therefore, my solutions cannot automatically be your solutions.

To truly teach self-defense courses, the students must be in charge of defining their needs and goals. If a class teaches physical “self-defense” without this awareness, the class is merely “body defense” (if you have the same body type as the instructor!) At best, such a class is effectively useless for preparing you to defend your safety in your situations.  At worse, it can be incredibly damaging to the core of who you are.

You Defense curriculum is customized by asking questions about you. The martial arts course content generated by these questions is taught collaboratively, and expanded to all areas of your life through group discussions and mock-situations.  Student feedback is obtained throughout the course, ensuring the course provides training appropriate for where you are.

 

 

Who Are You?

The Individual-Self

You Defense challenges you to effectively wield the vast resources at your disposal in defense of who you are; your Individual-Self!  Truly asking yourself “who am I” can transform you, unlocking abilities of self-defense you never thought possible!  It allows you to fully become the creator and the director of your story, your narrative, and your fight!

Your Body

Your body is the first, and most obvious, barrier between what is considered “you” and what is considered “not you.”  Attacks against the body are the most easily seen, and most easily countered. When connected to your body, your brain recognizes and responds to threats using the immense speed of procedural (muscle) memory. 

Your Brain

Your brain is the command center of your physical body.  Your brain is an amazing organ with immensely powerful survival abilities. We are not computers, though. Using knowledge of how our brain works to store, interpret, and recall information with memory and emotion based processing makes this course singularly effective.  Structuring training around the naturally effective ways our brain responds to attack situations fully empowers your individual-self in any situation

Your Brain

You mind is the final part of your individual-self, and is at the core of your identity, how you think, and how you act.  Allowing yourself the space to deliberately prepare and protect your mind for attack situations creates a resiliency and determination to support who you are.  Inviting the mind to be the foundation of your individual-self magnifies your ability to recognize and respond to any attack situations you encounter!

 

Where Are You?

The Community-Self

All of us exist in communities of human relationships.  We are part of cultures and subcultures.  We have families and friends.  Our thoughts create actions, and our actions can create thoughts.  In short; we’re complicated, and that’s ok! You Defense challenges your perceptions of where you are attacked, and empowers your responses to the attack situations you identify. 

Individual-Self

The attacks experienced by your individual self can be physical attacks from another person/individual-self.  The attacks can also be internal from the thoughts, opinions, and messages you hear within your mind.

Situational-Self

The situational-self is your immediate physical surroundings.  The attacks (and defenses) can be the people around you, physical objects near you, the places in which you find yourself, or events that are occurring. 

Relational-Self

The relational self refers to the rules you follow and the people with whom you have close relationships.  To defend your relational self requires strong individual-self knowledge and subtle situational self-awareness.

Social-Self

The social self is the image which we project to others.  It is our identity and behavior. The attacks and defenses here involve the scripts we all are given when behaving in public and private.  

Cultural-Self

The cultural self is the million-dollar question.  It’s the realization that high heels were originally men’s wear, and that the(un)attractiveness of a women’s armpit hair was arbitrarily created by an advertising campaign. In short, it is the arbitrary set of rules that apply to our lives for no reason other than the random situations into which we are born!

What do you want?

A central philosophy of You Defense is the simple truth of “I am not you.”  This means that my situations are not your situations. Because my situations are uniquely mine, the solutions I create and attempt are exclusively mine.  If a class only teaches “my (the curriculum’s) answers” to “my (the curriculum’s) problems” that class has serious problems.  At best, such a class is effectively useless for preparing you to defend your safety in your situations.  At worse, it can be incredibly damaging to the core of who you are.

The customization of You Defense curriculum takes place before the course in order to customize its technical content. Initial surveys can anonymously gauge student needs and general expectations. During the course, instructors use group discussion as well as student access to feedback forms to ensure the course provides resources appropriate for where the students are.  After the course, students are encouraged to remain part of the YOU Defense community. By sharing our experiences, challenges, and triumphs we can build a dynamic and vibrant community of safety!

 

What do you need?

The last question listed is the first to be considered in course creation.  You Defense self-defense courses are focused on providing you the tools and support you need to effectively defend who you are. Providing accurate knowledge of how you may be threatened is a vital part of this focus.  

Qualitative information – subjective experiences unique to you – are vital to connect the defense of your individual-self to the defense of your situational-self. Your input is vital in creating a vibrant course curriculum that meets your needs.  You are the only expert in your experience, after all. 

Quantitative information – objective facts – are also critical in building an appropriate curriculum.  The goal of these elements is to focus your attention on self-defense thoughts and concerns that you might not be aware of.  You Defense self-defense courses are founded in facts to best prepare your individual-self to challenge attack situations. If the quantitative reality changes, so will the course focus!